I can remember that exciting feeling as a boy while watching the legendary drivers battle it out, and instantly wishing I could be like them one day. That’s where it all began.
Researchers believe seeing a racecar in a dream symbolizes your hard driving attitude and your need to win in any competitive situation. These dreams also symbolize your adventurous spirit and a determination to be in control of your life. Accordingly, if you have this dream, the best response is to ensure you have plans in place to reach your goals and to make the effort to bring them to reality. There’s little doubt in my mind that is true.
As I grew older and started racing go-karts, once again I began seeing myself as one of those legends, powering through corners, leading them down long straightaways, and taking the checkered flag. In my mind, I was a legend too, until I came to and faced the reality that there I was, sitting on a homemade go-kart in the middle of my dad’s pasture. It wasn’t until years later when I got my driver license and a car, that the visions came alive once again.
The dreams were fantastic as I ripped along country roads at high rates of speed, sometimes taking corners beyond their limits — Mr. Richert didn’t need that mailbox anyway, right? It wasn’t long until I found myself roaring down Ligne Droite des Hunaudières — the Mulsanne Straight of Le Mans — at 240 miles per hour passing other formula cars like they were sitting still. Then something caught my attention, or should I say, brought me back to the real world, as I asked myself, “What’s that red light in my mirror?” Oh crap, I’m not in a prototype doing 240, I’m in a ‘57 Ford doing 90 in a 55. Well, it’s all part of the learning curve, right?
Some years later, I found myself a member of NASA, doing everything in my power to visualize myself as one of those legendary drivers, which is difficult to do while being passed in the corners by a Volkswagen Rabbit. Now it wasn’t those legends I was in awe of, it was the best of NASA.
Drivers like Mark Kirberg, Elvis Matkovich, Mike Courtney, Kurt Wiseman, and Tommy O. were amazing to watch, even better to learn from, and eventfully drove for me on my team. But for now, it was they I found myself looking up to and wishing I could drive like them. I began getting private lessons from them and eventually I did. After all, who better to learn from than the cream of the crop?
After weeks of work with Marc Kirberg, I arrived a day early at Sears Point and had been practicing very hard on my lap times. I had improved by 2 seconds per lap and I just knew Marc was going to be blown away with my improvement. When he showed up, I had a large, arrogant smile on my face. “Hop in and let me take you for a ride,” I said. Without saying a word, he grabbed his helmet and off we went. After just one lap, he motioned to me to switch seats. Needless to say, Marc took me for a ride that made me realize I was anything but legendary.
The good news is, even after all these years of racing, and yes, I won a lot of races, the dreams of being legendary never ended. I still find myself wishing I could race again with those legends, but I have come to realize, maybe that person we’re all wishing to be has been inside us all along. So, my advice is try looking inside and there you’ll find him.
