I was only two when I started going to what I consider my home track, and even younger when I was first introduced to stock car racing. I don't remember much about my first years watching racing, but the bits and pieces I do remember always bring a smile to my face. I remember having little matchbox cars and lining them up in front of the grandstands, making my own little race in between divisions. My dad raced in a division known as mini stocks at our local track. When it was time for him to race I would walk up to the fence and wave with my mom and brother so he would know where we were and that we were cheering for him. I remember at the beginning and end of the season the track would hold a pit party. All of the cars line up on the track and the drivers pass out candy and sometimes toys to children. Some drivers autograph pictures for fans which I remember being a big hit as a kid. These memories and more are what started my love for racing and my home track, though as I got older the track began to mean so much more.

The track became my escape place. The minute we turned into the parking lot a smile crossed my lips and I felt a sense of calming no matter what was going on in my life. It was, and still is, the only place I ever show up early to (I'm a chronically late person). Pulling into the pits and seeing everyone I grew up around was exciting. I consider them all to be my racing family, including the ones I wasn't or aren't close to. You experience all the stages of one another's lives, including the awkward periods you wish people would forget. You spend so much time with each other, you cheer each other on, help each other out. Sometimes you fight, but what family doesn't have their arguments? Everyone there bonds over a common interest, a love for fast cars, tire squeals, the smell of race fuel, racing through or watching good battles on the track. Whether you are driving the car or watching from the fence, stock car racing is an adrenaline rush that we all crave.

The thing I am most thankful for is how close racing has brought my immediate family together. As a racing family you spend a lot of time together, whether that is working on the car, talking about racing every second of pretty much everyday-- no the topic never gets old-- traveling to and from the track, and of course actually being at the track. Stock car racing takes a lot of time and there never is a true "off season," it is more like a part of the year without actual races, however the crew spends more time in the shop preparing for the next season. Spending all that time together and working to achieve a common goal brings you together. Look around, you will see how common it is to have multiple generations of racers in a family. And if they aren't racing, they're on the crew or a fan. Racing runs in your blood and once you get a taste, it becomes an addition.

I'm grateful for growing up at a race track. It was there that I learned you don't get anything you don't earn. That cheating and doing someone wrong has consequences. That you can't always win, and that it is important to be a good winner and loser. I learned about responsibility, time management, respect, to be the bigger person, but also to stick up for myself. I learned that family isn't always blood, because the racing community is one giant family. I have seen those who cannot stand each other, and shown so on and off the track, come together for a greater good, whether it's money raised for a community member's health, a tragedy, or school function. I've seen a car built to surprise a military veteran who was a driver at my home track. I've seen an entire community come together and support one another through the good and bad times. These are the moments that make me proud to be a member of such a phenomenal community and family

We all have memories from the race track that we'll never forget. Not all are great ones, but even the bad memories cause the track to have a special place in our hearts. We build relationships, sometimes break ties with people, learn valuable lessons, and fall in love with our home away from home.

Thank you for the memories you gave to me, the memories that have yet to come, and the family I gained along the way.