Being a professional racecar driver might be the only sport everyone feels qualified to a) have an opinion on and b) bust your balls. No matter how many times you hear claims that racecar drivers are athletes, the feeling among most dudes is, "Athletes? Is that right? So my three-hour commute on the 405 each day must make me a friggin' Ironman."

All you have to do is shake the hand of Lewis Hamilton — the thing feels like a hunk of granite — to know he is not just a guy who sits behind the wheel of a car, just going round and round. The man is strong. And he's also one of the world's richest athletes — his Formula 1 wins have helped give him a net worth of almost $200 million.

This week, Hamilton has joined other athletes (Victor Cruz from the NFL; Andre Iguodula and Dwyane Wade from the NBA) who have come to NYFWM, strutting their style cred.

Do you ever feel guilty when you crash a car in a race?

The guys in my crew know it happens… you don't have time to feel bad.

Is the movie "Rush" an accurate portrayal of your world?

I loved that movie. And Niki is someone I am with every weekend. It was a great explanation of what it was like back then. But I don't think any other movie has captured it. And it gives you an insight into what a driver's mind is like.

What about Cars, the Pixar movie?

I loved that movie.

Did you identify with one of the Pixar cars?

No.

Do you cry at movies?

No. Well, one movie. It caught me on a bad day, just after my auntie died. She was one of my best friends. When she died, I didn't cry. I had to be strong for the kids. So I watched the movie and it hit me.

What was the movie?

Fault in Our Stars… holy shit. I was on a plane, in my cubicle, tears coming down. It was terrible!

I'm going to play the part of the dude who doesn't believe you are an athlete. Don't punch me in the face. What is your daily fitness regimen?

It depends. I run for a half hour every day. The races are 45 minutes to two hours, so you have to keep your cardio and endurance up. For a race driver, we train to a specific level. You sit in a car, but you have so much g-force going through your body from corner to corner. On the breaking, you are pulling up to 6 G's, which is six times your body weight. Your lower back takes huge compression. So in order to keep that strength you have to have a strong core. And do a lot of running so you don't fatigue in the race. The G force is the killer. You need strength. Your neck takes a crazy amount of stress. Heart rate during the race is about 117. All race.

Do you do exercises to keep your reflexes sharp?

I like to do fun stuff. Waterskiing is very reactive. I have a house in Colorado where I do a lot of high-altitude training. Most mornings, we run to the bottom of the mountain, then hike back up in snow shoes, then when we get to the top after two hours we cross country ski for an hour. You are dead when you finish. Cross country skiing is hardest physical work out there is. They are the fittest people in the world.

Who gave you the best advice?