The drive

We had such success August 1-2 at the former Loring Air Force Base in Limestone, ME at the Speed Trials hosted by the Loring Timing Association. It was a weekend where we added 15 Land Speed records to our current total and made the magic pass at a top speed or 190.118 mph. That made us by far the Worlds Fastest Normally Aspirated 650cc Class Land Speed Motorcycle. We did it, we actually did it. The celebration was on. I was screaming through the helmet. Standing up on the pegs and punching the air all the way up the return road. My fellow racer and friend Phil met me at impound and almost knocked me off the bike with his hug. It was an amazing feeling. Success was ours. We had done it. We were faster than anyone out there in the class. Anyone, anywhere.
There were those standing around the area that didn't understand, they saw, but didn't understand the excitement and pure joy. It is something that only the few who do this know. You can't know what it feels like to be at speed on a racing motorcycle unless you do it. It is where my life begins, where I am most at home. It is where I know I'm alive, where one mistake can be catastrophic. It is where I work so hard to be. The thrill, the excitement, the pure rush of being one with the machine as you search for every last bit of speed you can get. There is no way to describe it, no way to explain it. You either do it or you do not. This was confirmed as I witnessed a friend take her 1st pass on a race bike. She has ridden bikes for a while, but the race bike at speed did it. The smile was enormous. She told me I understand now. I get it. I wish everyone could feel it, not just us, the fortunate few.
The drive you ask? The above is the reason we work long crazy hours, we live life traveling from event to event. We spend money we don't have to make things happen. We suffer through tragedy and loss, we know frustration as that cruel friend. We are a driven breed. We know that feeling, that awesome special feeling that only the few know. It drives us, holds us and directs us. It is simply amazing and we are blessed to experience it.