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Written by:
SPEED Staff
SPEEDtv.com
SPEEDtv.com
02/23/2008 - 05:05 PM
It’s one of the questions racers get asked most often by non-racers: What drives otherwise normal, sane people like me to strap themselves into a race car, with all its dangers and uncertainties? What is it that drives us to compete? Okay, I don’t have a single, catchall explanation for why we do this, or a super-eloquent way of telling you about it, but I’m going to try and give you guys at least some idea why I do this.
I think the biggest reason I like racing cars is that it’s such a complex challenge. It’s not just the challenge of racing a difficult course; there’s the adventure side of going to the kinds of places off-road endurance racing takes place, and there’s the competitive aspect – wanting to win, basically. There’s so many factors involved. Racing has such huge, huge highs and deep, deep lows, and there’s so much hard work involved, but the payoff makes going through all of that worthwhile.
I wouldn’t say racing is an addiction, at least not for me, as much as it’s something that’s rewarding and a lot of fun. It’s something I’m supposed to do, and it’s something I think I do well. I certainly enjoy the sensation of speed, especially when racing a near-stock vehicle like the Toyota FJ Cruiser off-road, because doing so helps you pick up the kinds of skills that you probably wouldn’t gain from racing something with more horsepower or more suspension travel.
Racing something less radical than a trophy truck or a buggy really teaches you how to get the most out of the equipment you’ve got, because you learn about the maximum corner speeds and slip angles and those sorts of things. It’s all about learning the kind of pace that
will get it to the finish quickly but, at the same time, not destroy it. That’s a challenge that I really enjoy.
If I had to pick just one negative aspect to racing, it would be the amount of sacrifice involved. I didn’t go to my high school prom, for example, because I had to get up at 5 a.m. the next morning for a race. It takes a lot of sacrifice, both personally and professionally. You do travel a lot, which I enjoy, but that makes for a pretty solitary existence. But I still find it rewarding, and the whole nomadic aspect seems to suit my personality pretty well.
I’d say my favorite part of racing is when all the buildup and preparation leading up to the race is rewarded with a strong result. For example, we’ve spent the last two months building this truck from the ground up for the Taupo 1000, and I think a class win would go a long way toward making all that work worthwhile. Also, in off-road racing, you can’t just be a driver, you have to be good at working on the truck, a problem solver, be able to think on your feet, and you have to have the physical endurance.
Is the urge to race genetic? I come from a family of racers, and I can say from experience that it definitely plays a role. Growing up, we’d go to friends’ houses on Thanksgiving and race quads, and I’ve raced quads against my older brother, Rhys, in the snow. We’ve raced everything we could get our hands on: BMX, dirt bikes, karts and more. It was just part of the deal, it’s always there, and there’s no way around it. Racing is such a big presence in my life that, right now, I’m not sure what I’d be doing instead.
I guess you could say that’s pretty good problem to have…
I think the biggest reason I like racing cars is that it’s such a complex challenge. It’s not just the challenge of racing a difficult course; there’s the adventure side of going to the kinds of places off-road endurance racing takes place, and there’s the competitive aspect – wanting to win, basically. There’s so many factors involved. Racing has such huge, huge highs and deep, deep lows, and there’s so much hard work involved, but the payoff makes going through all of that worthwhile.
I wouldn’t say racing is an addiction, at least not for me, as much as it’s something that’s rewarding and a lot of fun. It’s something I’m supposed to do, and it’s something I think I do well. I certainly enjoy the sensation of speed, especially when racing a near-stock vehicle like the Toyota FJ Cruiser off-road, because doing so helps you pick up the kinds of skills that you probably wouldn’t gain from racing something with more horsepower or more suspension travel.
Racing something less radical than a trophy truck or a buggy really teaches you how to get the most out of the equipment you’ve got, because you learn about the maximum corner speeds and slip angles and those sorts of things. It’s all about learning the kind of pace that
If I had to pick just one negative aspect to racing, it would be the amount of sacrifice involved. I didn’t go to my high school prom, for example, because I had to get up at 5 a.m. the next morning for a race. It takes a lot of sacrifice, both personally and professionally. You do travel a lot, which I enjoy, but that makes for a pretty solitary existence. But I still find it rewarding, and the whole nomadic aspect seems to suit my personality pretty well.
I’d say my favorite part of racing is when all the buildup and preparation leading up to the race is rewarded with a strong result. For example, we’ve spent the last two months building this truck from the ground up for the Taupo 1000, and I think a class win would go a long way toward making all that work worthwhile. Also, in off-road racing, you can’t just be a driver, you have to be good at working on the truck, a problem solver, be able to think on your feet, and you have to have the physical endurance.
Is the urge to race genetic? I come from a family of racers, and I can say from experience that it definitely plays a role. Growing up, we’d go to friends’ houses on Thanksgiving and race quads, and I’ve raced quads against my older brother, Rhys, in the snow. We’ve raced everything we could get our hands on: BMX, dirt bikes, karts and more. It was just part of the deal, it’s always there, and there’s no way around it. Racing is such a big presence in my life that, right now, I’m not sure what I’d be doing instead.
I guess you could say that’s pretty good problem to have…
Click here for more on the Two Roads to the Taupo 1000 on SPEED!
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