Where True Champions are Made

Hunter has had a great year in karting!! He finished 2nd in the North Texas Karters Winter Polar Bear Series, he won the Spring Championship at NTK, finished 1st in the NTK Summer Sidewinder Series, he won the Southwest Regional Cup Series Championship this year, and has had many, many podium finishes! But this Fall Series at NTK has turned out to be somewhat of a challenge for him and may cost him the year-end championship at NTK.

Knowing full well that the kids Hunter raced with in the Spring would be challenging him in the Fall and with our focus being more on the SWRC races, we didn't go into the Fall Series at NTK with the full focus and great equipment we should have. Result - a couple of bad finishes for Hunter and a lot of great finishes for one of his competitors. 

Hunter raced as well as he felt he could have yesterday, and we thought we had everything set up as well as we could have. But I think we were all off target a bit. Hunter could have made some moves that would have required him to step out of his comfort zone and be more aggressive and we could have made some more set up changes that might have given him just a bit more in his engine. However, it is what it is and Hunter finished in 2nd place. Not a bad position to be in at all, but that finish did put a big dent in his possible year-end championship bid. 

Race championships are not won on who is the faster or better driver (or both), but on who has the most points. We went through this last year. Gunnr was the faster and better driver in our class last year, but he missed a couple of races and had some bad luck in a couple more - and Hunter and Reilly were able to capitalize on that. All of that pushed Gunnr from the championship spot into 2nd for year-end. But he gladly accepted that and did not seem to be a poor loser at all - a champion in heart.

Which is where champions are made - in the heart. Points may say otherwise, but if you carry yourself with dignity and let your good character shine through, others will notice the champion in you regardless of what the points say. Let your mouth run or poor attitude show and others will notice and remember that as well - sadly, more so than the former. 

Yesterday was a good lesson in that for all of us. Hunter still has a chance at the year-end championship, but overall, he has to be a champion at heart first - points won't matter if that isn't in place first.

Keep your fingers crossed and prayers lifted up for him....for all of us!!

We're Wired That Way

Dan Wheldon and family after winning the 2011 Indianapolis 500

Motorsports. Racing. Danger.

Yeah, it all goes hand in hand, doesn't it. I've had so many moms ask me why in the world would I let my 10 year old son, Hunter, race a kart. They really freak out when I tell them I'm putting my almost 5 year old daughter, Hadyn, in one, too. But, it doesn't scare me.

My dad raced Stock Cars in his younger years. My family had a European style dirt enduro motocross track and held races the 2nd Sunday of every month for 13 of my growing up years.  My husband loved to ride and tinker with anything motorized as a kid.

It's in the blood. We're wired that way.

In 2001, when NASCAR suffered a tragic blow with the passing of Dale Earnhardt due to a race day crash, Scott and I were not into racing yet - Hunter was still in the womb. But we saw the impact that took on the racing community and it was not lost on us.

Yesterday, the motorsports world suffered more tragedy. Indycar driver Dan Wheldon suffered unrecoverable injuries from a horrific wreck at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and passed away. Hunter  and I sat and watched the entire thing unfold on our TV screen. It was paralyzing. We felt as though a family member had left us. And in a way, it was family.

Not to be forgotten, but also yesterday, racing lost another driver - Toyota off road racing driver Rick Huseman, his brother Jeff and their pilot were lost in a plane accident.

Davey Hamilton, an Indycar driver who suffered his own near fatal accident while racing in Texas in 2001, said in an interview yesterday,  "Whenver you put a helmet and a firesuit on, it's probably pretty dangerous. And we accept that as racing drivers."

And we accept that as parents, friends, loved ones. Drivers have been given a gift. Our gift is our ability to accept that. It's just the way we're wired.

Rest In Peace, Dan and Rick Your racing family will miss you.

Toyota Off Road driver Rick Huseman

Slug Bug....Rainbow?

As a family, we like to have fun. So we taught the kids how to play "Slug Bug (Color)" while we are driving around. Of course, rules had to be amended when I started getting bruises on my arms from way too excited kids spotting one. So, now it is "Slug Bug (Color) - Virtual Punch".  And we've had to cancel the game a few times when attitudes started going south from not getting to call it first. 

