Everything happens for a reason

That’s what my mother always said to me as I was growing up. I often thought about that and I believe she was right. There have been many instances where I can think back and remember her words and I said, wow, she was right again. Well it’s been over a week since the IT Fest and by now most of you may or may not have heard what went on in the Group 2 race on Saturday. Sure there was other stuff happening in the other groups but because it wasn’t happening to me I honestly didn’t pay much attention to it. Mainly I’m writing this because I’ve settled down and my ranting about the penalty I received and the way my main competitor was driving seems like some time ago. I started to remember a few articles I’ve read by Randy Pobst, you know the ones in SCCA’s Sportscar magazine. I have to admit Randy is a few years my junior but his and mine philosophyabout driving mirrors each other. I’ve never met him but I wouldn’t mind sitting down with him for a BS session. He seems to have good judgment, a lot of common sense and way more racing experience than I have. I thought about what would Randy have done being somewhat trapped behind a blocking driver that didn’t seem to mind slamming the door on you if you made an inside move. I will confess my patience’s were wearing thin as the laps counted down, and then it happened! As I tried to knife my way through lap traffic to keep up with the lead car the #21 ITB VW started to go wide on top of madness and for sure I thought he saw the waiving blue flag or at least saw my headlights and was going to let me through…wrong! He comes back across the track and bang I run into his left rear quarter with my right front corner of my car. My fate was sealed and at that moment as the leader scurried away I realized…my mother was right again. Everything happened for a reason. When they called us over to talk to us at the end of the race I thought for sure they saw him blocking me and they definitely were going to call him for not giving me enough racing room like everyone I talked to who saw the race concurred. Well at the end of the day when they announced my name and for me to come to the base of the tower I thought for sure things were going to work themselves out. Bang again! I was told they are going to penalize me 1 position! Well I was in shock to say the least. Again it came back to me, everything happens for a reason. What would have happened if I wasn’t knocked into the marbles by the VW and me on his bumper the last few laps with my patience thin? You never know what could have happened. I guess I maybe very lucky not to find out. Things would have turned out differently if I had an in car camera, but I didn’t and because of that and the way the corner workers called the Saturday race I choose not to race on Sunday. I want to believe the corner workers had a bad angle to make that bad of a call. All is forgotten time to move on. Everything happens for a reason. I will say that unlike Randy who to race because of his Pro status even if he doesn’t like or even respect a certain driver or drivers, I have the option to race or not race with people I don’t respect as a person or as a driver if I don’t want to. Another thing my parents taught me was the ability of knowing right and wrong, looking at one’s self in the mirror and liking what you see if you’re true to yourself but also knowing that respect is something that is earned, no matter who it is.