Originally Posted by Eric Smith:
If I ever have any help, they ride with me and I pay their way. However, it's pretty rare that I have any help. There are very few people around, and it's a long ways to find another car from my neighborhood. People ask me if my car is some kind of go kart around my area. There's no one. Literally. So I fly solo most of the time. It absolutely sucks trying to do everything yourself every night and relying on others to push you up, but it sure beats not going racing at all.
Boy, this sounds all too familiar, my bride of 54 yrs has been almost all of my help over the years, I have had, to the best of my memory, one guy that I considered an asset as far as help, and he didn't know that much about it, other than he was appreciated, and everyone liked him, he got what ever he needed, pit pass, fed, a ride to and from the tracks we went to. I had many others, one brought a lunch pail, set out the chairs for other people to BS with him, but not much help to me, and he had been on an Indy car team, a sprint car team, went all over the world with them, Australia, why, I have no clue! Another one only made it one night, another "experienced" racer, his experience amounted to getting a free ride to and from, pit pass, fed, for one night, the capper was after I had everything done, car ready to hot lap, he says, looks like your ready, I'm going to slip over to the stands, and get me a seat, before it gets too crowded, you don't need anything else do you? After doing that for 60 plus yrs, I've given up, had it been me, I would have jumped at the chance to help someone, and did on lots of occasions, I can't understand why anyone who enjoys racing wouldn't be ready and willing to just go and help, if they want to go, and be part of it, what better way than help someone who needs help, learn something, and for the most part, all your out is what you eat, and a pit pass, no cost to get there, sleep all the way home, be ready to go again the next time! Beats me! Bob