Wet weather early in the year wreaked havoc with Wallace’s racing schedule.
“We had a record flood in St. Louis. We were supposed to start racing on April 5 here in St. Louis and the Mississippi River had the highest crest in history,” Wallace said. “Then, after the flood, we had a record-setting weather belt that pumped moisture from the Gulf of Mexico up through Arkansas, Missouri and into northern Ohio. As a result, I had to travel to race and I wore myself out. My goal this year was to travel less and race more, and it went horribly wrong.
“Now that the weather is back to normal, we are running Friday nights across the river, 30 minutes from my home, in Granite City, Ill., at Tri-City Speedway and then on Saturday nights we are running 15 minutes from my house at Kenny Schrader’s track in Pevely, Mo. On Sunday, we have all kinds of choices. We can either go to Jacksonville, Ill., which is two-and-half hours up the road, or we can go to Quincy, Ill.”
Wallace claims he has absolutely no regrets about stepping away from NASCAR.
“I love NASCAR and I love FOX Sports — they were wonderful to me,” he said. “I just went to Bristol and all my comrades tell me this: They say they are jealous of me because I’m doing what they dream of doing. I paid my dues, my friend. I worked hard and I raced hard. I ran 905 NASCAR races. I tell people just count to 905, take time out and go 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, etc.
“I spent 15 straight years with FOX Sports. I was blessed and I’m so thankful. I collected a full-blown paycheck for 15 straight years from one of the biggest networks in modern television. It was a very lucrative job. But you know what? I wanted to do something different.
“I’m high on life. I love life and there’s a statement I love. This statement is what changed my life and is one of the reasons I give motivational speeches. This is the quote that changed my life: ‘Your life will not change until you change your life.’
“I spent Thursday night, Friday night, Saturday night and Sunday night by myself in those motel rooms when I was doing TV,” Wallace continued. “It was the most miserable life a human can have besides being in jail. I was lonely. I was sad. You can only go to dinner with friends so much and drink beer so much. I was on the phone and I was jealous because my friends were racing and my wife was down at the casino. I was overwhelmed with depression and I said, ‘That’s it.’
“That’s why I don’t miss it because at the end it was brutal.”
While short-track racing now plays a major role in Wallace’s life, family is his No. 1 priority.
“I know a lot of people say this, but I mean it. I have always loved kids and we have three beautiful daughters,” Wallace shared. “Brooke is my oldest at 31. Then Brandy is my middle daughter and she is 29. Brittany is my youngest and she is 28. I love my children with all that I have and they get whatever they want. Brooke and Brandy are married and I’m the luckiest man in the world because their husbands are just awesome. Brittany is getting married on New Year’s night in downtown St. Louis.
“My first two daughters have children, so I have grandbabies. My wife and I watch these grandbabies on Tuesdays and Wednesdays — and basically every day. My grandbabies love me and they call me ‘Poppy.’ I have four grandbabies. I’ve got Charlotte, she’s 3; a boy named Jett and the babies are Mila and Jayee.
“I get teased enough by my wife and daughters. I don’t want to be that person who races so much that I become what I call a ‘dirt dauber.’ I love dirt racing, but being a ‘dirt dauber’ means a guy can’t do anything else in life. My goal is to be well rounded. I don’t want to grow old at a dirt track, but I do want to grow old being known as a dirt racer.”