Why are fans of NASCAR so afraid of all things foreign? We head to Montreal today, where English is a second language to Francais, where the track makes you turn left AND right, and you would think we were going to hell. The Busch series drivers took the track for the first time north of the border in the first of four practices, and I am hearing fans calling in to radio shows that seem to think by heading to Canada we are betraying all that is to be loved about the sport.

Reutimann gets racy at Villeneuve

I don't get it? Since when were we afraid of Canadians? Don't we play the Canadian anthem at Michigan every year? Don't we embrace Ron Fellows when he comes to take the track in Sonoma and Watkins Glen?

Don't they make some of the best beer out there? (Brador anyone?)

I have a good friend who is in training to join the RCMP...the mounties (Dudley Do Right beware....Mark is in your mirror...LOL). Last time I checked, Mark loved NASCAR as much, if not mroe, than I do. I hear fans from all over Canada call into the radio shows almost on a daily basis to talk racing. Some guy called in yesterday saying he was driving from Saskatchewan to Montreal for the race...the equivalent of a fan from Montana driving to Watkins Glen or Pocono.

I've heard some fans say going to Mexico earlier this year and Canda now just aren't American.

Actually..yeah, they are. Mexico is in Central America, and Canada is a part of the same continent we are. Technically, they are all Americans. They just aren't in the USA.

Back in the 90's, you might remember NASCAR headed west....way west. As in Japan. Dale Earnhardt led the contingent of drivers that included Rusty Wallace, Jeff Gordon, and Dale Junior, and they all raced in the rain in Japan. No one put a gun to their heads, and actually, from what I have heard, they all enjoyed the trip.

If it was good enough for the Intimidator, why can't it be good enough for the fans?

We have foreign drivers. Juan Pablo Montoya has been showing he is worthy of the ride he is in this year. Ron Fellows has been cross pollenating into NASCAR for nearly a decade, and wishes he could spend more time in our sport. There has been discussion of Sebastian Bourdais coming to NASCAR. Why can they race here, but we can't go race in their country?

Toyota joined the series this year in Cup and Busch, and you would have thought we let Satan himself on the track. Those "Yodies just aint 'Merican and we don't want 'em here".  Just where are those Monte Carlos and Fusions made folks? (look north and south of the border).

To me, Baseball is considered to be the #1 AMERICAN sport, (as American as mom's apple pie, right?), and yet there are players from everywhere, and the little league world series is truly that...WORLD. The NFL plays overseas in pre-season every year....and until recently, there was the NFL-Europe. The NBA has players from even more places....and a bunch of Americans go over to Europe in the off season to play over there just to keep in shape. Why is it, NASCAR is so centrist when all other sports are so much more open minded?

I'm a relatively new fan...one of those that has been called a Yuppie transient fan...except I have stuck around for nearly 4 years, with many more in my future...I go to races in person....I study the history of the sport....and I really don't give a damned where they race so long as they race. I have been to Mexico and Canada and Europe, and can say from first hand experience, they aren't scary folks. They can be just as excited about stock car racing as we can be...if we educated them about the sport. We have F-1 fans here in America, and F-1 comes over here to race once a year, although they seem to think they are too good for us, and we seem to take that as an insult...so why aren't we snobs for saying we are too good to go elsewhere?

It's a big bad world out there folks, and our sport is growing by leaps and bounds.  While I have no desire to lose races at our "classic" tracks...such as Bristol and Darlington and Richmond and Martinsville...I do think we can take away a race from Cali or Texas or New Hampshire or Michigan and reach out to broader venues.

The true test of popularity will be in how full the seats are this weekend at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. If we fill the seats like we do in Mexico, I say leave the race be. Spread the wealth. Share the excitement and enjoyment. Why be greedy when we can spread the love around?