Two weekends ago, my boyfriend invited me to join him and his friends in the pits of the I-55 Raceway near Pevely, Missouri. I could imagine few things I’d enjoy less than spending my Saturday night in the middle of a dusty, nasty, loud circle of dirt on which overly-testosteroned rednecks would be driving at ridiculous speeds in circles around a dirt track.
Call me a city girl, but I was imagining a Saturday night in a cute dress, eating dinner at a nice restaurant with sidewalk seating and great people watching. I could practically feel my muscles relax as I imagined the first sip of my second glass of Shiraz.
Instead, I found myself in jeans, a t-shirt and a ponytail watching my boyfriend change the tires out on a black stock car owned by a life-long friend of his. Surrounded beer-drinkin’, tobacco-spittin’, f-bomb-droppin’ small town guys, I had a fantastic lesson in humility. As the first race began, I felt my adrenaline pump. As the cars tore around us on the dirt track, I was reminded of something very basic about myself that in years of city life I’d almost forgotten - I love fast cars.
As the temperatures dropped, my boyfriend wrapped his arms around me, and we stood watching cars drive in circles around us. The noise of the engines, the dust in the air and the occasional (minor) crash created an environment just down-home and weird enough that I found myself switching from “Melissa” to “small town girl”, anxious to snap a few camera phone pictures and share my experience at the races with my readers on Small Town Girl’s Guide.
Sometimes it takes someone forcing us out of our comfort zones to show us just how much there is out there that we may not know about or think we’d be interested in. I challenge you to say “yes” the next time someone invites you to do something you’ve never done before. Life’s an adventure, even in a small Missouri town.
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I know exactly what you mean. The first time I attended a “mud run” I went through that same spectrum of emotion. But those things are so much fun! It’s easy to make fun of people who get excited about trucks and mud, but a lot harder to go out, have fun, and then admit that you enjoy it too!
Oh wow, did that hit home or what? Thanks for the post! Love ya!
I agree…a great lesson in humility. I’m so glad you went though and enjoyed yourself by the end of the night. I myself am not a huge fan of stock car racing or NASCAR, but always enjoy myself when I do go. It’s not the environment that annoys me, just the repetitive circle running. Anyways, thanks for sharing the lesson.