In The Groove
Monday, May 25, 2009
In The Groove
By Stacy Ervin
Memorial Day has always been a time of great reflection in my family.
When Grandpa Rocky was alive, we were sure to remember his fellow war
vets and honor the service he and his brothers gave during World War II.
Even as a little girl, I knew that Purple Heart and Bronze Star in a
display case on the wall meant something big. But Grandpa Rocky was
always my hero, so it made sense to me.
But Grandpa gave our family a lot more than his deep love for his
country and his community. He gave us a deep love of racing. So Memorial
Day in my family also meant solidifying our commitment to screaming
motors and flying dirt.
As all racing families know, the love of motorsports is not merely a
hobby. It's not even a passion, really. It's simply a way of life. It
gets in your blood, grabs your soul and never lets go.
Even to this day, Memorial Day for me means going to our local cemetery,
listening for Grandpa's name among the list of our community honorees,
searching out his flag and talking to his nameplate on the pole about my
life in racing. When the day ends, an American flag and a checkered flag
sit side by each, as Tony would say, at his grave, signifying the
lifestyle he passed on to us.
I've been attending races at Knoxville for 34 years and I've worked in
the pressbox for nine years. Though it's a challenge, each year I try to
find something different to do at the track to keep life fun and
interesting.
It's fitting that my something new this year came on Memorial Day
weekend. As we gathered on Saturday night, I found myself not at my
regular seat next to Bob Wilson doing my usual live results gig at
www.knoxvilleraceway.com. Instead, I
joined my old buddy, Hot Rod Pattison, in the Hoseheads Radio booth. I
was filling in for Bill W., who was away from the track this week.
Filling Bill's shoes is a big job, but it's a job I'm used to. He was
also away from his regular press duties with the Sprint Invaders
Association as they raced at Columbus Junction Raceway Friday night. At
CJ, I was able to help out by writing the official results story. That
was the easy part of the weekend. I'm definitely more of a writer than a
talker, so this radio thing made me a little nervous.
Really, though, I had way too much fun to worry about nerves. The
broadcast is now archived for listening any time at
www.hoseheadsradio.com. I was grateful
for several of my friends, too, for emailing and texting messages of
encouragement.
As with writing pieces like this for publication, and with typing out
live lineups, results and commentary on the internet, doing a radio
broadcast is kind of funny. While you're there talking in a little booth
with one or two other people, you don't really have a concept of how far
reaching your work is going. And then messages start coming in from New
Zealand and Texas and you think, “Wow, people are actually hearing what
I say.”
It's the same with writing columns and live results. I'm sitting here
typing away, knowing I'm going to send this out, but not really thinking
about people reading it later. Truthfully, it still amazes me when
people I have never met know me by name and know things about my life
from what I have written.
But my real reasons for doing all the jobs I have acquired in racing
stem from love of the sport and wanting to give something back. That's
just one of the things Grandpa Rocky taught me. And I hope he knows just
how much I learned.
Being part of the broadcast and getting to work with Hot Rod was
awesome, but I'll be ready to get back to my chair between Bob and Cappy
this week. And I'll be ready to type instead of talk. Being a track
official at Knoxville is an honor that I absolutely love.
So who did my live results job while I was off doing radio? Well, the
answer is quite simple. My mom was the first one to get Grandpa Rocky's
love of racing passed on to her, so it's only logical that she would get
the job. And she did great. So on this Memorial Day weekend, mom and I
solidified our commitment to racing, just like Grandpa would have wanted.
And because this is a time of great reflection, it goes without saying
that while we all love racing, the most important part of this way of
life is the people we have come to know because of this sport. Racing
people are truly an incredible bunch.
One of those people who means a lot to me has been under the weather and
unable to make it to the race track yet this season. Since Grandpa's
been gone, Chuck Hall has been like a grandfatherly presence in my life
and I miss him. So, Chuck, get better soon and get back to the track
where you belong.
Happy Memorial Day, happy summer and happy racing season to all!
(Pictured): Brett Mather (12m) and Alan Zoutte (33) race for position last Saturday night (Ryan Northcote)
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