My Husband, Brett Thayer – Grandview’s Biggest Fan!
I’d like to try to describe to you in my own words what living with Grandview’s Biggest Fan is like. In our life, it’s not just about the races on Saturday night. My husband’s passion for Grandview is so much more than that. It all started for him in 1974, about 34 years ago, when his dad brought him to his first race at Grandview and it soon turned into a weekly ritual for them. That ritual lasted for almost ten years at which point real life took over for a while. He continued to attend races at the track, but not as often as he would have liked. At first, early in our relationship, Brett never mentioned Grandview at all. It all began for me on a Saturday evening in May 1999. We were moving into our house in Bechtelsville. It was late in the day and at the very first roar of the engines, Brett ran around opening every window to listen for the sound of Ernie’s voice crackling through the air from Grandview. I didn’t know who Ernie was or what Grandview was…I had no clue what I had gotten myself into! From that point on the word “Grandview” has popped up in conversations in our house on an almost daily basis, not just during racing season.
During the wintertime, Brett scours the internet and racing papers for any news related to the drivers, crews and owners. He worries over rumors that the track has been sold. He wonders if THIS season will be the LAST season. Thankfully, that rumor never does come true. He wonders out loud if he should purchase a season ticket this year or not (probably waiting for my approval.) If we’re driving in the general vicinity of the track, we’ll inevitably end up driving right past the track just to have a look. One year for Christmas I wrapped up some cash and made a phony ticket to pay his way in on Opening Day…it was one of his favorite Christmas presents ever! In late winter, he attends the racing shows in the area just to get a first glimpse at some of the new paintjobs and have an opportunity to talk racing again. His enthusiasm, even in the dead of winter, is contagious.
Brett looks so forward to a new season at the track that he will actually lose sleep over it a few days before Practice Day. He hasn’t missed a Practice Day in years not to mention Opening Day. The planning usually starts mid-week with the first peek at the next Saturday’s weather forecast. If there’s rain in the forecast, I will hear about it several times a day. If good weather is forecasted, I’ll hear about that, too! Brett plans out well in advance what races are the BIG ones and which ones he just can’t miss. I’ve rescheduled parties and plans numerous times based on Grandview’s schedule for the season.
Race day itself is another story! Brett begins to talk a little faster, move a little quicker and can’t quite sit still until it’s time to go to the track. The entire day revolves around the races…taking a nap, picking the right clothes for the weather, packing the cooler, washing the goggles, making phone calls and plans. It takes less than five minutes to get there from our house, but Brett routinely leaves at least fifteen minutes travel time for the ride, just in case. Of course, there are the Thunder on the Hill races, too, which also require the same diligence and planning.
One of the nicest surprises of Brett’s life was meeting Eric and Ron Shankweiler of Boyertown, who are also diehard Grandview fans. Brett met Eric through our daughter’s daycare. We were at a picnic at the daycare for our kids when Brett struck up a conversation with Eric about sports. It didn’t take long for them to realize they had something in common…Grandview. The conversation lasted ALL NIGHT with the two of them standing, drinking beer, and sharing their stories about Grandview. The picnic went on without them and they didn’t even notice. Ron is Eric’s dad. They kindly invited Brett to join them in their favorite seats at the top of the stands. He has joined them there for five years now and their friendship means the world to him. Finding two friends to share the track experience with has added enormous fun and camaraderie to his life…not to mention weekly phone calls and emails and the creation of a Grandview website that Brett maintains weekly along with the fantasy Grandview league that he runs for the guys. Thanks to Eric and Ron (and their early birthday present to Brett), I now have a side of sheet metal from Craig Von Dohren’s modified hanging in my family room!
As mentioned above, his love of the place led to the creation of a fantasy Grandview league and a website. It is one of his favorite hobbies and is an easy way for him to communicate the results of the fantasy league to the guys.
