RACSAN Lives. Junior Wins Again.

At the conference of anthropologists who met at Daytona on Saturday night, it was confirmed the species RACSAN is alive and well. The guest speaker at this conclave brought down the house after touring the entire Daytona facility rather quickly and then addressed the gathered note takers at the lodge in the infield.

It has been a matter of frequent public discussion that the hey day of the RACSAN tribe has passed. Those worshiping at the electronic alter have dwindled, according to the priests who record such things. But the tale woven by our guest speaker this past weekend suggests the live story is what counts, not the recording device.

Our speaker is a familiar man on this trail. His father came before him and both of their stories are oft-told. Yet, our guest speaker manages to keep his account compelling, one reason his coffers are so full from the offerings of fellow tribesmen.

It is the job of those gathered with notepads to help trace the arc of history, which can and will move in various directions. On Saturday night it was easily observed by the various questions as well as responses from our guest speaker that he’s one member of the tribe who can move that arc dramatically in either direction by his leadership — or failure — in RACSAN events.

At least, that was the message in the question-and-answer period. And perhaps what was left unsaid meant more than what was said. By that I mean there was an unspoken admiration for our guest’s account of things, because they came from a big-hearted soul, one whose world view has been forced into a broad perspective by events amidst the tribe he passionately believes in.

By his account, it seems, others draw the sweet marrow of what it means to be in this particular land.

He cited his life and times without the self-consciousness of his position, rather an acceptance of both its pain and promise. He said he had “worked and lived in tumultuous situations and I just got used to it I guess.” He cited his second-in-command, a cousin who also carries a Junior along with the name of his father before him. He pointed out that along with his cousin he has lived in the rhythms of the RACSAN way, which are beyond any one single individual. “We grew up through it even before we got to his level. Life wasn’t easy. It wasn’t ever a golden road and easy to travel. But it is what it is. There is a lot of pressure, I think, for us. But we’ve always delivered.”

It is an art form for RACSAN leaders to lay bare their soul when it comes to the inevitable individual trials amidst a tribe of defiant fighters. Not many can both conquer on the battle track and then submit to describing the struggle with such conviction, humor and humility. There is a constant awareness of the vulnerability, that the battle axe could fall at any moment. Then there’s the temptation to gloat once success is in hand. But not on this night.

“I was leading and leading, but I was afraid that I was going to get beat by a slingshot pass at the end,” he said. “I’m glad the slingshot is back, but I don’t want to get beat that way.”

The elders at RACSAN must also be given credit for providing the platform for our guest speaker. They commanded a new strategy for the battle wagons, one that has rejuvenated the slingshot. Above all, the new vehicles put more emphasis on the skill of the man in command. By this latter measure, our guest speaker has re-established himself after almost two years on desolation row.

Our guest, as has been known throughout the land, also decided to change chariot makers to the Hendrick brand. This, too, enabled the chariot maker to rejoice. The chariot maker shared the podium and was relieved his new model worked so well. “It sure takes a lot of pressure off to come down and run good in the first race and get a win early and just have a lot of fun,” he said. “I think that’s the important thing.”

The chariot maker and the guest speaker have endured their share of tragedy. The guest speaker recalled that Daytona “is where we lost (my father) and I want to keep whupping it.” That neatly summed up the most intensely shared values among the RACSANs of courage under pressure, dedication to hallowed ground, loyalty to kin and kind.

The chariot maker said his son had dreamed of this situation, the same son that was lost in a violent crash with so many other family and team members while en route to some of the hallowed ground in Virginia not so many years ago.

So here was the embodiment of not just the perseverance by the two Juniors and the chariot maker. Their individual chariots had swung so low along different paths in the not-too-distant past. Together they were now riding high and sweet.

Jonathan Ingram can be reached at jonathan@jingrambooks.com

Monday, February 11th, 2008 Filed under Uncategorized |