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What Do The NASCAR Drivers On 'Race For The Championship' Do For Hobbies?
"Race For The Championship" shows the NASCAR drivers on the track, as well as off it, where they engage is some pretty interesting hobbies.
“Race For The Championship” covers the lives of some of NASCAR’s top-performing Cup Series drivers both on and off the track, which got us wondering — what do NASCAR drivers do for fun when they’re not racing?
Well, the world of professional racing is a demanding one. There’s often not much time to do anything but train, travel, and drive. However, in the rare moments these athletes get to use some leisure time, they typically go big and engage in some intense and at times competitive hobbies.
In an effort to get to know the drivers on “Race For The Championship” on a more personal level, below is a rundown of just some of the hobbies that NASCAR drivers engage in when they can’t be racing with each other.
Classic Car Collecting And Restoration
Obviously, if anyone is a fan of professional racing, they’ve got a penchant for cars. So, naturally, a lot of that prize money goes back into a car collection. There are many drivers whose garages boast several beautiful classic cars — specifically, Daniel Suarez and Joey Logano love showing off their collections.
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Logano recently showed off some of his more impressive cars during the premiere episode of the E! Web series “Drive,” where he not only let host Austin J. Mills inspect his cars, but took him for a ride that included some donuts in the parking lot.
Flying Planes
If you dedicate your life to professional racing, it's likely you’ve got a need for speed. Well, it doesn’t get faster than air travel.
According to Essentially Sports, Chase Elliott shares his father’s passion for flying planes on an amateur level. Chase even owns his own small plane that he takes out regularly just to relax. It’s funny to think that someone’s job could be so high-octane that going up into the air to fly a small aircraft is what relaxes you, but such is the way for people like the Elliott family.
Acting
While it might not be a traditional hobby, NASCAR drivers' celebrity status among fans often opens doors for them in Hollywood to appear in movies and TV. For example, the 2017 movie "Logan Lucky” featured cameos from drivers like Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Ryan Blaney, Logano, Kyle Larson, and Brad Keselowski. Blaney, meanwhile, also has credits in “The Crew” on Netflix, “Cars 3” and the “Taken” television spinoff.
For those who love to see what their favorite racer does off the track, it's interesting to see them take on an entirely different skillset when it comes to acting on-camera. However, it must be fun for them because drivers keep flocking to the craft.
Podcasting
Adjacent to the limelight of appearing in movies and TV is the world of podcasting, and there is perhaps no Cup Series driver more into that game than Corie LaJoie, who has a NASCAR-sanctioned podcast “Stacking Pennies.” Each week, he discusses his own journey trying to take home the championship as well as talking with other drivers about all things professional racing and NASCAR.
Not only does it offer fans of NASCAR another outlet to steep themselves in the world, but it allows LaJoie to do something with his off time besides stressing about the next race. While it’s not exactly a detachment from work, it’s certainly a new place to pour his creative energies.
Golfing
“Race For The Championship” catches the drivers hitting the links on more than one occasion. If one is a golf enthusiast, the travel schedule of a professional NASCAR driver allows them to be adjacent to some of the best courses the United States has to offer. Each weekend, the gang finds themselves in a new town where it’s easy to get a tee time and work on your short and long game.
Golf is a highly competitive sport but it’s also a pretty slow one. Therefore, it’s perfect for any driver who wants to relax while still scratching their itch to be the best at something.
You can watch the drivers engage in some of these activities every Thursday at 10 p.m. ET/PT on USA Network.
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