Life In The Fast Lane: The rigors of competing on the NASCAR circuit

For those on the outside who don’t follow NASCAR racing on the big stage may look as if drivers simply drive around in a giant oval not presenting much of a challenge for drivers.

However, as Trevor Bayne explains, life in the fast lane isn’t as easy as some may think.

“It’s a lot more than most people think the toll that it takes on your body.”

A NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race can consist of anywhere from 300 to 600 laps.

Spanning the course of four hours.

Which Bayne says during race season, feels like an eternity.

“These races are really hot, really long. A lot of G-forces.” And “the heat in the car is around 130 degrees so we’re losing five to ten pounds of water weight.”

As if heat wasn’t enough, other factors can effect the amount of strain each driver endures throughout a race.

One of those factors is the track.

Venues like Dover’s Monster Mile feature a shorter one-mile track, with a concrete surface, presenting drivers with increased speeds on a shorter track.

Because of Dover’s shorter track, drivers don’t have as much time to physically recover on straight aways.

In addition, Bayne says the racecar presents it own set of difficulties.

He said, “You’re also really hustling the racecar with the steering wheel.” and “they
(the racecars) don’t handle great at these kinds of racetracks.”

The amount of G-Forces each driver takes on during a race also plays a factor in a driver’s fatigue.

G-Forces measure the amount stress on the body during rapid acceleration.

For example one G is the force of gravity acting on the body.

But while making a turn on the race track that amount is multiplied by up to five times.

One of the only ways driver’s can approach these physical obstacles is by being in peak condition prior to the start of race season.

“For me it starts in the offseason. Obviously you don’t think about the race the next weekend and say I gotta train for this one, you start that in the offseason.” Says Bayne.

And according to Bayne, if a driver isn’t in good enough shape, they’re in trouble.

“you want to go sit down on the pit road wall, pass out, and die I think.”

Trevor also tells 47 ABC that the only thing he can compare racing on the NASCAR circuit to is flying in an F-16 jet, which also exposes occupants to several G forces.