All of which has taught the kids valuable lessons in "fun"...sometimes you lose. In racing, Hunter has had to learn the joys of winning and the agony of defeat for whatever reasons there might be. But the bottom line is always - are you having fun? 

When the fun leaves a game or sport or really anything you enjoy doing, then is it worth it to keep doing it? I'm not advocating quitting, but perhaps, re-evaluating why you are doing whatever it might be. A karting friend told me basically the same thing this weekend regarding our "fun" sport - when it becomes a tiresome job, it's time to step back from it. 

Hunter had a race this weekend, but he was the only one in his class to show up to race (other engagements, broken karts, etc). He was put in a group of two other classes, but all he had to do was take the Green Flag and then come back in - save the kart if he wanted to. But not our boy. No, he said he would race to the Checkers - because it's fun to be out there! 

So, we learn game playing in the car with Slug Bug. Sometimes you are first to call it, sometimes you lose. And if you lose, you laugh and say, I'll get the next one!! And keep playing - as long as you are having fun!!

Angels Among Us

The 2011 SWRC TAG Cadet Gazelle Boys

This is one of those blogs that I may have a hard time writing without tears in my eyes. Good tears, though. If you can't wait until the end...Hunter won the Southwest Regional Cup series championship!!!

Whether you are a believer or not, we had angels, in the form of friends blessing us this weekend. Hunter raced the last two races of the Southwest Regional Cup series in Caddo Mills, TX at the new Dallas Karting Complex.

Going into the weekend, we knew that Scott could not get off work. There is too much going on at the church right now with a current music set-up and they could not see not having Scott there.  God calls and needs him there, he's there.

Which meant, until Scott could get to the track, which was about an hour away, it was the Mom show. But I wasn't worried. We went to the track on Friday to let Hunter practice and Scott got the kart tuned in and set up for this track. At the end of our practice, we found a brand new set of tires in our pit stall with a note that said, "Win this weekend!". We couldn't believe it! Some beautiful, precious angel gifted us with new tires. Tires, in a race like this can make the difference in winning and not. So, Hunter now had no choice but to go win! Ha!

Saturday morning came and the kids and I headed out to the track. We had planned on just running two practice sessions just so Hunter could get the track under him a bit more and save the kart for the race. During the first practice session, he didn't even make it half way around the first lap when he went off the track - got bumped and broke his chain. Great. Now what? Well, buy a chain and replace it. How? How do I replace a chain??? Pray...ask and you shall receive. Again, angels came flying to my rescue in the form of my brother-in-law Scott, and the NTK Vice President Bob. Both got to work on the kart and got the new chain on. Later on, both came back and mounted Hunter's new tires, too!

The 2nd practice session ended with a kart spinning out in front of Hunter and he had no where to go but slide to avoid the kart and hit the hard plastic barriers. *Sigh* Again? Really? But, I had another angel fly to my rescue. Our main competitors dad, Randy, ran down and got Hunter started and back on the track for me. Then later, he came to the trailer and worked on the front end of the kart to make sure it wasn't damaged. Everyone was so helpful and willing to help out.

Scott got there right before the qualifying heat and discovered the front right tie rod and the steering column was bent, but got that banged out enough for Hunter to race - and he got the pole! Some more work came to the kart afterwards and even though it is still bent, it didn't seem to make a difference to the boy. Hunter raced his little heart out and won the event for the night!

After our adventures on Saturday, I figured Sunday would be a piece of cake! I knew that whatever would happen, it would be okay. And it was. Hunter raced a great race and ended up winning on Sunday, too. He was bummed later that night after he realized that it would be a while before he saw these new friends again. Thankfully, it is still about having fun for him. Which makes it fun for us. We just keep reminding each other of that.

Finally, to our NTK friends (Chris & Lisa, Tim, Steve & Maria, Scott & Kim, Bob, DJ, and everyone else from NTK who have helped us through this far) and our SWRC new found friends (Randy & Mandi, Chris & Stephanie, Tommy & Tiffany, and all the other racers around us) and our awesome engine builder, George, we are forever blessed and grateful for these friendships and hope to work with you all for a long time to come.

And Hunter, who we are so very proud of, is now the 2011 Southwest Regional Cup series TAG Cadet Gazelle Champion!!!