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jason_recliner (Online)
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Bathurst 2022
The "Great Race" is on this weekend. It's amazing to me how much car racing in general, and this race in particular, has lost relevance. For the uninitiated, Bathurst is a race that has almost always been about Holden vs Ford - brands that produced the most popular cars in Australia for several decades. They stopped manufacturing in 2017 (I think) and Holden ceased to exist as a brand in 2021 (I think). This is the last season that Holden-branded cars will race.
I grew up in Adelaide, where Holdens were produced. A mate worked there and a couple of mates owned Holdens. Most years we'd go to their homes, drink beers, smoke cones, and watch the "Great Race". The beers and cones made watching cars driving round in circles interesting!
It's a stark contrast to Bathurst 2022. Fords are still popular here - Ranger utes. You can't buy a Holden. Mainstream Aussie culture has changed so much. People don't want to spend their limited free time watching cars driving around, they want to watch sport. Or play sport. And everybody plays sport (or at least goes to the gym).
I live in a fairly working class suburb (although gentrifying). I popped down to my favourite bar because I was hoping to see some of the race on their 300" screen. They are playing influencers cliff diving in Cyprus or something. I didn't ask the owner to put the race on as I would be embarrassed. So I went to the 'bogan bistro', as one of the waitresses once described it to me. Still not showing - I asked the managed to put it on for me.
Apart from the fact that car racing is almost completely unrelatable (unless you are rich and drive racing cars in your spare time) I can see why nobody wants to watch this any more. The Laver Cup is showing on the next screen and there's more action in one point than in 15 minutes of Bathurst. And there are ZERO displays of superhuman fitness, endurance, strength, or skill in 12 hours of Bathurst. Too bad I don't smoke joints any more...
Is televised car racing dying? I think so.
I grew up in Adelaide, where Holdens were produced. A mate worked there and a couple of mates owned Holdens. Most years we'd go to their homes, drink beers, smoke cones, and watch the "Great Race". The beers and cones made watching cars driving round in circles interesting!
It's a stark contrast to Bathurst 2022. Fords are still popular here - Ranger utes. You can't buy a Holden. Mainstream Aussie culture has changed so much. People don't want to spend their limited free time watching cars driving around, they want to watch sport. Or play sport. And everybody plays sport (or at least goes to the gym).
I live in a fairly working class suburb (although gentrifying). I popped down to my favourite bar because I was hoping to see some of the race on their 300" screen. They are playing influencers cliff diving in Cyprus or something. I didn't ask the owner to put the race on as I would be embarrassed. So I went to the 'bogan bistro', as one of the waitresses once described it to me. Still not showing - I asked the managed to put it on for me.
Apart from the fact that car racing is almost completely unrelatable (unless you are rich and drive racing cars in your spare time) I can see why nobody wants to watch this any more. The Laver Cup is showing on the next screen and there's more action in one point than in 15 minutes of Bathurst. And there are ZERO displays of superhuman fitness, endurance, strength, or skill in 12 hours of Bathurst. Too bad I don't smoke joints any more...
Is televised car racing dying? I think so.
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