DCRacing

In a vain attempt to appear intelligent, I thought I would write down a few thoughts about risk and taking risks, the background commitment of people making them and the ultimate conclusion, be it good or bad. Especially as we have seen of late, some of the extreme high profile results of them, Marco Simoncelli springs to mind.
I think about the commitment it takes from not just the individual, but also the family and the support that is given to the individual to get them to the heights of success that they achieve.
For every big success there is a lot who nearly but don't quite make it. Whether it is due to a lack of funds or commitment and belief in them or just not trying in the right area that they might excel in.
I am thinking a lot on these things as I watch my children grow and start to show interest in hobbies and sports. I don't know of too many people who wouldn't want their children to be successful and make a name or receive credit for their accomplishments.
But how do you support them and encourage them to commit to the endless hours of practice for any sport, musical instrument or intellectual pursuit, without becoming the domineering parent or the blatantly throwing money at them until they have achieved?
It is interesting to think and compare to the likes of Casey Stoner, whose parents at some stage must have thought that he had a talent and it should be encouraged and supported. Hence a decision to move to Europe at some stage and put all the money on the table to achieve that end. Without knowing if they would come back as a success or end up in the nearly but not quite category.
It must go through everyone's mind at some stage, to commit to a project or person. Then their thoughts must turn to how to achieve it and how much to give to make it a reality.
Look at Si, and his commitment to the site. Not just him either. He committed a whole lot of money to putting together a gig that got rained out, which consequently led to a poor turn out and low return on the investment he had made. I can sympathise with him on this one, as I used to run track days at Morgan Park and out lay for Insurance, Track costs and a myriad of other items needed to make it work. Not all my track days made money but I didn't put up as much as Si did either. He committed to the project a whole lot more than I did to my sideline.
Being a sideline was the reason it didn't get too far for me, as I had a fulltime job and needed to commit to that more than the track days. I feel it could have taken off if I had.
How far do you go? When I was a bit younger, maybe a bit more naive, I would not think twice of a boots and all commitment and leave nothing out. Now I have to think of my Family and of having a future that I can support them in. It was a massive risk for me to put all on the line and buy a business. Looking back now I think it wasn't such a big deal. How much of the decision was just moving out of my comfort zone and taking a risk?
I think people take a risk in a lot of ways every day, not just the crossing the road type of risk but a risk in the way of putting it on the line. Whether it is deciding to pull down your daily commuter to fighter it or put out the money for a new business venture or to sell up the house and invest all of the money in the potential of someone's future racing career. They all have consequences that we can't always anticipate.
I believe that none of us goes into it thinking it will end up with the worst possible outcome but sometimes it does happen. If you are moving out of your comfort zone to take a risk, congratulation, good luck and enjoy the experience, I hope it turns out better than my efforts at writing.

I really wish it was busy. Then I wouldn't be thinking and writing this stuff............... ;)