Nascar Crash Videos = Family Fun?

Two years ago my friend BJ was telling me about the new kid who was cutting her yard. She said, “He is beautiful. He looks just like Kasey Kahne.” I said, “Who?” She said, “Kasey Kahne.” I said, “Who?” She said, “Kasey Kahne. You know, the Nascar driver.” No, I didn’t know. She said, “Oh, you will. Just wait.”

And she was right. In the same subtle way that I somehow figured out the basics of football by sitting in the same room with my husband during games, I slowly learned who was who in Nascar because my son had become a rabid fan.

(By the way, we didn’t see much of Talladega this weekend because the weather was just too nice to stay in and watch TV. But Rick got a Tweet about the ending so we caught it on YouTube. Thank God Carl Edwards survived that wreck, and a shame he doesn’t get credit for crossing the finish line on foot!)

When races weren’t on and Truman was begging to see one, Rick did the next best thing. He turned on YouTube. This is where it became controversial. The YouTube videos my husband began showing Truman – which he, of course, began to fall in love with at the ripe age of barely 4 – were Nascar crash videos. He loved the music. He loved the cars. He loved the crashes. I could barely watch. Many of those poor drivers were getting hurt and killed. I would show Truman’s favorites but they pulled the songs because of licensing issues. So here is the one he most recently enjoyed. Tell me, would you let your 4/5-year-old watch this?

screenshot & video credits:
Talladega 2009 photo & screenshot, Candy Tyrrell
Nascar Crash video, VanzVizuals