Woods Racing

Hero’s from our past, relevant, idolized, enshrined and never forgotten.

I remember when I was a kid, April 1993 and my dad and myself we’re watching the Winston Cup in Bristol. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing…this being Sunday, not 3 days before…on Thursday, one of my hero’s, Alan Kulwicki is dead in a plane crash leaving a public appearance in Tennessee.

This was the first time in my life, that I realized someone I looked up to…immortalized, revered could actually die. It was confusing and sad. I watched every news channel I could to find out more. These we’re the days before internet so I was glued to the screen and raced through every page of the newspaper.

Alan drove the number 7 Hooters Ford Thunderbird to a Championship victory in ’92 and in ’93 he was gone. I was stunned.

3 months later here we were again. My dad and I watching Talladega, but this time with a new hero. Davey Allison. The #28 Havoline Ford Thunderbird was due to be tearing up the tracks in search of a win.

I watched in absolute horror as they spoke about him. “On his way into the Talladega infield, Davey Allison’s helicopter pitched nose up and crashed. Davey was removed from the aircraft but succumbed to his injuries yesterday at Carraway Methodist Medical Center.”

Stunned was not even a word that would come close to what I was feeling. In 3 months, 2 of my hero’s…gone…
.
I still have the newspaper clipping.

I watched them both race in Michigan and being a fan of Ford, coming off a Winston Cup Champion…this was supposed to be our year. Instead shrouded by death, Dale Earnhardt in the #3 Chevrolet took the cup.

I watched him do a “polish victory lap” and at that point Dale was my new driver, my new champion and my new hero.

Now, anyone who follows Nascar, knows where I’m going with this.

It’s Feb. 2001 and I was on the VIA Rail train #14 on my way to Halifax. We just pulled by Lambert Quebec when I got a call from my dad. Dale Sr. while racing with his son Dale Jr at the ’01 Daytona got tangled up with Schrader and they both went into the wall. Dale was dead. The Nascar circuit was shocked.

.

.

After this I turned back to the Ford Camp. For 8 years I refused to cheer on a Ford. I even ignored the fact that Ricky Rudd was hired to drive the Havoline car and also ignored the 1999 Jarrett Cup win for Yates Racing.

.

I was always a Ricky Rudd fan…and I think deep down inside…he became my new hero although I wouldn’t admit it. It wasn’t until 2003 when I couldn’t help but cheer on a new king. I was amazed as I watched the #17 Dewalt Ford driven by the guy who beat out Dale Jr for Rookie of the year take the cup. I gave in and to this day, Matt Kenseth is still my favourite driver, my favourite car and my new hero.

.

There have been a lot of deaths in racing. Scotty Baker, Greg Moore, Ayrton Senna, Adam Petty, Gilles Villeneuve and more recently Rafael Sperafico, Wanda Philips, Eric Medlen and now Mark Niver this past July. Mark built his own car, and ironically, it was his passion that killed him. Of course, these are only a few of the many…here’s a list by wikipedia:

.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_racing_drivers_who_died_in_racing_crashes

.

It’s amazing to think, that even with all the safety features this could happen. Yet it does, over and over again. I race my car, my girlfriend, friends and family all support me, I take all the safety precautions and try to do things right. I don’t think about accidents, fireballs, hitting the wall or losing control. I think about going fast, beating the other guy and having fun.

I guess as with everything, there is a dark side to anything. This is my little tribute to my hero’s of the past…Alan, Davey, Dale and Greg…thank you…

Aug 05th by Bannon

Continue Reading

Last week a couple buddies and me escaped the clutches, brakes and fumes of the shop and bolted up to Mont-Tremblant for a couple days.

Now, there is one thing like, packing the kids up, fighting in traffic, yelling at road ragers but the other is throwing a back pack and a 24 in the trunk and leaving.

We chose the latter.

We left the WI around 7pm or so and headed up the 13 to the 640…broke east and caught the 15. This is the bad part. The good part is that just when it looks like the city is fading in your rear-view, The Laurentian’s come into view. As many times as I’ve been up there, it’s always breathtaking. Everytime.

Driving up to Tremblant is itself a trip. It’s only an hour or so from Montreal, but it’s a completely different world. The roads curve, incline, decline, pass through valleys and gives you access to views that make me a proud Canadian.

Once you arrive, the town doesn’t give up…no way…driving through the villages and side roads is almost worth the trip itself. Surrounded by trees, water, mountains…who could ask for anything better. (Don’t mention the salt flats).

If you’re a fan of taking pictures, there is no shortage of places for that either. We stopped many times over the couple days and snapped pics. I love doing that, I think it’s my way of documenting a trip. I always seem to want to have my car in the shot.

Now of course, in every state, province and country there are always special views, attractions and things to see. The drive up to Tremblant is surely one of my personal favourites though. It’s one of the first places, first drives that I actually stopped to think how lucky we are to be able to catch this kind of scenery not an hour or so from home.

So wherever you are, if you’re passing through Montreal, take a couple hours, or even a night and scoot up there. I guarantee you won’t be disappointed!

Aug 02nd by Bannon

Continue Reading