IN 1998 I ATTENDED A RACING AND SAFETY SCHOOL. AWAITING FUNDS TO FURTHER INTO MY SPORT, IT WAS UNTIL 1999 I REPEATED THAT SAME SCHOOL AND WAS NOW READY TO COMPETE. BY 2000 I WAS WINNING HEAT RACES AND BREAKING A TRACK RECORD. IN 2002 I PURCHASED MY FIRST RACE CAR. ODDLY ENOUGH IT WAS THE CAR I HAD DRIVEN IN MY FIRST EXPERIENCE AT THAT RACING SCHOOL. WHEN 2003 ROLLED AROUND I WAS ASKED TO SUB FOR A FELLOW COMPETITOR WHO WANTED OUT OF THE DIVISION. MUCH WAS LEARNED FROM TEAMING UP WITH AN EXPERIENCED RACE TEAM. THAT YEAR CAPPED WITH ATTRACTING A NEW DRIVER ALONG WITH THE SALE OF A CAR. 2004 HAD ME BACK IN WINNING FASHION WITH MY NEWLY RESTORED HOUSE CAR. THIS WAS THE YEAR #35 EMERGED INTO THE FIELD. IT WAS THAT SAME YEAR, MY OLDEST DAUGHTER ASHLEY, HAD GIVEN ME THE NAME B~BAD. IS THERE A MEANING?

AS MAN WHO BELIEVES EVERYTHING HAPPENS FOR A REASON… YOU HAVE TO BELIEVE THERE IS. THE FIRST THREE LETTERS ARE MY CHILDREN WITH THE REMAINING LETTER AS ME. NOW YOU ARE PROBABLY THINKING "THERE HAS TO BE A MEANING BEHIND THE #35" AND THERE IS. IF YOU NOTICED I HAVE THREE CHILDREN. THE SECOND NUMBER BELONGED TO THAT FAVORITE DRIVER I MENTIONED FROM MY CHILDHOOD (SEE: TEAM HISTORY). PUT THE TWO TOGETHER AND YOU HAVE #35. NOW THE PART YOU MAY HAVE MISSED. MY CHILDREN ALWAYS COME BEFORE ME.

BY 2005 A SECOND CAR WAS PURCHASED ALONG WITH AN ENCLOSED TRAILER BIG ENOUGH TO HAUL BOTH CARS. A BUSINESS VENTURE WAS ESTABLISHED IN ORDER TO ATTRACT NEW DRIVERS TO THE SPORT. YOU SEE, THAT RACING SCHOOL WAS NO MORE. THE CHANCE TO LEARN AND RENT AND RACE WAS GONE. WITH LOSING ALL OF MY HELP (CREW) TO SCHOOLS OR RELATIONSHIPS THAT SAME YEAR, 2005 WAS EVERY BIT A STRUGGLE. IN SEEING MY DEDICATION TO THE SPORT OF AUTO RACING I WAS APPROACHED BY A DIRT LATE MODEL TEAM AND ASKED TO FOLLOW UP WITH A TEST SESSION WE HAD IN EARLY 2003. THE DEAL WAS TO RACE A SECOND CAR FOR THE TEAM AT A LOCAL TRACK FOR THE ENTIRE 2006 SEASON. RACE AND OWN NOTHING. HOW COULD ANYONE SAY NO?

SPONSORSHIP DEALS, MARKETING PACKETS AND EVEN A TEAM WEBSITE WAS A PART OF THE DEAL. THIS WAS IT; I THOUGHT WE MADE IT; BACK TO HAVING FUN AGAIN AFTER THE HARD WORK IN 2005. A TOTAL TEAM EFFORT SO I CAN FOCUS ON DRIVING A RACE CAR. THIS WAS NOT TO BE. THE TEAM STRUGGLED WITH THE REALITY OF TWO CARS FROM THE WORD GO AND OUR SEASON ENDED PREMATURELY. WITH EVERY NEGATIVE IN LIFE YOU MUST SEEK OUT THE POSITIVE. I DID JUST THAT. GOOD FRIENDSHIPS WERE MADE. EVEN MORE, I DISCOVERED THAT ALL THE YEARS SPENT IN ONE CLASS (MINISPRINTS) DID NOT GO UNNOTICED.

