When in Rome...

Last night I was flipping through the channels and came across the movie Ben-Hur. It's one of those movies that I always have to watch a little bit of whenever it's on. In this case, I tuned in just in time to catch the famous chariot race scene. It got me thinking, you know those Romans were truly ahead of their time.

Take for example the Circus Maximus, where the race was held. They ran the races in what amounts to an oval. Smart, very smart. Of course they were running on sand, it was a horse race after all. However sand isn't too far removed from dirt. Point being here is that it was a natural surface they were running on. Another thing, the races were short. In the movie it was only a nine lap affair. Obviously this counts as sprint. And, unlike today's horse racing, the Romans required more horsepower and a vehicle for the driver. So chariot racing is closer to racing a vehicle than racing a horse. Speaking of their chariots, it should be noted that not a fender was seen among the field. So they were completely open wheeled.

So let’s take a score here. Oval track? Check. Natural driving surface? Check. A short length race? Check. An open wheeled vehicle for the drivers? Check. Well that settles it for me, the Romans would have been sprint car fans. Am I sick for making these parallels between modern day sprint cars and ancient Rome as depicted in a major Hollywood movie? Probably. I'm OK with that. The next time you're at a sprint car race, remember the Romans probably would appreciate the entertainment you're watching. This season while you're at Knoxville, or Eldora, or any other track, do as the Romans do.