It was the last week of July 2016. Three weeks earlier, my son had fractured his wrist rollerblading with us. I saw the tears well up in his eye when the attending emergency physician said, "Uh, I think it's safe to say that he won't be competing at the Junior Olympics based on what I am seeing and the timeline."
During those 3 weeks, we pulled a waterproof wrap over his cast and swam practices and then swam in a local competition, his qualifying time so that he could compete at the Junior Olympics. He could have asked for a medical exemption, but that wasn't how he wanted to do it. A specialist agreed in his opinion it would be okay to cut the cast a week early, as a cast would not be permitted in the Finals. So, the day before the competition, his cast was cut. His arm was much weaker than expected, and he did not feel he would be strong enough to compete, but he decided to swim the night before and see how it felt.
It was the early morning of the competition. An email from Ford came in for me, informing me that I would not be selected as a recipient of an allocation for the NFGT, nor would I be placed on the formal waiting list. It was a sad email to receive. I think that we're all successful and we're used to focusing on and achieving our goals. I was disappointed.
But life marches on. My son ended that very same day a Jr. Olympic medalist. If I could have picked either for me to get the NFGT allocation or for him to get his medal, every time, I would pick for him to get the medal, that he earned through pure determination.
A couple years later, he is on the verge of another big meet tomorrow, and he is fully healed and currently nationally ranked in his favorite swim stroke for his age group. I have just completed my NFGT application video today, with my wife and other son helping out, as my older son, was at swim practice in the rain, with flash flood warnings in our area (did someone forget this is supposed to be Southern Cal?), while we hobbled the video together the best we could.
I was fortunate to attend Rally 11 in Austin, Texas, one of several rallies that I have been lucky to attend since Rally 2. And you know what? No one came up to me and asked me if I got an allocation or not. It didn't matter. It wasn't the main focus. I myself couldn't remember exactly who got an allocation or not either. I got to see the race pit of the new Ford GT. No one said, hey, new owners only. I mean, it's amazing, and well deserved, and I am so happy for my forum and GT brothers and sisters that are having their GT dreams fulfilled. And I still definitely hope to be one of those. But the camaraderie, the good will, the history, the friendships, the relationships, are as strong as ever.
My ownership and enjoyment of my '06 Ford GT have gone well beyond the material possession of a car. When we all bought our first Ford GT's more than a decade ago, and those that have bought them since, I'd speculate that more than a few of us were doing it because we felt it was simply an incredible tribute to the spirit and history of muscle cars, racing competition, and the American competitive spirit. It simply felt right. But what a bonus we received in the life long friendships.
For me, and I'm sure for others, it's a big decision to re-apply. To risk the financial cost, the sacrifice, the emotional roller coaster. But knowing that the Forum members will be here in support regardless of the outcome, makes it much less of a risk. In 90 days, the hearts of a selected few will be overjoyed. Some hearts will be broken. But all hearts will be supported.
Here is the video my family and I came up with. It's crude. We had a consumer video camera on a tripod. Some have made their videos with just a cell phone. Hopefully a portion of my love, respect, and desire come through for the New Ford GT.
I know it's a bit longer than what I thought was supposed to be 2 minutes. But it's hard to pour 12 years of thoughts and feelings and friendships into such a short space.
https://youtu.be/rWkNDarZO48
During those 3 weeks, we pulled a waterproof wrap over his cast and swam practices and then swam in a local competition, his qualifying time so that he could compete at the Junior Olympics. He could have asked for a medical exemption, but that wasn't how he wanted to do it. A specialist agreed in his opinion it would be okay to cut the cast a week early, as a cast would not be permitted in the Finals. So, the day before the competition, his cast was cut. His arm was much weaker than expected, and he did not feel he would be strong enough to compete, but he decided to swim the night before and see how it felt.
It was the early morning of the competition. An email from Ford came in for me, informing me that I would not be selected as a recipient of an allocation for the NFGT, nor would I be placed on the formal waiting list. It was a sad email to receive. I think that we're all successful and we're used to focusing on and achieving our goals. I was disappointed.
But life marches on. My son ended that very same day a Jr. Olympic medalist. If I could have picked either for me to get the NFGT allocation or for him to get his medal, every time, I would pick for him to get the medal, that he earned through pure determination.
A couple years later, he is on the verge of another big meet tomorrow, and he is fully healed and currently nationally ranked in his favorite swim stroke for his age group. I have just completed my NFGT application video today, with my wife and other son helping out, as my older son, was at swim practice in the rain, with flash flood warnings in our area (did someone forget this is supposed to be Southern Cal?), while we hobbled the video together the best we could.
I was fortunate to attend Rally 11 in Austin, Texas, one of several rallies that I have been lucky to attend since Rally 2. And you know what? No one came up to me and asked me if I got an allocation or not. It didn't matter. It wasn't the main focus. I myself couldn't remember exactly who got an allocation or not either. I got to see the race pit of the new Ford GT. No one said, hey, new owners only. I mean, it's amazing, and well deserved, and I am so happy for my forum and GT brothers and sisters that are having their GT dreams fulfilled. And I still definitely hope to be one of those. But the camaraderie, the good will, the history, the friendships, the relationships, are as strong as ever.
My ownership and enjoyment of my '06 Ford GT have gone well beyond the material possession of a car. When we all bought our first Ford GT's more than a decade ago, and those that have bought them since, I'd speculate that more than a few of us were doing it because we felt it was simply an incredible tribute to the spirit and history of muscle cars, racing competition, and the American competitive spirit. It simply felt right. But what a bonus we received in the life long friendships.
For me, and I'm sure for others, it's a big decision to re-apply. To risk the financial cost, the sacrifice, the emotional roller coaster. But knowing that the Forum members will be here in support regardless of the outcome, makes it much less of a risk. In 90 days, the hearts of a selected few will be overjoyed. Some hearts will be broken. But all hearts will be supported.
Here is the video my family and I came up with. It's crude. We had a consumer video camera on a tripod. Some have made their videos with just a cell phone. Hopefully a portion of my love, respect, and desire come through for the New Ford GT.
I know it's a bit longer than what I thought was supposed to be 2 minutes. But it's hard to pour 12 years of thoughts and feelings and friendships into such a short space.
https://youtu.be/rWkNDarZO48
Your right, it's hard to put 12 years of great memories into 60 seconds let alone 10 minutes. Nice work! I was looking at pics of my little girls growing up while I was trying to decide how to compile my video and its amazing how quickly 12 years goes by and how quickly they grow. Good luck!!!
