Fans vs Haters, The Great Debate

As with any Major League sport, NASCAR has long been the breeding ground of on track rivalries.  Drivers have an on track incident which follows into the garage, words are exchanged, punches may fly, they may even spend some time in the NASCAR hauler.  Those rivalries run over to their fans as well. Fans of one driver poking fun at the drivers that other fans pull for.  It is not uncommon at tracks around the country to hear fans poking fun and tossing jabs back and forth, friends and strangers alike.

But in this day and age of anonymous internet postings, the fun poking and good natured ribbing has been taken to a new level.  Now I am sure that these people have always existed, but they never really had a forum with which to spew their derision so far and wide, without the possibility of taking a haymaker to the face from someone who took their comment personally.  Haters are simply looking for attention, and their method for getting that attention is to make anonymous posts on other peoples fan pages or fan sites and run away.  Posting pictures or profanity on forums boards and facebook pages, tweeting anonymous comments from twitter accounts, these people are very brave in their anonymity.  Page administrators have a busy task ahead of them trying to stay on top of the hate posts and removing them and/or banning the poster who, in most cases, is posting from a hastily made fake account.

Often these haters will try to make it out as if their drivers they are posting about have the same feelings as they do.  Claiming that Dale Earnhardt Jr. hates Kyle Busch, or that Ryan Newman and Juan Montoya are planning to meet out behind the school yard after the race. It is grade school mentality that we, as adults, should have grown out of years ago.  The level of maturity displayed by these anonymous posters is about equal to that of a teenager in high school, a mean girl if you will.  The only way they know to make themselves feel better is to tear down something that they know others love.  To make others feel badly is the only happiness that they can understand.  To b honest, these hater need help.

True fans take the time to get to know the subject of their adoration and the qualities they display.  They are drawn to a personality and the way they handle adversity, or any tough situation is shown by them backing their drivers even more.

Here's just 2 examples.

Dale Earnhardt Jr has not been to victory lane in almost 4 years. 138 starts to be exact.  However his fans are behind him, not because he is on a winning streak, but because they see how he has handled the situation.  Fans pull for him because he is not seen whining or complaining and blaming others for his bad luck, but taking responsibility for his mistakes, and having an "it is what it is" attitude for the things beyond his control.

Dale Earnhardt Jr is probably the driver under the largest of media spotlights after being voted the most popular by the fans for 9 years running.  The media scrums where he is available are the busiest at the track, and the attention focused on him is immeasurable.  Yet he handles the pressure with grace under fire.  He may lash out with his words if something happens on the track, but he always talks it out with the driver he had issue with.  We've seen this with Mark Martin, Jeff Gordon, and even Kyle Busch.  Those qualities are what draws his fans in and keeps them pulling for him week in and week out.

Tony Stewart is known for his surly attitude towards the media, and sometimes even the fans.  If you catch him in a good mood at the track, he is a great guy to talk to.  If you catch him with what he perceives as a silly question, he will let you know in no uncertain terms.  Yet the 3 time and current reigning champion has a loyal fanbase who recognize that no one is perfect.

With a nickname like Smoke do you expect him to have an easy temper?  Stewart has made gaffes at track that have made some media members reluctant to talk to him, photographers stop shooting him, and fans walk away mad, but at least he is consistent.  But when it all comes down to it, Stewart is simply saying exactly what he feels.  He is blunt, he is honest, and he tells it like he sees it.  That is what his fans see in him and that is why they are drawn to him.

Then there is the other side of the coin.  The drivers who draw the haters to their side, the drivers who enjoy the boos from the crowd as much as others enjoy the cheers.  The Busch brothers are an excellent example here.

Both of the Busch brothers have had numerous encounters with the media and other drivers.  Both of these brothers have immense skill behind the wheel which no one can deny, their attitudes towards the fans and media however have left them with a very limited fan base, and even gets them booed ant their home track in Las Vegas.  You do not have to think hard to remember something that one of them has done that has taken up space in the media.

At the conclusion of the 2011 season Kurt Busch was caught on camera by a fan as he ranted at Dr Jerry Punch because it was taking too long to go live with the broadcast.  Dr Punch, to his credit, walked away and gave Busch no press time.  That incident combined with flipping off the camera in his car in the same race was too much for his team owner to handle.  Roger Penske terminated the contract and left Kurt without a ride as he entered into the 2012 season.

Kyle Busch's name is synonymous with controversy.  Where ever he goes the boos follow. His infamy is only outweighed by his sullen attitude at the track.  Last season it almost looked as if he had finally matured and grown out of his immature rants when something bad happened on the track, until he decided to run Ron Hornaday into the wall in a truck race while under caution.  Unable to control his frustration with what was a simple racing deal on the track, Kyle Busch let his temper and anger get the better of him and destroyed any good feelings the fans had been developing towards him for an entire season, in the 3 seconds it took him to lose his temper.

Now look at the fans these 2 different driver types draw to them.

Earnhardt fans and Stewart fans are true and loyal to their driver.  They don't necessarily bash other drivers, but they will defend their drivers if you talk bad about them.  They will admit the failings of their drivers and know their weak points, but pull for their driver regardless and make no apologies for their failings, but understand that they are not perfect and can make mistakes.  As long as their drivers make amends or honest apologies for their actions that are deemed heart felt, the fans stay with them and keep pulling for them week after week.

Busch Brother's fans however are few and far between.  They draw the annoying element of the fanbase at the tracks to their sides.  They type of people who revel in the negativity and enjoy the in your face conflict that their drivers bring in tow wherever they travel.  Where Jr and Stewart are in the running for most popular driver each and every season, the Busch Brothers are names never mentioned.

A quick look at facebook will show the difference.  Kyle Busch's official page has just a bit over 90 000 fans, Dale Jr has 1.3 million and multiple fan run fanpages.  Kurt Busch has no official presence on facebook, and Tony Stewart has almost 450 000 fans.

Another glance at Kyle Busch's page shows very little fan support even when he wins a race.  Dale Jr however has people wishing him luck week in and week out even after a 138 race losing streak.

So what conclusions can we draw from this?  Well much like politicians, the ones who are most charismatic and seem to be the most honest are the ones who are the winners.  In the case of fans and haters, the fans are the ones wishing well, the haters are the ones who's limited vocabularies leave them with nothing but profanity to defend themselves.  The haters are generally uninformed and angry people.  The fans take the time to learn about their drivers, and back them for the good qualities as well as their skill on the track.

So remember NASCAR fans, as you interact with fans of other drivers, be a fan, and not a hater.  Show your colors, wear them with pride.  Find the good in the people you pull for and ignore the negative.  Be true to yourself and set a good example for the others around you.  Ignore the name calling and cheap shots from the haters, rise above, and don't give them the attention they are looking for.