Growing up in Indianapolis, just 20 minutes away from the great Indianapolis Motor Speedway it's hard not to feel a part of the huge racing community.
I often comment that it's one big interwoven family, across all the platforms of racing. I am fortunate enough to have made a lot of great friends in that realm throughout my life and while most of the time every weekend is full of fun, excitement, celebration and joy... this weekend was everything but.
As many of you already know, tragedy struck at Las Vegas Motor Speedway yesterday afternoon, just a few laps into the race. An amazing driver, ambassador to the racing community, and all around great gentleman was taken from this earth far too soon.
As soon as I heard the news my heart immediately ached. While I didn't know Dan personally a lot of my friends did, and I knew just how bad they were hurting.
I joked on twitter many times last week about how jealous I was that all of them were going to be in LV all weekend without me. Suddenly I found myself thankful that I wasn't there, that I didn't have to see that horrific crash firsthand... but yet still wishing I was there to wrap everyone up in huge hugs and hope to provide some sense of comfort.
I struggled to find the right words to say to my friends, those of whom saw him as a best friend, a teammate and a role model. The texts, the tweets, the messages... all soaked in sadness and disbeleif--it was so hard to hear them hurting.
I think one thing we could all remember, and take away from this, is that Dan passed doing what he loved. His last tweet before the race simply said "Green!!!" With so many people battling cancer and other horrible diseases, we can almost be jealous that he left this earth at a moment of absolute bliss as he was doing that which brought him the most joy.
So, friends, take a lesson from this: Chase your dreams. Do what you love. Live with passion. Spread joy everywhere you go.
"You can't do anything about the length of your life, but you can do something about its width and its depth." - Shira Tehrani
10 comments:
i am so sickened by the passing of dan wheldon. we were watching the new conference live and it brought tears to my eyes. such a horrible thing to happen to such a wonderful person and racer.
So sorry to hear about this... Thinking of all involved...
Love the quote at the end! I am so heartbroken to hear about this devestating loss! Keeping all that knew him in my thoughts and prayers!
Very touching post. You have a great way with words. The quote at the end is unforgettable.
I was so sad to hear this. He seemed like a very sweet man.
So sad! :((
:( I hope you and your friends are doing okay. It's a terrible terrible thing and so sad, but I love that you found some light in this tragedy. Great quotes at the end of your post.
It sounds like he was an amazing person, his passing is so sad.
I couldn't believe it when I heard the news either. It's always so sad to learn of an accident like that. Someone who dies doing what they love - so tragic! But you're point is absolutely right, live life to the fullest!
Very well said; I'd like to copy & paste this into the middle of my thoughts. Thanks, Chels. #LiveLife
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