Usually Steve goes out on Friday and does Fastrack to get some track time in before a race weekend, and then Tamara and I go out on Saturday to help him out. Since he was still a novice, he only stays out there Friday nights, and unfortunately for him, Tamara and I never seem to make it to the track before noon.

It was a very windy day - but its Willow Springs, so of course it was windy.

We got to the track in time to see that he was out doing a practice and watched his yellow bubble butt go by in turn 1. I was excited to see that he was looking much more relaxed - he was hanging off a bit and turn 5 was looking immensely better - much more smooth and clean looking as he dropped down into it. I usually lose him in turn 8 and 9, but this time was watching and jumping up and down as a couple of guys passed him - I know that is the thing to get him to speed up a little and learn from the other riders. The wind seemed to be picking up.

Then Tamara and I see a cloud of dust! Two of the bikes must have been blown by the wind and bumped... we see dust trails as the bikes seem to tumble off the edge of turn 9. I ask her if she sees Steve, as he was right there! She says, One bike made it! I'm hoping fervently its my Squidboy who's made it, while also hoping the other guys are all right... (It turns out later that - Jose Estrella had a concussion and Walt fractured a toe).

We see the white FZR400 and yellow bubble butt go by and I'm thankful - the red flag comes out and soon Steve is back in the pits. He's jazzed - about riding, about seeing the accident, and managing to survive it - the trick is to practice that seeing without looking at something - because on a motorcycle, just like so many other sports, you go where you look. This trick took me a while to learn while skiing, because for some reason I always had to look at my ski tips, rather than down the hill.)

He was so excited, and I love that about him, the way he is so focused and happy and really living in the moment.

Sunday comes around and Tamara abandons us to go out by ourselves. Steve spends the entire ride up to the track talking about getting me a bike, and what we were going to do to get me on the track, and what types of races he would run and I would run. Usually I just allow all the details to wash over me, sometimes it's hard to capture all the things Steve talks about, but it's a happy warm feeling.

Steve and I walk around the pits and he talks to just about everyone. He's SUCH the schmooze...

The thing about the novice races is that it's the end of the day, and poor Steve, he gets all wound up and nervous and snappy and I have little patience for it. (Forgive me, babe) But we manage to muddle along and soon enough it's time for the 501-650 novice race and the 0-500 Novice race. (Now, I always think I'd really like to see a 0 cc bike racing, but so far...none sighted). He ends up stuck on the pre-grid for about 10 minutes, which I bet felt like an eternity for him, as the crash truck had to pick up some bike who had gone boom.

The two races are being run together in waves, so it's very confusing for me to try and find Steve, but the first wave goes by and it's all larger bikes. Then I see the second wave start - I see the green flag drop and suddenly, none of the bikes are moving, and then all of a sudden I see Steve jump ahead and veer to the right to avoid a bike that just wasn't getting out of the way.

The ol' yellow bubble butt goes by and the race is on! I'm seeing two novice bikes, both of which looked like two strokes get way way ahead, and then I hear the announcer say, "and in a lonely third, is Steve Moonitz!" I jump up and down and cheer and yell and still manage to utterly screw up timing his first lap. Then a couple of bikes go by and I cheer for the guy in last place.

The announcer keeps telling us who is in the top three for the 501-650 and for the 0-500 race, and I hear a few more times, "Steve Moonitz in third place!" and I yell and scream and cheer like mad.

Now people are looking at me funny, since I'm cheering for some guy in third place in a NOVICE race, but he's MY novice racer and I'm gonna cheer him along.

I miss him getting passed in turn 1 as he passes a gsxr600, but do get to see him dicing with this dinosaur 650 bike that just rumbled and got lost behind him. (WOW! he caught up to TWO bikes who started 30 seconds ahead of him).

The race ended, he came in 4th, but I convinced him to go talk to the guys at the track registration, since 4th place gave him 9 points and he had done his three races, and they made him probational Expert! WHOOHOO! No more waiting all day at the track! In fact, next month, I think we're done by lunchtime...