In rural West Virginia, running into the local high school's running back could be compared to meeting a celebrity. Yes, we love our sports in West Virginia. On November 8th of 2004, I celebrated my birthday by eating at an Applebee's in downtown Huntington, West Virginia. Suddenly, while I was eating, I felt a hand on my shoulder. I looked up and saw former Marshall University football coach Bob Pruett! "I want to thank you for supporting Marshall," he said (I was wearing a Marshall sweatshirt.). "God bless you." He then patted me on my head before disappearing.
I was dumbfounded! I had just met Coach Pruett, and if you knew how big of a Marshall University fan I am you would understand just how much that meant to me. However, I forgot to ask for an autograph! I forgot to tell him it was my birthday! What exactly did I say to him? Nothing, I said absolutely nothing! I was like a groupie with a backstage pass to the Grammys! Nevertheless, I came home grinning ear to ear. I had met Coach Pruett.
As you can imagine, I told everyone about meeting Coach Pruett, and everyone made fun of me for forgetting how to speak. What made this especially funny was that I am never at a shortage for words, and yet I couldn't think of a single word to say when I met one of my heroes! I told my friends that it is different when you meet someone in person, and that they would not understand until it happened to them. However, I did vow to never let something like that happen to me again, and my experience with Coach Pruett did prepare me for my day with Dale Earnhardt Junior earlier this summer!
Anyone who knows me, knows I am a NASCAR fan. To be more specific, I am an Earnhardt fan! One of my greatest moments was being present when Dale Earnhardt Senior won his only Daytona 500! Sadly, I never got to meet Senior before he died. When I heard Dale Junior was coming to a local track for an autograph session, I made sure to do everything I could to possibly meet him!
Before I knew it, I was on the telephone calling the track to purchase VIP tickets. What happened next was completely unforeseeable. Mr. Stevens, a track employee, was the man I spoke with concerning wheelchair section seats. To my surprise, he asked me if I could help him by giving him ideas on how to improve the wheelchair section. I was more than happy to oblige, and he actually listened to what I had to say. In fact, he even used some of my ideas. We were not talking about tickets by the end of the telephone conversation. He told me not to worry about the tickets. He would take care of everything, and give me the red carpet treatment for my help. The day I met Dale Junior became, arguably, the greatest day of my life!
The day began with my best friend Buck driving me to the track. We got approximately 24 miles from the house before we were pulled over by the state police. I did not have a valid sticker on my windshield, but that was not the problem. The problem was my friend was driving on a suspended license! "I'm going to jail," he said. I then told him to let me handle it. I began talking about how I was going to finally get to meet my hero, Dale Junior, as soon as the officer got to my window. I told him about the red carpet treatment, and how it was going to be the greatest day of my life. By the time he found out my friend was driving on a suspended license, he did not have the heart give us a ticket or make us go home. "I'm not going to take you to jail for trying to help your friend," he announced, and we went on our way.
I asked for Mr. Stevens when I got to the track's front gate. I was immediately ushered into a roped off area meant for Dale Junior and the other drivers (Kenny Wallace, Clint Boyer, and Martin Truex Junior)! Thousands of people were gathered around the safety barrier just to get a peek at Dale. Most of the crowd paid big money just to stare at him from a distance. The crowd was bigger than expected. There was no way everyone in line could get in to see Dale Junior. In front of me, was no line whatsoever!
I began to prepare for Dale. My camera was ready. I had to borrow my cousin's digital camera, but I made sure to take a camera with me (with good batteries). I also had a die cast car, two hats, and a traveling bag for Dale to autograph. I waited anxiously for Dale's jet to land on the airstrip directly across from the track. It was 45 minutes late, but the jet landed as the crowd went crazy. Then, the drivers were transported the short distance between the airstrip and track in a million dollar RV. I was anxious, but I got even more anxious when I saw the RV driving directly toward me! It got closer, and closer, until it parked right beside where I was sitting under the protective tent, and then the doors opened.
Dale stepped off the bus and walked directly to me. I was the first person he came to! He was really nice and down to earth. He autographed my things, and talked with me for a while. He even let me sit at his table during the signing, and laughed at one of my jokes. All the while, my friend Buck was taking pictures. He took most pictures twice just to make sure. It was great, but it had to come to an end sooner or later. Buck and I gathered everything together, and we loaded up my van for the trip home. Suddenly, Buck looked at me and said, "I just thought of something. I forgot to take a picture with him!"
I was paralyzed in an automobile accident on 2/13/91, only a few weeks after I had 33 rebounds in one basketball game! My sports career was cut short, but my life wasn't. Although, I no longer have a need to be 6'7". I'm now a 31-year-old, C5, quadriplegic. I am from West Virginia and love Marshall University. I'm a sports enthusiast, and blogging gives me something to do when I'm jones'n for competition. I would love to become a freelance sports writer. I guess my quest begins here. I invite you to follow along. Read my blog, and tell me what you think.