Over the years, I’ve done my part to support Brett because being Grandview’s Biggest Fan isn’t always easy. I have sat in the stands in the blistering sun, the pouring rain and even a passing snowstorm with him while he takes it all in with a beer and a smile. On nights that Brett couldn’t make it to a race, I have woken up early the next day to call the track for the prior night’s results, so I could quiz Brett on the winners over breakfast. I have agonized with Brett over the tragedies at the track. I have listened to stories of drivers, crew or their family members that have been taken from this world too young. I don’t know the people, but I will never forget their stories. I’ve stood back and watched him strike up conversations with folks from the track at the mall, the hardware store, school functions, and local restaurants. Even their initial puzzled looks at him won’t make him stop talking to them about Grandview. We’ve donated money to help for one cause or the other when the drivers have collected in the stands. And, I’ve spent countless Saturday nights without my favorite date because there’s nothing in the world he’d rather do than go to Grandview on a Saturday night.
Being the wife of Grandview’s Biggest Fan means that I get to be a part of a lot of fun stuff, too. I have watched Brett’s eyes light up the first time our daughter ever saw the cars line up on the track and I have seen the huge smile on his face when Kelsey started asking to go to the races with him last year. I have listened to my daughter delightedly retelling the story about how she and her daddy met Jason Hamilton and how Jason gave her a bunch of racing goodies through the fence. She’s his fan for life! I’ve walked through the pits with them after a race while Kelsey collected autographs and don’t know who had more fun…Kelsey, Brett or me! Another time I got to hear Kelsey tell me that she and daddy met ERNIE that night and it was all so very exciting, especially when told by a little girl with wide eyes! We have some unforgettable memories together like the night the modifieds ran without one single caution and another time when it snowed during the feature. I’ve sent Brett’s name in to be mentioned by Ernie on his birthday many times…usually a night at Grandview with us is all he wants for his birthday every year. We’ve got lots of birthday memories from Grandview over the years.
Grandview Speedway is a HUGE part of Brett’s life. He loves everything about it…the track itself, the dirt, the history, Craig and Jason, the stands, the food, the fans, Ernie, the Rogers family, the drivers, the crew chiefs, the smell of the fuel, the roar of the engines, the cars, the stories, the memories, the wrecks, the pits, the tailgating, the fireworks, and most recently the fun of Kelsey sitting in his lap in the stands talking “racing” with him. In his life, it just doesn’t get any better than that. Grandview is the good stuff for him. It’s what makes life worth living. It is so much more to him than just a Saturday night at the races.
Brett will be turning 50 on July 14, 2008. Grandview Speedway has been a very important and fun part of his life for most of those fifty years. He has shared his love of the track with his father and is now passing that enthusiasm and love of the track on to Kelsey. I truly cannot think of a more fitting way for him to celebrate his fifty years on this earth than with a night at Grandview like the one you’ve described in the ad for this contest. Please give him your consideration. He is most deserving and would be most appreciative. I doubt that you will find a bigger fan or a better spokesperson for the track than my husband. It would sincerely and honestly give Grandview’s Biggest Fan one of the greatest nights of his life!
And, if I still haven’t convinced you, I thought I would share a poem I wrote for him last year in a home-made birthday card covered with Grandview stickers and pictures of CVD. I know it’s corny, but it goes something like this…
“Ode To A Race Fan”
You’ll find him at Grandview on Saturday night,
He’s close to the top, standing in clear sight.
He sits at the track with his red cooler and backpack,
With a smile on his face because he really loves this place!
He loves the sounds, the sights and the smell,
When CVD is in the lead, you may even hear him yell!
Just a French fry or two, and a slice of pizza will do,
There’s nothing like track food to put him in a great mood!
If you hang around for a while, you’re bound to see him smile.
Through rain and sleet and snow, he’ll cheer them on and watch them go!
Yep, that’s my man…the World’s Greatest Dirt Track Fan!
Thanks so much for this opportunity. I enjoyed writing this letter and hope you all enjoyed reading it. I have an added benefit of being married to Grandview’s Biggest Fan. I always know where he is on a Saturday night!!
Sincerely,
Karen Thayer
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