I'm not the biggest Nascar fan but I've been to a few races at Martinsville & Richmond in VA. What really got me pumped about watching the racing in-person was the roar of those V8's as they circled the track and the crazy wrecks that happened every 20 odd laps!
Honestly, I hate watching it on TV as all they do is circle a track making left turns all day (only two races each year are on a road course).
I guess it comes down to personal taste. I prefer to watch Formula 1, CART or even Indy. Grand Am/ GT racing on Speed Channel is also waaaay more interesting to me.
-Chike