I’ve officially entered the age where I stay off the interstate if I can help it, stress over merging, and avoid driving at night. Yes, I am old. But when my sister’s fiancé, John, asked if I’d like to go on a ride-along in a 602 late model two-seater race car on a dirt track my answer was “Hell yeah!!”

“Hell yeah” always leads to a WOW! Moment!

I was excited until I arrived at Duck River Raceway and met the driver, Russell. Actually, he seemed fine. It was his wife, Angie, who scared me. She said she doesn’t like to get in a car with him. What??!!  

Putting my fear aside, I did it anyway. (This is also a recipe for a WOW! Moment.) Here’s what I discovered:

• Racing gear makes anyone look badass. I may buy myself a jumpsuit and just walk around town in it.
• Fasten the helmet snug on your neck, otherwise you become a human bobblehead in the turns. (I learned this the hard way.)
• Shut the plexiglass on the helmet (even if you think you might hyperventilate) because dirt is going to fly on a dirt track. (Also learned the hard way)
• Once you get over the initial fear of hitting the wall, you realize that the turns are where the excitement lies. This is true in life, too. Leaning into things that seem to come at you out of nowhere can shake things up in a positive way.
• Letting go of the wheel (aka: your need to be in control all. of. the. time.) requires an act of faith. It’s also a good exercise in learning to trust the journey. This is something I struggle with, especially when things don’t unfold in the exact way I imagined. 
• It’s fun to watch others do something brave. My sister and nephew did ride-alongs, too. I loved watching them get out of the car and hearing their reactions. 
• It’s OK to scream. I was screaming, “This is awesome!” My sister was just plain screaming. Both are good.
• Doing things that scare you can be exhilarating. Especially if you don’t die in the process. And if you do, your death story will be awesome. I imagine the conversation going like this for my kids, “Sorry to hear about your mom. How did she die?” “Her race car flipped going into the third turn.” “Damn. She was badass.” “Yes, she was. Except when she had to merge onto I-65 at night.”

And here’s actual video footage of me in the car. 

When’s the last time you did something scary?