What Does NASCAR Stand For?

NASCAR is the organization that was formed to oversee racing, to make rules and to make sure that the racecars met uniform specifications. The organization was formed in 1947 by a group of lawyers, auto mechanics, drivers, car owners and promoters. NASCAR originally stood for National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing. It was formed on February 21, 1948.

NASCAR races of today have come along way from their beginnings. While drivers maintained and funded their own cars and teams in the beginning, NASCAR racing has become a commercial business. Today, in order to get involved in the racing circuit it is estimated that a car and driver must have at least $10 million to even enter.

Some of this is easy to generate by selling advertising space on the car or driver’s uniform to place the sponsors logo, but much of it must be drawn from investors that believe the car and driver have a better than average chance of winning.

NASCAR Races

Today, NASCAR races are run on a circuit that extends into the north, along the eastern seaboard, across the south and into midwestern America. The circuit has gone beyond the bounds of the U.S. south to include a number of international locations. Both Mexico and Canada now have major racing series. In total, there are five major circuits in existence and many regional circuits for aspiring professional drivers. The NASCAR racing committee governs all NASCAR races in this and other countries around the world.

In 2009, the committee sanctioned 1500 races on 100 tracks and conducted in 39 states. They have also organized exhibition races in two Japanese cities and one in Melbourne, Australia. Regardless of the phenomenal growth of the racing industry, it does pay to remember that the whole thing started with a bunch of men with fast cars trying to be the best moonshine runners. Of course, the honor of being the fastest didn’t hurt the ego any.

Since the formation of the NASCAR organization, this style of racing has all become legal and doesn’t involve breaking the law.

The Beginnings of Nascar

The whole idea of NASCAR racing came about in the 1930s and 1940s. The country was under prohibition and fearless drivers with fast cars were running illegal liquor from the makers to the sellers.

The government was constantly trying to enforce the laws concerning alcohol, but they had to catch the makers in the act or interrupt the supply line by catching the transporters. The transporters thus had to have cars that were modified from the factory issued vehicles in order to outrun the police. This required cars that could exceed speeds of at least 95 mph.

Bootleggers and Races

The predecessors to the NASCAR racing circuit were the races organized by the bootleggers themselves. They would organize a cross-country distance type race to earn prestige and honor as the fastest bootlegger in the area.

During the mid 1940s, racing became more formal and an organized sport began in Daytona, Florida. Racing had been going for a number of years when one of the participants decided that the races needed to be formalized in such a way that there were some rules and vehicle specifications that would form the basis of this form of racing.