I have sat down to write this blog many times. I’ve thought about what to write for awhile now, but I’m having a tough time finding the right words. I’m still having a tough time realizing it’s actually true. We lost Scott Kalitta. I can’t really find the words to express what it feels like to have him gone, even now that it’s been weeks after the his crash. I’ve wanted to share Scott stories but can’t decide which stories to share.

I know I want to share a photo of the billboard that is up near our shop. We don’t know who put it there. It’s on southbound US-23 at Milan, which is not far from our shop. There was one just like this on the westbound side of I-94 near Ypsilanti. We saw it every time we drove from the airport to our shop.

Scott was like a big brother to me. I even wrote that in my blog not too long ago when I was talking about how happy I was that his Funny Car team went to final in Chicago this past June. He taught me how to drive a fuel car. His Top Fuel dragster is what I licensed in back in 2005. I still have the hand-written, step-by-step instructions on what to do in the warm-up procedure. I still remember sitting in his car all strapped in, ready to make my first run in a fuel car, and he was pacing back and forth, giving me last minute instructions. Through all my struggling in my career as a professional driver, Scott was there to help and offer encouragement.

We lost in the first round a lot last year. I always take those really hard. I would always be in a really bad mood, and I would mope around the pits. Scott would try to offer some encouragement to help me feel better. A lot of the time last year he lost in the first round too. We would always have a pity party for ourselves. We could always jokingly come up with excuses about why we lost, why it was someone else’s fault, or how messed up our competitors were. We knew it wasn’t the truth, but it made us laugh and temporarily feel better. Then we would go to the starting line and support our teammates.

I’m so thankful we went to the winner’s circle in Topeka, and he could be there with us. I had fan write to me who was at the race. He said he noticed that as we were preparing to go to the final, Scott was sitting in our pit on the back of the tow vehicle, just looking around taking it all in. This e-mail went on to say, “I think he was watching and enjoying what all of you had accomplished.”

The support from fans and other racers has been unbelievable. I know I speak for everyone at Kalitta Motorsports when I express gratitude for all the heartfelt messages and condolences. One lady gave us this framed photo of the Hope exit. That was very touching, and I will hold on to it.

When I was asked to go to Afghanistan, I knew it was for a reason. For some reason, I just knew it was something I needed to do. It has helped me so much in how I approach my everyday life and how I approach my job. Now I realize it has helped me in another way. When I was there, I met a lot of soldiers who had lost comrades in battle. A lot of the soldiers talked about how losing their fellow soldiers was tough but they had to stay strong and move on. When someone dies in combat, everyone has to keep going on. Many of them seemed more motivated and more determined than ever. Those guys are my inspiration right now.

We will move on, and our team will be stronger than ever. I have a lot of hope that our team will be better than ever. I am hopeful that we will show that with our performance on the track. I have a lot of hope that good things are going to happen to our team. I am hopeful that Scott is watching over all of us.