The Road to the Track Doesn't Always Have a Green Flag
Lakeland, FL - February 2017 didn't start like every other racing season Dylan has known. Dylan's season was approaching with uncertainty and without immediate direction. Dylan found himself searching for a new chapter and adventure in his racing career. He decided to trade his Super Late Model for an Open Wheel Modified and found budget racing was going to be the key to his 2017 race season.
Dylan has found great success on and off the track over the last 11 years and the 2017 season was going to be a challenge like none other. Most racers don't want to talk about the real struggles of racing. They want everything to be green flags and victory lanes, but the reality is there are yellow, red and for some, black flags along the way. We could imagine most successful racers experienced the yellow, red and black flags in their career paths. Dylan is experiencing those now. On the anniversary of Dylan's first ARCA race at Fairgrounds Nashville Speedway (2016), Dylan finds himself watching the race on TV, instead of watching it from inside the cockpit of the #48 Empire Racing Group Ford Fusion he drove in 2016. This isn't a vantage point any racer wants to watch a race from, but there are times (many times), they find themselves watching from the outside. He's passionate about a sport that has left him on the sideline so far for 2017. It's a painful experience, but a growing one as well. While Dylan may not be behind the wheel and on the track, he is in the shop. He's torn the OWM down to the chassis and has had it powder coated and he's rebuilding the car piece-by-piece, bolt-by-bolt. Dylan's committed to rebuilding the OWM and getting it on the track to compete with the best of the best. He's anxious to strap in and pull those belts tight again, but until that race day comes, he'll buckle down, rebuild the OWM and learn to handle the yellow flags of the racing journey. You may not have seen him in the line ups on the track just yet, but this hasn't stopped his drive to compete on the highest levels. He'll continue to strive to inspire kids to follow their dreams and reach for the stars.
Gianna is one of the kids that CARS is raising money for this year and we are happy to report that this week she had surgery to remove her halo and she's now in a neck brace while she's healing. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers as her road to recovery may still have many bumps along the way.
You can follow her progress on the CARS Facebook page (link below). There will be several opportunities for you to be involved in the fundraising for Gianna and Kaitlynn during this year. Keep a look out for how you can help make an impact in their lives as they learn to navigate their recovery.
CARS Racin' For A Dream
C- Cares A - About R - Restoring S - Smiles
Dylan will be on his way to Shriner's Hospital for Children - Tampa on Tuesday to visit with the patients and take the Soda Tabs that everybody has been collecting. Dylan wasn't able to visit Shriner's last year while he was in North Carolina so he is anxious to get back and see some familiar faces with the staff and spend some time putting smiles on the faces of kids who are battling daily more than we may be able to battle
in a lifetime.
Click to share thisClick to share this