It may not be super surprising given I grew up in the Deep South, that I was raised watching NASCAR. There was many an hour spent watching folks drive really fast in circles. It was a formative time in my life as we spent a lot of time with friends and family while watching these races. I remember those times very fondly.

What is often lost to folks on the outside is just how much strategy and drama goes into NASCAR. Between pit strategy, car strategy and a fair share of drama, there was a lot to keep one interested beyond folks “driving in circles.”

Being a bit more on the nerdy side of things, I’ve been aware of the excitement around Drive to Survive and F1 for years. I’ve also not been subscribed to Netflix for years, so I’ve not been able to jump into this phenomenon myself. I’ve had a curious eye toward F1 recently however, with Apple securing the streaming rights in the USA and GM entering the sport. These things coupled with me being on a 3 month free trial with my latest iPad purchase I figured I’d give a couple of races a try.

And then it was announced that Apple would be getting the latest season of Drive to Survive. What was a vague curiousity morphed into interest as I watched the first few episodes. This tickled all the same fun places in my brain as NASCAR growing up (strategy, drama), but also the much more interesting team dynamics and the ability for different teams to materially change the outcome of races. The combination of engineering puzzles, driver talent, and cars driving really fast was like catnip. Combine this with my kiddos loving the sport too, and it has a recipe for whole new level of enjoyment. I’m super excited to see what it brings!