Okay, so I truly have no excuses on why I haven't posted a new blog. in so long. I can give you all of the normal stuff, like I am so busy, but I am sorry it has taken me so long to update. I have so much to tell you, I just don't know where to start. Last July, we moved to Daytona Beach to the new Larsen Motorsports High Performance Vehicles Research and Development Center. Wow that is a mouthful. It was not move in ready and far from being the Jet Shop that it is today!! We worked day and night to put the new shop together. There are way too many names to give you, but we had an overwhelming amount of help. Finally on February 22nd, we held our Grand Opening. It was one of the proudest days in racing yet. To see how far we have come was very emotional to Chris and myself. My sister and brother in law flew down to help and I couldn't have done it without them. We are luck enough to have several new student interns that come in and help us each and every day. They have also been able to attend several of the races. We are now open to the public 3 days a week Tuesday-Thursday from 10-5, so if you are ever in the area and want to check it out, make sure you stop by.
That takes care of the shop, now we have to get to the racing. When I last blog. I had a little trouble in Cordova, IL with the Miller Jet Dragster. As luck was not on my side that day, I hit some very small debris on the track to take out my right front tire. We damaged the Miller car and it was out of commission for the rest of the season. We used the Embry-Riddle car for the remainder of the season. I was fine, but my spirit was broken. Not by the wreck, but the reaction. I give a speech about having the Guts to go for the Glory, and I guess I was saying the words, but wasn't believing them. Well all that has changed. I now believe that you have to have the guts to get back in there and give it your all. If we all caved when others tried to get you down, we would let the bullies win. I WILL NOT let them win. Chris was my rock and helped me get through this. You truly find out who your friends are and I am proud that I have some amazing ones!
So the racing went well for the rest of the season once I changed my attitude, but we had much bigger plans. We have been working on expanding our race teams for a while now, and Larsen Motorsports was proud to announce that Marisha Falk would be the new driver in 2012 for the Embry-Riddle team. Marisha is 25 years old, she is a pilot and an instructor at Embry-Riddle. She has been with Larsen Motorsports for a few years. She is new to drag racing, but has a lot of talent. She made her first laps down the quarter mile December 7th and licensed the end of February after testing every weekend and most Wednesdays at the track. She is going to be a force in racing and I can't wait for everyone to meet her.
So that takes care of racing, now on to the family. We not only moved our shop to Daytona Beach, we sold our home of over 20 years. Sad to say goodbye to neighbors and friends, but we needed to be close to the shop. We were lucky to find a home about 3 miles from the shop in a great neighborhood. Just this weekend, I finally feel like I am home when I walk in the door.
I wake up each and everyone morning thankful for everything that has happened in the past year, even the wreck. I have grown so much as a wife, mom, business owner, and a driver that I wouldn't change it for the world. Nitro is snoring beside me happy in his new life as well. He misses chasing the bad kitty, but I am sure he will find something to keep him busy.
Thanks for sticking with me. I still have some life left in me yet. I hope that we will see you somewhere on the road. Keep it shinny side up!!!
luv ya,
e
