Obama affirms teh gay.

[Lukie]

There are certainly forms of racing which don't require much fitness, afaik. Drag racing you can be pretty out of shape. But any sort of racing with speed, corners, and enough required time on the track is going to be extremely demanding physically. Countering G-forces while muscling the car around the track is a serious work out. Not to mention you're likely doing this in >100° heat.

Then motorcycle racing takes it to the next level. You're entire body is involved in throwing a several hundred pound machine from side to side as gravity, gyroscopic effect, and g-forces are fighting against you.

So yeah, not every form of racing has the same demands, but check out Moto GP, F1, motorcycle enduro races, SuperMotoCross, and find a fat slob who is competing. If you want to continue to post funny reaction pictures and sleep in your bed of ignorance, so be it... not much more I can say to enlighten you.

I don't know that I have ever seen a team pull a winning driver out of the car, and the winner collapses to the ground out of sheer exhaustion... like you might see after a marathon.

Likewise I'm not so sure that I have ever seen a racer's arm put into a sling because it is so tired after muscling the car around for a couple hours (was that some kind of joke, or do those cars really not have power steering?)

On hot days cold air is being pumped directly into the drivers' helmets and suits.

It is possible, maybe even probable, that every single person that has responded in this thread, with some training, has the physical skills necessary to compete at the highest levels of NASCAR. Or at least they could be trained. 100 pound females and 70 year old men have the physical ability to compete at the highest levels of racing, something that would be virtually impossible in other sports where physical ability is of utmost importance.

No I think NASCAR is mostly about MENTAL prowess and conditioning. That is the performance enhancing drugs of the sport are not anabolic steroids and related substances, they are amphetamines.

Motorcycle racing seems somewhat unique, as it is a blend of human and machine performance. There is obviously tremendous physical skill required in manipulating a motorbike at competition levels.

For what it's worth, your comparison of wii tennis:real tennis to my comparison of simulating racing:real racing was deserving of the Cosby confused meme. I would compare wii tennis:real tennis to more like madden:real football.

I am not trying to disparage racing drivers. And there is a certain point to be made that there is an overlap between body and mind. One extension of this is that extremes of mental "decision fatigue" can wear you down physically. I have personally experienced this in games like poker and chess, where playing for long periods of time tend to be very draining. That is much different than sitting down and watching TV. I know that Brian Townsend and Patrik Antonius were big on physical fitness for poker players to help remain sharp despite long and tiring sessions. You see the same thing in chess, or professional starcraft competition. It obviously applies to racecar driving as well.