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As many of you might know, I am a father of two small kids (my son is almost 3, my daughter is 1), a three tour combat veteran, currently working on two degrees while raising the kids and taking care of day to day affairs while my wife works full time, making just enough to get by. So the few "nice" things I own are mainly stuff left over from my time in the military (minus a few small, cheap upgrades), as most of the money we have goes to bills and the kids. Not that I ever minded. Family comes first in my mind. It's hard to buy anything for myself when I'm constantly thinking how many diapers that money could buy, or how to improve my kids' or my wife's life with that money. Hell, I eat 50 cent canned food so my wife can eat egg wraps and my kids can eat fruits, veggies, and, once in a while, a pop or some kind of treat. And never once do I think past that decision.
So anyway, I race online/offline using an old wired Xbox 360 controller for iRacing (where I paint cars for donations to maintain membership) and nr2003, which does the job just fine. Recently, I rejoined a league I helped build about a decade ago (The OCRL), and this past Tuesday night, I ran a race with all the people there, new faces and many old timers still present. A wild, awesome Truck event at Daytona that saw the closest finish in the history of the league, with amazing saves, 3 wide action, and plenty of fun.
Yesterday, we all were joking and discussing the event, and the topic came up on a running bet the veterans of the league had on who would wreck the field (wreck never happened), and someone jokingly admitted that their money was on me because they though I was using a controller, and figured I wasn't because of how I raced and my subsequent 6th place finish out of 30 drivers. I admitted that I was STILL using a controller, and one of the people chimed in laughing, saying 'someone get this guy a wheel!'.
A suggestion came up that I start a FundMe for it, and I figured, why not? I'm certainly not going to ask or beg, but if people decide to throw a few bucks into the pot, maybe I could finally get a wheel. Wasn't holding my breath though.
Next thing I know, three guys in the space of THIRTY MINUTES raised over $100. I was amazed as I was grateful. I never expect help from anyone, I always work hard for everything, and take nothing for granted. So for a few guys to randomly generate enough money for me to get a Logitech DFGT was nothing short of a miracle.
I encounter so many knuckleheads and aggravating people in my life, I have all but lost any hope in humanity. It is not often I get choked up, but seeing this happen, even though I thought the entire idea was just a joke among the guys, showed me that there are still people out there that genuinely care, and help others.
I will keep this event in my mind, and if ever I am in a position to help them in return, they can rest assured that I will do everything in my power to do so. I believe completely in the concept of paying it forward.
Just a feel-good story I thought I would share. We all see a lot of negativity, some more than others, but never let that dissuade you from believing that there are good people out there.
So anyway, I race online/offline using an old wired Xbox 360 controller for iRacing (where I paint cars for donations to maintain membership) and nr2003, which does the job just fine. Recently, I rejoined a league I helped build about a decade ago (The OCRL), and this past Tuesday night, I ran a race with all the people there, new faces and many old timers still present. A wild, awesome Truck event at Daytona that saw the closest finish in the history of the league, with amazing saves, 3 wide action, and plenty of fun.
Yesterday, we all were joking and discussing the event, and the topic came up on a running bet the veterans of the league had on who would wreck the field (wreck never happened), and someone jokingly admitted that their money was on me because they though I was using a controller, and figured I wasn't because of how I raced and my subsequent 6th place finish out of 30 drivers. I admitted that I was STILL using a controller, and one of the people chimed in laughing, saying 'someone get this guy a wheel!'.
A suggestion came up that I start a FundMe for it, and I figured, why not? I'm certainly not going to ask or beg, but if people decide to throw a few bucks into the pot, maybe I could finally get a wheel. Wasn't holding my breath though.
Next thing I know, three guys in the space of THIRTY MINUTES raised over $100. I was amazed as I was grateful. I never expect help from anyone, I always work hard for everything, and take nothing for granted. So for a few guys to randomly generate enough money for me to get a Logitech DFGT was nothing short of a miracle.
I encounter so many knuckleheads and aggravating people in my life, I have all but lost any hope in humanity. It is not often I get choked up, but seeing this happen, even though I thought the entire idea was just a joke among the guys, showed me that there are still people out there that genuinely care, and help others.
I will keep this event in my mind, and if ever I am in a position to help them in return, they can rest assured that I will do everything in my power to do so. I believe completely in the concept of paying it forward.
Just a feel-good story I thought I would share. We all see a lot of negativity, some more than others, but never let that dissuade you from believing that there are good people out there.
