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Jeff Gordon Wins, On the Track and Off
June 27, 2006
Jay Staton - SCR
Jeff Gordon wins his
first race of 2006 at Sonoma.
Some would say that is a slump. Others, including journeymen racers, would be grateful for a win every sixteen to twenty events
or so.
But this is Jeff Gordon—a
man who has been booed arguably for most of his career for being too perfect. Too good behind the wheel, too smooth, too articulate
on camera, and for, believe it or not, winding up in victory lane too often.
Actually, Jeff Gordon
reshaped the sport. At a time when NASCAR was growing more slowly with good old boys racing primarily in the south (referred
to as “the good old days” ) Jeff Gordon burst on to the scene virtually just out of… high school. Admittedly,
he had raced his whole life, including ridiculously overpowered sprint cars by age 13.
Nevertheless, entering
the sport at its highest level at age twenty one was, at that time, unheard of. Prior to the “modern era” a driver
came up through the ranks, first winning in the lower divisions in stock cars at short tracks, then winning late-model championships,
and finally moving-up through the national divisions into Cup racing.
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A couple of exceptions
were second generation drivers, but the norm was to work your way up. Drivers were not considered experienced enough for Cup
until they were in at least their late twenties. In fact, Junior Johnson looked for drivers in their prime—which he
said was early to mid thirties. And to his credit, Darrell Waltrip and Cale Yarborough, among others, proved him right.
But when Rick Hendrick
had the foresight to hire a young Jeff Gordon, the mold was broken. The wins began coming and once they started, he and Ray
Evernham were just about unstoppable.
With the on track success
and his literal youthful good looks, Jeff became a very eligible bachelor. Enter Brooke Sealey, a Cup Trophy queen. They met
in victory lane, and, as Jeff himself put it, “It was love at first sight”. Soon Brooke, and Jeff, were inseparable,
and were married in November of 1994. Jeff once attributed a lot of his success to the support of Brooke, and he in fact was
at his best on the track when their relationship was moving along smoothly. In fact, he won three out of four championships
during the period of their marriage.
But this is America,
the land of “me first” and “instant gratification” and after seven years the marriage ended.
There were murmurs of
the usual accusations that occur during a divorce, but by and large both parties kept the issues to themselves and off the
public scene.
Jeff was seen with numerous
female acquaintances at the track and elsewhere subsequently, and, perhaps in something that was not such a coincidence…
his wins became more infrequent.
Meanwhile, the landscape
of the sport evolved to many young drivers being signed by Cup Teams while they are still in go carts, and Ricky Rudd (who
ironically, raced go carts prior to coming to Cup) indicated at one point that he felt that the media was pushing the veterans
from the sport.
Jeff missed the chase
in 2005, and former crew chief Robbie Loomis returned to Petty Enterprises.
But on the eve of the
road course event at Sonoma, Jeff announced his engagement to Ingrid Vandebosch,
and, surprise, went on to win the event!
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Clearly, Jeff is happier
and more focused with a mate. A help-mate is how the second half of the first relationship was described…
“Helper”
initially sounds so… second class or inferior somehow. But consider the times that you helped someone else—they
were in need of you, not the other way around.
And, as the post race
congratulations between the two indicated, clearly, Jeff needs Ingrid. We all need someone, and with divorce rates approaching
60%, it may be time to rethink our “me first” values and rediscover the joy in doing for someone else, whether
one feels like it each and every moment or not.
A true relationship,
the relationship we were intended to have, begins with a commitment, and not simply a “feeling” that is subject
to emotional whims of the moment.
The very best of luck,
Jeff, in your dedicated hunt for your fifth championship, and in your decision to equally dedicate the rest of your life to
a single person; may both of your dreams come to pass.
Questions, Comments;
The views and opinions in this article are that of the writer and
not necessarily that of SCR
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2006 StockCar Review.
