I attended the Diamond Chassis seminar this weekend.  The technical information was good, but the real pleasure for me was witnessing my brother and sister-in-law in action.  I am proud of what they have accomplished in a short time.  While sitting there listening to him talk about the cars, I could not help but to think back to when we first started racing.  As you can see on the photos page (crashed yellow and red car on the trailer), it was a modest start.  We did not know anything about racing, but from early childhood my brother has always been a dreamer.  That is why my Dad put "Dream Chaser" on the back of his first race car.  When we put together his first modified back in 2001, who would have guessed that he would be here now?  It was seven years later on a hope and a dream, that he built the first Diamond car.  It took off slowly in the beginning, but the number of cars has exploded in the last two years.  I am not sure how many cars he has built now, but by the end of the 2011 season his cars have accumulated 198 wins.  107 of those wins came last season alone.  Drivers have not only won races but also championships. 

One of the things that makes me most proud of them is also what I think makes them most successful.  There are a lot of good cars on the market, but it is how they treat their customers that separates them from the pack.  They truly put them first.  He cares more about his drivers winning than he does winning himself.  For this reason, their business has done well, I am a proud brother, and the future looks bright for them.

_ In my last post, I presented a racing scenario where I was crashed.  One of the questions I asked was, “How am I supposed to treat this fellow competitor?”  In Matthew 22:37-40 Jesus said the two greatest commandments were, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.  This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it.  Love your neighbor as yourself.”  All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

I want to take a look at these commandments in the context of my story and determine if it applies.  How do I respond to being treated this way?  I sure do not want to be a door mat for people to walk on.  The first commandment was to love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and all your mind.  So the first decision is whether I will follow that commandment, which I made a decision to do in October of 2004.  I am not perfect at it by any means, but I am continually trying to improve.  In regards to commandment number two, I do not see how you can follow number one without following number two.  In fact this is stated in 1 John chapter 2:3-5.  “3 We know that we have come to know him if we keep his commands. 4 Whoever says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in that person. 5 But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him.”  I think the conclusion is simple.  If you love God, then you will work at following his commandments.

Since I need to obey the second commandment, what does that look like?  I can definitely tell you what it does not look like.  In past situations, I was so angry I got in fights, a couple times I crashed into the other driver on the track, and another time I went as far as throwing a fist full of rocks at the other driver’s car.  Racing sanctioning bodies are quick to condemn this type of reaction and maybe you are condemning me now.  Well, all I can say is I have done what I have done.  I have asked for forgiveness so let us focus on what I should have done.  This is where it gets tough.  Does it mean you have to love selfish people?  I believe it does.  The commandment only talks about our actions not the actions of the other person.  There is no qualifier on the type of neighbor we are to love.  After all, is it not selfish of me to decide how I deserve to be treated?  A great quote from Stephen Kendrick is, “Almost every sinful action ever committed can be traced back to a selfish motive. It is a trait we hate in other people but justify in ourselves.”  The fact is we are all selfish.  We all love ourselves.  If that was not true, then it would not make sense for Jesus to tell us to love our neighbors as we love our self.  Based on these words I should look at how I would want to be treated, and then that will tell me how I should treat others.  I would want to be given the benefit of the doubt.  Maybe they did not intend for it to happen.  How can I condemn someone for being selfish, when I am selfish myself?  I cannot.  Secondly, will I be effective sharing my faith if I am fighting with others?  No, it makes my faith appear to be non genuine.   After all, God let the event happen so it was a part of his plan.  Maybe his plan is to provide an opportunity to share Christ with the other driver.  That is where my focus should be; the eternal not one night of racing.

I am selling the heads, intake and valve covers from my super stock.  I am selling them because I am moving to a modified, which allows you to run aluminum heads.  I am selling the intake because I plan on buying the Brodix Track 1 kit, which comes with Intake and valve covers.  Here are the details and pictures.

The heads are RHS cast iron, 23 degree, 64 cc, 220 cc intake runners.  The part number is 12322.  They include the following components.

