Bright lights flash simultaneously across the big screen message board. The crowd goes wild
and roars with excitement as the pit crew rush in towards the car to congratulate the winning
driver. I remember sitting in front of the television set and watching the driver step out of the
car and be boosted up on top of shoulders after shoulders. At that point, I started wishing that I
were the driver and that it was me being congratulated and praised by everyone around. After
that day, I developed an interest in racing, and being fifteen and on the verge of getting my
license made me want to race even more. I wanted to re-live that scene in reality!
I obtained my drivers license on my sixteenth birthday and on that very day, I also
received a sports car as a present. As with all teenage boys, I had an urge to show off my car by
speeding. Everyday after school I would "peer pressure" some of my friends to race me to my
house in our cars, and everyday I would beat them. After a while, it started to get boring and the
adrenaline rush was starting to fade, but I still had a burning passion for speed and challenge.
The next day I signed up for a class in motorcycle driving lessons and within two weeks, I had
Once again I was able to "peer pressure" some of my friends to get their motorcycle
licenses too. By now my intentions of racing on our motorcycles was clear to them. I never
once tune to think that racing on a motorcycle was far more dangerous, and the chances of
getting hurt or even dying were greater than racing in a car. I had to learn that lesson the hard
way. My best friend and I were going to go meet some of our friends at a Chinese restaurant.
He challenged me to race down highway 17 to get there. I accepted the challenge proudly. Off
we were, speeding neck and neck down the carpool lane. As the exit approached, we both
weaved menacingly through traffic cu...