The racing world lost a part of our family on Sunday, with the tragic accident at Las Vegas Motor Speedway that took Dan Wheldon’s life. There are few people that leave you with a smile on your face from the moment you start talking to them and Dan was definitely one of those.

I was fortunate enough to meet Dan three and a half years ago when I was shadowing the IndyCar Series at Nashville Superspeedway. The weekend had already been amazing, but once I was around Dan, it seemed to get that much greater. I was working at the driver autograph session and was given the duty of having each driver sign a Colts helmet that would be for charity. When I got to Dan and told him what the helmet was for, he automatically gave me a hard time since he was a big Chicago Bears fan. He proceeded to say “I’ll only sign it if I can write ‘Go Bears!’” and then told me to ask Casey Irsay (daughter of Colts owner, Jim Irsay) if that would be acceptable. After she laughed it off and told Dan to write what he wanted, he decided that he’d only put his name. That same feisty spirit is the first thing that comes to mind whenever I think of Dan.

Just three months ago, I went to the IndyCar race in Iowa with my parents. Mom decided to fly home early, so dad and I took the flight back to Denver a day later. Once we were at the airport, we noticed many of the drivers going their separate ways to take flights home, but noticed that Dan and Bryan Herta were sitting at our same gate. Dad and I walked up and started to strike a conversation with them when Dan started asking about college and my past internships. I told him I had just graduated and was in the process of looking for a job when he told me I should contact his management company that was based out of Boulder. How cool was that? The same man that had won the Indianapolis 500 two months earlier (and was now out of a job himself) was helping me further my own career.

Whenever I have been at the track and Dan was there, he was nothing but positive. He would literally talk to any person from the media or agree to every autograph and picture until fans were happy. No one will forget the sight of that awful accident that took Dan’s life on Sunday.  I’ll continue to pray for his wife and two son’s that are left behind and all of his friends and family for strength. He was not only a great racecar driver, but an amazing father and person. All those that were ever in Dan’s presence are truly blessed. He passed away doing what he loved and I’m sure wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.

See ya on the other side buddy.