• Intake valves: 2.02” 11/32 +.100” long (Comp Cams PN 6001-8)
• Exhaust valves: 1.60” 11/32 +.100” long (Comp Cams PN 6002-8)
• Valve springs: 1.550” dual springs, max lift .720” (Comp Cams PN 943-26)
• Valve locks: Comp Cams PN 614-16
• Valve seals: Comp Cams PN 529-16
• Spring seats: Comp Cams PN 4759-16
• Studs/Guide Plates: 7/16” Comp Cams PN 4516-16
• Retainers: Comp Cams PN 1731-16

Intake is World Products Motown.  The part number is 061040.

I bought these heads and intake last January.  I ran them on a 400 SBC.  They were assembled by RHS, and I bolted them on.  I still have the invoice showing all the parts.  They have 19 races on them.

I am asking $1300 OBO for the heads, intake, and valve covers.  I will separate if interested.

I laid out my goals last week for the 2012 racing season.  One of them, which I consider to be the toughest, is caring for other racers more than myself.  Why is this one of the toughest?  Let me explain.

Imagine with me for a moment.  It has been a long winter.  You have spent those months preparing for the upcoming racing season.  Maybe building a new car, or maybe just updating your current one.  You put a new body on it, freshened the motor, put fresh tires on, and made the set-up tweaks that you think will put you in the front.  Finally, the much anticipated race is here.  You load up your equipment and head to the races with much anticipation.  In hot laps the motor runs great, and the car handles well.  Your expectations now increase.  As you roll out for the heat race, you are focusing on what you have to do to cross the finish line first and solidify a front row starting spot in the feature.  You come out of turn four and get the green flag.  You race down into turn one and lift to set your car.  Then from seemingly out of nowhere, you feel a car slam into your left side.  You hear their motor turning what seems like 10,000 RPMs and see their car flash across yours as you go spinning out of control.  When you come to a stop, all you can see is bent sheet metal.  The wrecker takes you back to the pits and you find two flat tires, a bent shock, broken upper A arm, and a bent spindle.  Your night now gets much harder.

I share this because it happened to me in 2009.  In that moment I wanted nothing more than revenge.  As I write this now, feelings of anger surface even though it was 2 years ago.  It is one thing to drive into a corner to deep, but when you do not lift.  That is the same as saying "I do not care about you, and I am going to do whatever to get what I want."  Is caring for a person with that attitude required?  Is it possible?  What are the consequences if I do not care about this person?  What does society say, and what does the Bible say?  These are important questions and yet are difficult ones. 

This week and subsequent weeks, I am going to study this topic.  If it is a 2012 goal, then I think it warrants a full understanding.  Stay tuned for my findings.

Happy New Year everyone.  I know for many this is a time to determine a new years resolution, but I have never been one to make resolutions.  The Bible says that we should constantly be working on our areas of sin, and that the Lord will bring these to our attention.  Of course I guess a new years resolution can be something other than putting off sin and putting on righteousness.  However, for me, I have so much sin to work through, I cannot imagine another type of new years resolution.  I will use this post to make some goals for racing.

Goal #1: Keep racing a proper priority.  I have two sons that need my attention more than a race car does.  I have a wife who doesn't need it but deserves my attention more than my race car.  Keeping a proper balance can be difficult so this is goal #1 for me.

Goal #2: Obtain the remaining funding I need to race in 2012.  Of course money is important if you want to race, but my goal is not only to get the funding, but to do it in a way that provides true value to the other person.  In the past, I have only worried about getting the funding and not some much on any value for the other person.  I am supposed to put others before myself, which means in funding as well.

Goal #3: At the end of the year, I want the people who know me through racing to recognize me as different.  I want to be different in that I care less about results and more about the people I interact with through racing.  This is difficult for me for two reasons.  First, I am competitive, want to run good, and therefore have a tendency to think selfishly.  Secondly, sports can often bring out the worst in people.  I know sports have brought out my worst on more occasions than I want to remember.  It is hard to love people when you or they are at their worst.

Goal #4: I am considering different options for using racing as a tool to serve others and change lives.  I want to have a clear plan completed by the end of the 2012 searIdeas are welcomed.

Okay, I think those goals are plenty for me to focus on.  I ask all who I work close with to please help me keep these goals.  I welcome constructive feedback if I begin to lose focus.  I hope everyone has a happy new year.

