I am a fan of many things: music, authors, photography, football, tennis, NASCAR, and of course, drag racing. I am a fan of many classes of drag racing, my favorite being Pro Mod. I am also a fan of anything that Tony Stewart drives.

I have been a fan of Tony since the‘ 80s. I cannot tell you the track or the event, but I remember going to a racetrack somewhere in Indiana and a teenage Tony winning the event, and the guy who we were with said,“ Remember this kid – he is a natural with anything on wheels.” I remembered the name and watched Tony in an IndyCar, watched his step up to NASCAR, and watched him

drive in the Cup Series. My dad liked to watch racing and we bonded a little over it. I liked Tony because he was himself. Good, bad, it didn’ t matter. You just knew that you were going to see his passion for whatever he was racing.

I didn’ t grow up watching any drag racing. I was a circle track fan. I started a job at Childs & Albert in Southern California in 2002, and that brought me into the world of drag racing. I was still a loyal NASCAR fan, watching and rooting for“ Smoke.” When I moved to North Carolina and started dating my now-husband, Brad, he worked at Doug Herbert Performance and was all about drag racing. I started to slowly convert to being a drag racing fan, while still watching anything Tony drove. I attended many NASCAR events over the years, bought plenty of“ Smoke” memorabilia, and stood in many lines to get autographs and a few minutes of chit chat with Tony.

In 2006, Brad and I attended the PRI Show in Orlando, Florida,

where Tony was the keynote speaker. I missed his talk, but I knew he was in the building and stayed alert hoping to see Tony. I was lucky enough to be in the right aisle at the right time and was able to get my first photo with him that didn’ t have a table between us. That photo hangs on my memory board to this day and appears in this column.

Over the years, I have been fortunate enough to have met Tony several times. When Tony started coming around the races with Tony Schumacher, I was excited for my two forms of racing to converge. I have said to people many times I wish Tony would try drag racing! Well, my wish came true when he started dating Leah Pruett and competing in Top Alcohol Dragster. Yes, I stood in the line for a photo. Then when he married Leah and started racing Top Fuel, I was thrilled. I have been able to get many photos of him in his car and I have several photos of me with him.

For me, it’ s not about what he

looks like or how much money he has. It’ s about the talent that he shows when competing, the passion he has for all things motorsports related, the fact that he really can drive anything, and that he hasn’ t changed his personality to make sponsors or team owners comfortable. He stays true to who he is, and that is the thing I admire.

Fans are everything to a sport. Without fans there are no sponsors and no TV coverage. The first thing a sponsor wants before handing out money is return on investment – what is in it for them? A fan is the same way. When they spend money on a ticket, they want to be entertained and to feel like they’ re a part of the sport.

I have been blessed to have many opportunities in drag racing: working for PDRA, helping run a message board, writing press releases for several teams before social media, travelling with a team and updating social media, and even writing this column. None of that matters if there are no fans to read what I put out to the world, and that is why I write this column and applaud the fans, because I am one of those fans in the stands. DI