In Honor of the Woman Who Took Me to My First Race: Happy Mother's Day

I was just a young boy back in 1990. Still in my early elementary years, but already well-versed in the good ol' boy culture of NASCAR.

Growing up, I remember the family having to rush home after church so my mom could see the start of the race. There was no time to play on the playground, which I loved to do at that age, because Mom couldn't miss the start of the race.

And, God forbid it was the Sunday of the Daytona 500 or Indy 500. It was either go to the early service at 8 a.m. or we were missing church that Sunday.

Mom loved her racing, especially NASCAR. She only watches one Indy race a year, the Indy 500, mainly because of the tradition and the fact that she spent every Memorial Day weekend as a child at the track with her family.

Grandpa was an Indy Car fan who got both of his daughters hooked onto racing, who in turn, got their children hooked on racing. Come to think of it, when I get married and have kids, my kids will probably also become race fans.

Anyways, back to the story.

It was the beginning of the 1990 racing season and I remember it very vividly even though I was only six at the time. Darrell Waltrip "Finally won the Daytona 500. Thank God!" Yes, I still remember that quote to this day.

That's when I started relaying what I was seeing on the TV "Darrell Waltrip drives the No. 17, right Mom?" She'd tell me I was exactly right.

But, she also said, "Now remember, Bill Elliott drives the red No. 9."

Mom loved Bill Elliott and always wanted me to root for him as well.

I remember the first race I went to that year was in Atlanta. One of Elliott's crew members, Mike Rich, was killed during a pit stop and that memory is also still vivid in my mind, mainly because when we got home, Mom was crying. But, her passion for the sport continued on.

In 1991, I said, "Mom, now Dale Earnhardt drives the black No. 3 car." Her reply was, "Yes, but remember, Bill Elliott drives the No. 9 car."

Mom continued to try to get me to be a die-hard Elliott fan like her. But, I was really no fan of any driver at that age. I just loved seeing those cars go fast.

For mom, she was okay with that as long as I wasn't rooting against her driver. If I did, however, I was in for a bad day.

See, the 10 Commandments are a big deal in my family, but my mom's love for NASCAR added one more commandment onto the 10, and that was "Thou shalt not root against Bill Elliott."

If thou did, then thou got grounded for the rest of the afternoon and had to spend thou's time in thou's room for the rest of the day.

As I grew up during the years, my love for racing grew, but so did my need to be a smart-aleck when it came to picking drivers.

As I reached middle school and high school, I started picking drivers to like that my mom didn't have a very good opinion of: mainly Jeff Gordon.

I know the boos are going to come out on this one, but that is the reason I started liking Jeff Gordon because I was in a rebellious stage and just wanted to tick off my mom.

To top that off, I was breaking the 11th Commandment when I would say some smart-aleck comments about Elliott.

By that time, I had the room downstairs, so sending me to my room where there was a TV by my door, which was one floor below the living room, was not that big of a deal to me. I could smart off and still get to watch the race.

As the years continued to go on, I graduated high school, joined the military, got out of the military and moved back to my hometown. And, my mom was as big of a race fan when I returned home as when I had left.

The only difference was she now turned to root for Carl Edwards, since "Awesome Bill from Dawsonville" was no longer actively driving.

So, now, I drop by to visit my parents on a Sunday afternoon only to see my mom fixated on the race. Well, at least when she's not taking a nap.

Apparently, I found out that even while I was growing up she'd take a one- to two-hour nap during the middle of the racing.

Her excuse to me not too long ago was that she could still see the two most important parts of the race - the start and finish. I truthfully think that just because of the stresses of her job culminated in her just needing that little nap on Sundays.

But, true to her form, she'd still wake up with about a quarter of the race to go.

As I'm sitting on 25, about to turn 26, I've realized racing is something I will always hold special in my heart. Not only because of the tradition of NASCAR, but it was something that I shared with my Mom, however brief it really was.

And, yes I still do root for Gordon, or any Hendrick team for that matter, while her hatred for Gordon is still evident and her love for Edwards is apparent.

So, here's to you mom! If not for you, then I might be stuck watching golf on Sundays.