_I hope everyone has had a Merry Christmas.  My family has been very blessed.  In fact, I would say borderline spoiled.  We try to continually remind our kids that it is Christ’s birth that we are celebrating.  We try to remind them that He is God’s gift to mankind.  He is the path to eternal life in heaven.  His death and resurrection covers our sins, and this gift is available to all who choose.  However, I think it is hard for young kids and us adults for that matter, to get past the trees, the lights, and the presents.

For many the end of the year means racing is right around the corner.  The Chili Bowl begins Jan. 10thand can be seen on pay per view.  The Winter Nationals begins February 1st at East Bay and can be seen again on X CELERATED for a fee.  You can find info on both events on their websites.

I had the pleasure to meet Clearance Brabson with City Life Wheels on Monday.  City Life Wheels is a month old ministry that is a division of Youth for Christ.  Here is a statement describing the ministry from their website.

"Equipping at-risk teenagers with relevant job-skills instills self-confidence and the means to provide for themselves and their future families. City Life Wheels teaches neighborhood teens basic automotive maintenance and repair skills from an ASE Certified Mechanic. City Life Wheels is a hands-on program where the students do the actual maintenance and repair work on cars donated to the program. Repaired cars are then sold to provide funding for the program."

When I heard about this program, I was immediately interested.  Our experience with the foster care system has given us a different view of inner city life.  In 2009 Indianapolis Public School systems graduated only 49% of their students.  In 2010 the school reported 63%, but many argue that it was actually 53%.  I don't share this data to blame the school.  In my opinion, the problem lies largely with the lack of instruction and discipline kids get at home.  All this equates to lower standards of living, higher crime rates, and ultimately degradation of communities.  There is a large need to show students the love of Christ and provide them with skills that may change their life.  City Life Wheels is one ministry that can do that, and I think this is one area the Lord has given me skills and means to serve.

Currently, I have a Saturn sitting in my garage that has been donated.  In the first month the program is considering possible locations for a shop, and wants to turn some cars to put capital into the ministry.  Lord willing, I am going to help them make a profit on this Saturn.  I would appreciate prayers for successful diagnosis and repair of the problems.  Please also pray that this car can eventually be a blessing to another person.  Please pray for ministry leaders to have wisdom in finding a location and obtaining future car donations.  Finally, pray for the youth who may not be getting Godly instruction at home.

City Life Wheels Website

Holly ordered a picture frame with these words from Mother Teresa.  I thought this was definitely post worthy.

People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered.  Forgive them anyway.  If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives.  Be kind anyway.  If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies.  Succeed anyway.  If you are honest and sincere people may deceive you.  Be honest and sincere anyway.  What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight.  Create anyway.  If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous.  Be happy anyway.  The good you do today, will often be forgotten.  Do good anyway.  Give the best you have, and it will never be enough.  Give your best anyway.  In the final analysis, it is between you and God.  It was never between you and them anyway.

The 2011 season was an up and down year.  Michael, Steve, and I tried many different set ups this year.  Some good and some bad but none were great.  Just this last week I sold the super stock.  I raced it for three years, and it was a good car.  I am just ready to try something different.

I will be purchasing a Diamond modified so I am excited but reserved about that.  I am excited because my brother builds them, they are good cars, and I am excited to get to work with him more.  I am reserved because I do not currently have all the finances lined up.  This is where I am stepping out in faith.  In the last year, I read a book called Radical.  I would recommend it, but be prepared it may change your life.  It is largely about American Christianity, and how we fall short on living for God's purpose.  It really made me look at the money that I spend on racing.  After much prayer, I felt convicted to stop taking money from our family budget.  Instead I am going to use money that comes in from HVAC side work that I do.  Interestingly enough since making the decision, I have not had any side work come in.  Is this God telling me something?  Does he possibly have different plans for me?  I wish I could say that I am okay with whatever, but I am not sure that I am. 

I really hope racing is in the plan.  I have spent the last week researching ways to generate an income stream but not take time away from my family and ministry commitments.  It has been discouraging.  If anyone has suggestions, I am all ears.  Until next time....