A Racing Model Queen Competition was held in Seoul Olympic Parktel in Jamsil, Seoul on Sept. 21. In competition to pick up the award were 20 competitors with Barbie-like look and hourglass shapes. All wore a little bikini. These days, car show models are for some reason as popular as celebrities. Hundreds of fans follow them and cameras flash wherever they go: their popularity has earned them the nickname ¡°flowers¡± in the motoring world. The Chosun Ilbo met with a group of them and heard that behind the glamour lurks a more complex story.
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Car show girls stand beside a racing car. The work may look glamorous, but it¡¯s no laughing matter.
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¡°Sometimes races are held even in December. Though it¡¯s extremely cold, we have to cheer people at racing tracks wearing zest tops, hot pants or miniskirts,¡± said one. ¡°It feels like being frozen alive. It¡¯s really hard to work in very hot or cold weather, but we have to smile at all times, no matter how cold or hot it is.¡± Well, that sounds harsh, but most car show girls say it is more painful to endure harsh comments on their pictures on the web, the distorted image of racing models as sexually available and other prejudices.
Many auto show models are hurt by those defamations on the web. The physical discomfort becomes easier to endure, but hurt feelings don¡¯t heal so easily. Some consider quitting their job because of them, and every one of them has experienced this growing pain. But the momentum that keeps them going is the job opportunities, which are better than for other models. And, of course, the money. Along with cheering racers in racing tracks, publicizing cars at auto shows, they can work as models at exhibitions, fashion models and MCs.
Many dream of making it in entertainment, but few succeed, partly because they are seen as just pretty bodies without talent. For those considering this route, bear in mind that working as car show girl is not easy. The Hankook Tire girls have less than 10 minutes break per hour. They cheer racers every hour and pose for photographs. Adding press events, they have to walk the racing tracks all day. Their legs are swollen after walking in high heels all day, and after work, they are exhausted.
Of course, one might argue that the girls wanted the job and get paid handsomely. That is true. But they pay a price: the old saying ¡°no pain, no gain¡± is especially true in the world of car show models.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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