Not fearless, not stupid, just good ol' fun

NEWTON - The line between fearless and stupidity has always been blurred for me.

Many times when I have considered something as the former it has unfortunately turned into the latter. The most recent time turned out to be pure excitement and fun.

ARCA Series points leader Ty Dillon, the grandson of legendary racing owner Richard Childress, allowed me to climb into the passenger seat of  a race car for a few laps around an .875-mile track  during  a fan and media ride-along event at Iowa Speedway.

I was putting my safety in the hands of a 19-year-old from North Carolina, but it wasn't just any teenager, climbing behind the wheel of any old car. Dillon is leading the ARCA Series points championships, owning four wins this season and six wins in his first 11 ARCA races. He started racing at 13 and comes from a well-known family, which includes his former NASCAR driver dad, Mike Dillon, and brother, Austin, who won the NASCAR Camping World Trucks Series race at Iowa Speedway last year and has raced some on the NASCAR Nationwide Series.

Coincidentally, Austin Dillon was also among the drivers zipping people around the track. Nationwide Series John Deere Dealers of Iowa 250 winner Ricky Stenhouse and Cole Whitt rounded out the four-man group of drivers.

About that whole fearless vs. stupid dilemma I face, when waivers are involved you can bet on stupid rearing its ugly head. So, when we walked out to pit road we were ushered to a shaded table and two very nice ladies who asked us to sign those very same waivers. You know, in case we slammed into a wall going more than 100 miles per hour.

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

I've covered auto racing for only two summers and thought drivers looked as cool as any athlete in their fire suits and helmet. So, it really was neat moving to a nearby trailer where people set us up with fire suits, gloves, a stocking mask type thing and a helmet with Hans device. Once I squeezed into the suit, I carried the rest of the equipment and joined the Waterloo Courier's Jim Nelson and former Sioux City Journal Steve Allspach, who now writes occasional columns for the Northwest Iowa paper, in line for a ride. Nelson jumped in with Whitt and I got Ty, who was already in the car waiting to hit the accelerator.

I had to climb in through the window, which was a challenge but easier than I thought with my larger frame. I got in and it became a team effort getting the shoulder harnesses in place and buckled. It's amazing the technology that is in place for safety, but you can understand the necessity if you've ever watched some of the violent crashes that can occur on a track at any level of auto racing.

After getting buckled in, I slipped the head cover on and then the Hans device, which is a bracket that slides behind your neck and over your trapezoids for stabilization. The helmet was put on with crew members fastening it to the Hans device. I was set, except for that overwhelming sense of doubt as to whether this was brave or stupid.

Too late now. I don't normally just eat salads, as Nelson pointed out, but was glad I did at the lunch beforehand because I was starting to think anything heavier might revisit us during the ride, which started with a simple plea.

"Take care of me, Ty," I said once the painstaking process of getting my large body strapped and buckled in as well as they could.

"I will," he quickly replied before the rev of the old NASCAR Busch Series model car drowned out any other comments. It was a good thing I didn't find out until after the ride this was his first day with a passenger in this type of race car.

The car's rumble was a prelude to us pulling out on the track. My first thought would be an easy pace for the first lap before we started testing the speed limits at which we could run. I was somewhat mistaken as I was forced into the side of the car as we made the first turn onto the track.

We were off, rolling into the back straight-away and getting up to speed fairly quickly. I had a hard time steadying myself as I tried to tape the experience, but it didn't take long to get accustomed to the force generated by the speed on the straightaways. I did, however, grow to appreciate the precision of which a race car driver has to operate at high speed. Especially in traffic, when we were passed by the other three cars, which became unsettling.

"What the heck? I thought were were alone out here. Stupid, stupid, stupid." were the family-friendly version of the thoughts entering my head when I saw the traffic. As they pulled away, those notions subsided and it was back to fun, fun, fun.

It was exhilarating has we would edged closer to the wall coming out of the turns. Luckily, I don't have any problems with motion sickness, because trying to glimpse of the stands or writing on the track wall could make you woozy as you rush by them. If I didn't already know the letters said Iowa Speedway, I wouldn't have been able to put together the letters as they quickly appeared and gave way to the blank white wall.

The best advice I received was to leave my visor up, allowing natural air to flow in. The suits, gloves and helmet are very hot. It's amazing to think how drivers persevere under those hot and sweaty conditions for 250 laps. A crew member at the track said drivers have special features to stay cool and hydrated during a race. Among those are cool suits, air that is circulated over ice and a tube inside the helmet for fluids.

Also, a claustrophobic wouldn't have much fun with the items needed to be in the car and how even a passenger is locked and wedged into the ride. That wasn't as big of an issue for me as the speed and force. After the more than five laps, Ty Dillon said they don't have speedometers, but we were going faster than 100 miles per hour.

The yellow flag was waved, accompanied by the flashing caution light and we slowed down to make our way into the pits. We came to a halt behind the other three cars and the ride was over.

"How was it?" Ty asked as I before I got out.

Let's just say I replay with "Awesome" and l;eave out the adult expletives I accompanied with it.

The experience was thrilling and provided a little insight into what drivers experience during the races on TV. By the way, those on-board cameras, including my own, can't convey what it is liking traveling at that speed and maneuvering around the curves, including the banking at Iowa Speedway. The adrenaline was pumping long after the ride was over. I can only imagine the high generated for drivers.

But, I'll leave the racing to them and will have the lasting memory of something that wasn't stupid after all. It was just one heck of a fun ride.