09/22/2026
There is so much to be thankful for.
First and foremost, thank you to everyone who reached out personally. The support and care everyone has shown for my well-being blew me away, and I'm so grateful. A huge thank you to the entire CARS Tour West safety team, the Wenatchee Valley Super Oval safety team, Candice Hornaday, Jeremy Anders, Zandar Peters, and everyone else who helped me out of the scary situation I found myself in, dangling upside down.
Secondly, I am extremely grateful to VanDoorn Racing Development for building such safe race cars. The car did its job and kept me safe. A big thank you to The Joie of Seating for making the safest seats on the market, MPI Steering Wheels for making a safer wheel, and Ultra Shield Race Products for ratcheting seat belts. I'll never trust my life with anything else, and I will be a customer for life.
As many of you know, I try to see the positive in everything. This is no exception. Because of the companies and the people at them, I was able to walk away with only a few nasty bruises. Motorsports safety, especially at local short tracks, has come a long way in the last 10 years, and this crash is a prime example.
As this is a bittersweet end to our first year on the road with the Cars Tour Northwest, I am so proud of the speed we had all year long. We created memories as a family that will last a lifetime and, most importantly, had fun doing it. I am so grateful for the Cars Tour and their commitment to racing in the Pacific Northwest. I've always wanted to be featured on the Door Bumper Clear Podcast, but this isn't exactly what I had in mind.
Unfortunately, the car is most likely a total loss. As we head into the off-season, we have a big rebuilding task ahead of us. We plan to take some time to regroup, see what we can salvage, and get ready for next year. That said, the 2027 season starts now, and we have space available for additional partners! If you or someone you know wants to promote a business or brand in a unique, creative way, message me to see how we can showcase you in 2027!