INDIANAPOLIS – Thirteen years ago, Lyn St. James took me to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for my first Carb Day. I vividly remember walking down Gasoline Alley to pit lane and getting instant chills. I thought to myself, “At some point in my career, I want to be here.”
In all reality, who doesn’t?
As a young, open-wheel racer from Michigan, who grew up racing in Indiana because it was the place to be, IMS was – and is – the Taj-Mahaj of American racing. Being there for the first time was a life moment that still resonates with me.
Growing up in a family that religiously watched all things NASCAR, my racing desires veered toward other forms of the sport, specifically pavement late models, ARCA and dirt winged 410 sprint cars.
Then, I went to college and lived the life of a conventional young adult.
When I returned to racing a few years ago, it was like nothing had changed as far as my ability. In some ways I was sharper, more mature, had a refueled passion and was still fearless as hell. But in other ways, I had an evolved mindset as far as where I wanted to go and what I wanted to do in terms of my motorsports career.
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