Short Track Saturday Night Racing; More Than Just a Weekend Thing

Ever since I can remember I have been going to the race track on Saturday night to watch my favorite driver dual with his competitors. There is something about going to the races that is magical to a young boy. Maybe it was all the food to choose from, maybe it was the smell of the cars and the fuel and dirt, and maybe it was getting a chance to spend time with my father and grandfather? Who knows, maybe it was just all three! When I was a boy in southwest New York my grandfather, father, and I had a special date every Saturday night at the Woodhull Speedway in Woodhull, New York. I can remeber the anticipation of waiting all week for the race night to come. I couldn’t wait to get in the truck with my two favorite people and head off to the track. I knew that when I got there I was going to have fun, after all, there was fast cars, good food, and all kinds of things to buy. I can remeber being at the track pretending that I was out there racing with my short track Saturday night hereos. I could seem to begin to feel the car around me, like I was actually out there. However, the best part was just being their with my dad and grandpa. I knew that every Saturday night no matter how busy they would get during the week that I was going to be able to spend time with them. I knew that we would have a good time and get to just relax, even if it was just for a few hours one night a week.

As I got older and got into my teens the passion for short track racing never left, it intensified. When most teenage boys were worried about dates and getting drunk all I wanted to do was to go to the race track with my dad. My grandpa died when I was eleven, but, my dad and I kept going to the track. We knew that it was just something that we “did”. The best times I had in High School was going to races with my dad on those special weekends, not partying and chasing after girls. As a matter of fact, the best times I can recall growing up was spending time at the track. Being there all the time left no time to get into trouble!!

My father and grandfather planted the seed for the love of racing in me young and it has followed me past my youth and into adulthood. Now that I am a grown man and have children of my own I have realized something. Racing was not just a fun event for me; it was fun for my dad and my grandpa. They had just as much fun spending time with me as they did watching the race. They did not really care so much about the race as the fact that we were together doing something we all enjoyed. I hope to carry on this tradition with my family now. Something about being there at the local shot track events seems to bring kids to life. There are so many other bad ways to spend time with your kids, why not do something you have enjoyed for years as well as something they will like to. Hopefully when they get older they will look back on their experience just as I have and they will appreciate it!