Dan Wheldon Crash: IndyCar Driver's Legacy Extends Far Beyond Racetrack

Some things in life have no explanation. Try as much as you can to find logic, there are just times when the world is cruel and unfair. That happened yesterday in Las Vegas, when Dan Wheldon, 33, was involved in a horrific crash at the final IndyCar race of the season. 

Wheldon lived his life in a way that most of us would like to be able to. He was loved by his friends and family, beloved by fans around the world and had a wonderful family to go home to at the end of every day. 

The best way to describe Wheldon is happy. He did not have a glamorous life, filled with money and paparazzi, but he had everything that he needed and never complained about anything. He was grateful for everything and was kind to anyone he ever came across. 

Jay Hart of Yahoo! Sports summed up Wheldon's personality in one paragraph:

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"Perhaps nothing explained Wheldon better than his ability to find peace and perspective in the midst of such an inexplicable season. Here was an out-of-work driver who couldn’t land a decent job in a series in which he was a champion, in which he’d won the sport’s signature event, the Indianapolis 500. It doesn’t sound fair because it’s not, but that’s how it works sometimes in auto racing, where sponsor dollars trump talent."

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No one knows what his future holds. We can only live life in the moment, because if we spend too much time focused on what could be or what might be, we will never accomplish anything. 

Dan Wheldon knew that, so he decided to create a legacy on and off the racetrack that would last forever. No one expected his life to end in such a horrific way at such a young age, and it is impossible to find a reason for why it happened. 

It is OK to shed tears for Wheldon today, but also take a moment to celebrate the way that he lived his life. He was a racecar driver, sure, but he was a father, husband and friend first and foremost. The IndyCar series may have lost a driver, but the world lost a great man who will not soon be forgotten.