Fordham and Racing

It's very rare that I find things in from my scholastic life at Fordham that I can readily compare to my racing life.

This week starts probably hardest week of any college student, second semester midterms. I know this statement may raise your eyebrow at first, but when you really analyze the situation its pretty normal. The second semester is a hard time for most students because it just seems to go bye much faster than first. Being in and out of school due to vacations, weather, or sickness is much more common this time of year than any. This constant in an out almost make it extremely hard to get into a good rhythm and balance everything properly, meaning your school life, your job, and your friends. Your personal life gets really important this time of the year too, as everyone is trying to find out who they're living with next year. Then out of practically no where your given this midterm on half the material for the semester. Most students are lucky if they've even cracked the book at this point.

While looking at this whole situation, I can't help but put it into comparison with my last race at the end of February in the ARCA Series at Palm Beach International Speedway. Tracks like Palm Beach are a rarity on the circut, since there are only two road courses on our twenty race schedule. Some might claim its hard enough racing on an a eleven turn track, trying hit all your marks while presumably not hitting any of the other cars (which is much harder than you think.) Despite the already high level of difficulty the track presented, mother natured decided to test us even more by making us race on rain tires. For those of you who are not familiar with rain tires, they are not a good idea on stock cars, especially when only about ten cars in the whole field have road couse experience, and even more so when none of the drivers have windshield wipers. These challenges, although steep, proved to be speed bumps as the real challenge presented itself later. As I was nearing the end of the race, having only about twenty laps to go, my power steering suddenly broke on the car. Needless to say I had my hands full, driving a car that didn't turn on tires that didn't stick... and did I mention that I could barely even see the track. In the end, my team was able to guide me across the finish line. Without my eyes in the sky, Charlie Vest, there is no doubt I would have crashed my Big Machine Records Ford.

The parallel that forms between these two events is that life comes at you fast, or I guess in the latter I came at life to fast. In either case, things have a way of building on you, slowly piling up until you can't deal anymore. Such problems compounded continuously on my race car last weekend. And similar problems are accumulating in my academic life as well. I can see the majority of my classmates drinking mountains of coffee, shaking either for the intense sugar load or the prospect that may ruin their whole life by getting a B. I can't say that I haven't had my share of coffee, yet I find myself this morning completely relaxed as I have a test in about 20 minutes. What racing has taught me that school could not is that problems happen. Whether is worrying about seeing out your windshield or where you might be living next year, its all the same stress. Racing, however, has shown me that every instance of such stress is not a burden but a challenge. And while some challenges may seem insurmountable, all are endurable. As I did in my 19th place finish last weekend, for midterms I plan simply on trying my best and enduring.

-Chase