When upon life’s billows you are tempest-tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.

Those words come from a song we occasionally sing in church. The song was originally written by Johnson Oatman, Jr. and published in 1897. There are four verses to the song. Why do I bring this up because we are reaching midseason at many of the area race tracks. Usually at the midseason point, temperatures have risen, patience is in short supply, our natural human ability to complain comes out, car counts start going down, and we forget to say the words Thank You.

Those two words are some of the most powerful words in the vocabulary. Thank you shows gratitude. A thank you letter can help seal the deal. Thank you is universal, Danke in German, Merci beaucoup in French, Gracias in Spanish, every language has a Thank You. Every time you say the words “Thank You” you are acknowledging a blessing.

So in the racing world what do we have to be Thankful for, what and where should we be using the words Thank You, where should we be counting our blessings? Let’s count our blessings in the racing world, let’s name them one by one, and let’s be surprised what the Lord has done for us:

Dale Earnhardt Sr., in life he brought us great joy and in death he brought us new found safety features.

Race track owners, someone has to be willing to step up financially and do the work necessary to give us a place to race. Conversely, for some owners thank the Lord they no longer own a rapidly failing track. The Lord works in mysterious ways.

Race track workers, the officials, the concession workers, the trash removal crew, the tow truck personnel, and the safety personnel. We all need to thank them for what they do. Marc Olson when he owned Lakeside Speedway would always say Thank You.

Pit Crews, normally made up of family and friends, these people are the lifeblood sustaining some race teams.

Sponsors, too many times we think of them as what can they give us, when in reality it is a two-way street, what can they give us AND what are we providing them back. A picture, a note of thank you goes a long way!

Racecar drivers, we would not have sport without them! We sometimes forget this is still a dangerous sport combining man and machine. Conversely, again they have to be thankful for each other to have competition.

Race Fans, without them we would not have the purse to race for or the ability to keep tracks open.

Media, yes, we need to be thankful for those willing to spend the time necessary to prepare a show or write an article for our enjoyment.

Finally, back to counting our blessings, please take the time to slow down, take the time to count your blessings, take the time to recognize the help we get as we move through life, keep us from taking others for granted whether owner, racer, fan, sponsor, or worker and most of all learn to take the time to say Thank You!