Dina Parise; Putting The Human Back In The Being
In light of recent ‘events’ I have decided to pen what I am about to…. But, of course I will not react the way you may think. If you have been following me, you know I think out of the box and I don’t hold back. So put your DJ Safety Belts on tight and your Bell Helmet on (yes, shameless plugs)… this will be a wild ride!
You know that I do not only write about my Dina Parise Racing team. Sometimes, I feel the need to address other subjects and issues. This would be one of those moments.* Before I begin, let me say that our thoughts are with all involved and our sincerest condolences go out to the Ward family.*
Unless you have been living under a rock, I am sure you are aware of the incident at Canandaigua (N.Y.) Motorsports Park on August 9th that involved Tony Stewart and resulted in the death of Kevin Ward Jr. As in any situation there are variables just as in what happened here. I cannot give you any particulars, you know why? Because I (just like many of those commenting) was not there. I could very well give you an ‘opinion’ just as every ‘Tom, Dick and Harriet’ did regarding what happened, but you know what, I will not. You know why? Because I actually cannot make a clear opinion on what happened because……..Again I (like most) was not there. I did not witness what happened first hand.
Millions of now ‘self-proclaimed’ experts have viewed an amateur video shot at night from a distance and come to their own conclusions. I get having an opinion, but in this day of Social Media and ‘Keyboard Cowboys’ it goes far beyond that. Being behind a computer screen really does bring out the ‘beer muscles’. This has not only become a witch hunt of sorts, but on the flip side the deceased driver has been disrespected as well. Apparently the viewing public now deems the CSI show as educational and they have all become graduates! Forgive me, but even as a driver, I do not feel I can make a determination as to what went on during that incident. The only determination that can be made is that a driver exited his car on a ‘hot’ track, and a tragedy ensued.
We cannot as a society be judge, jury and executioner via our computer terminals. Many on Social Media (as well as some news outlets) have become the ‘Judge Judy’s’ of cyberspace and beyond. Not just regarding this issue, either. Computers have taken the ‘ human’ out of the ‘beings’. The lack of human interaction is creating a less sympathetic and compassionate society. At times, I find myself having to just shut down my computer when a big news story hits. My shutdown is due to people no longer finding it in their vocabulary (or hearts) to speak/write with any compassion or manners and obviously feeling no guilt in doing so. Look, I am going to be very frank here. We all know the saying…. Opinions are like Buttholes, everyone has them…. Hence, they don’t necessarily need to be seen, right? Are you getting my point?
In the end (ah, no pun intended) we can only hope that this tragedy will bring about changes that will keep drivers (of all motorsports) safe in the future. In the motorsports community especially, I believe that we need not have knee jerk reactions, but some change is needed. From here on out let’s be pro-active rather than re-active to avoid future tragedies. I witness ‘procedures’ within my own sport of Drag Racing that I deem to be dangerous. For example; crewmembers standing next to a 2,600LB.(give or take) door car, and feeling the need to assist the vehicle during the burnout process. By that I refer to crewmembers holding and pushing the rear of the car on either side. I for one will not allow my crewmembers to do that. With tires spinning at that velocity, what if a pant leg was to get caught, a mechanical malfunction, a blown tire? Anything can happen in our sport at any time. And, it has. My belief is that this is something those in our industry should no longer be doing in the name of safety, but that’s just me.
We are looking forward to the long awaited debut of the DPR Cadillac CTSV Pro Mod. She is just about completed so stay tuned for that! Thank you to Paint by Bruce Mullins for making her look so good! *Here is a Sneak Peek!
People always ask how our DPR team can get out there to do what we do. Our Marketing Partners are the key to DPR’s success! This team works hard to keep our Advertisers happy! Check out the Advertisers and go ahead and try their products and services! DPR uses them all! Thank you to NGK, LAT Racing Oils, CRC Industries, Bell Helmets, DJ Safety, Stainless Works, Speedwire Systems, USA Auto Supply, Matheis Race Cars Inc., Hoosier Racing Tire and Coast 2 Coast Cuisine TV for their support throughout the season and beyond! Visit here: https://dinapariseventures.com/marketing-partners for all their websites and details! Contact DPR to become a Marketing Partner as well! Let DPR work for you!
Get Social: Be sure to join me and my DPR team on all our Social Media! Our Website will show you the way! So please visit https://dinapariseventures.com/ to learn more about the DPR team! Then join the team on: Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and don’t forget Bella the Wonder Pug too https://twitter.com/ProModBella !
Thank for reading!
See you at the races!
Dina Parise~DPR