BETWEEN THE OFF SEASON MONTHS OF 2005-06 AND 2006-07 I TOOK PART IN AN OPEN CIRCUIT DERIVED FROM A LIST OF SOME OF THE MIDWEST'S BEST SHORT TRACK RACERS IN THE LOCAL AREA. JUST WHEN I THOUGHT THERE WAS NOTHING LEFT TO LEARN IN RACING THE TEAM NOW HAD TO RACE AN INDOOR ROAD COURSE ON ASPHALT WHILE TURNING RIGHT. EVER REACH A POINT IN YOUR LIFE WHERE EVERYTHING YOU'VE EVER LEARNED HAD NOTHING TO CONTRIBUTE TO WHAT YOU WERE ABOUT TO DO TODAY? A SLIDE JOB ON ASPHALT IS NOTHING LIKE PULLING ONE ON DIRT. SLOW IS FAST? WHAT??

BY THE TIME I WAS ALL BUT READY TO GIVE UP THE GO-KARTING SCENE, MY YOUNGEST DAUGHTER, BRITTANY DECIDED TO SCHOOL THE OLD MAN WITH A SHOW OF HER OWN DRIVING SKILLS. SHE TOOK A RACING / SAFETY SCHOOL AND JOINED A JUNIOR LEAGUE OF HER OWN. IN ONLY HER EIGHTEENTH START SHE WAS ALREADY WINNING RACES. SINCE THE BAR WAS SET, THE DECISION WAS MADE TO COMPETE WITH HER IN WHAT WAS BILLED AS "THE FATHER'S DAY CHALLENGE". THE TEAM CAME UP JUST SHY OF A PODIUM FINISH IN TWO ATTEMPTS. THAT'S RACING. SOME OF WHICH I WILL NEVER FORGET.

EARLY IN 2007 I RECEIVED A TELEPHONE CALL FROM A FELLOW COMPETITOR ASKING TO KNOW WHAT IS NEEDED TO RETURN MY TEAM TO MY LOCAL CHILDHOOD RACE TRACK. AN ENGINE WAS PRODUCED FROM THAT CALLER AND YET ANOTHER UNION WAS FORMED AMONGST FRIENDS. THE FIRST RACE CAR I EVER OWNED WAS PURCHASED BY MY RENTER OF 2005 WHOM I CONSIDER TO BE AMONG MY CLOSEST CIRCLE OF FRIENDS.

BY MID SEASON 2007 THAT MOTOR WOULD NOT LIVE UP TO THE HEAVY DEMANDS OF OUR NEED FOR SPEED. WITH THREE ATTEMPTS AT A REBUILD THE FRUSTRATION WAS SETTLING IN. SPONSORS AND SUPPORTERS WERE SHOWING CONCERN THAT THE SEASON WOULD BE SCRATCHED. THE CALL CAME IN FROM YET ANOTHER RACING TEAM THAT A RIDE HAD JUST OPENED DOWN STATE. SOME TRAVEL TIME WOULD BE INVOLVED; YET.. SHOW UP AND DRIVE. WE DID JUST THAT AND ADDED ANOTHER HEAT RACE WIN TO OUR RESUME.

THERE WAS SOME DEJA-VU TO THAT MID-SEASON OPPORTUNITY. THE CHASSIS WAS THE VERY SAME I DROVE IN 2003, NOW UNDER IT'S ONLY OWNER SINCE THEN, AND BILLED AS A BACK-UP CAR WITH A MUCH UPDATED SUSPENSION AND POWER-PLANT. A WILD RIDE WAS HAD DURING FEATURE TIME MOMENTS AFTER THE HEAT RACE WIN; MUCH LIKE THE WRECK I HAD IN 2003 (IN THE SAME CAR).

2008 BRINGS WITH IT AN EPIPHANY IN MOTORSPORTS. THE TEAM NOW FINDS ITSELF WITH A PASSED DOWN OPPORTUNITY TO RACE A WINGED, OPEN WHEEL, ASPHALT OVAL / ROAD COURSE CAR OWNED AND RACED LOCALLY. ALL RESOURCES ARE PULLING TOGETHER ON THIS DEAL. DIFFERENT TRACKS, SOME OF WHICH ARE NASCAR SANCTIONED FACILITIES. PAST TEAMMATES AND CREW MEMBERS ARE COMING OFF THE SHELVES TO LEND A HAND. F INALLY WE HAVE AN APPLICATION TO WHICH WE CAN APPLY OUR SKILLS. RACING ONCE AGAIN BREATHES NEW LIFE IN THIS TEAM.

MORE IMPORTANTLY THE DRIVERS, PROMOTERS, OUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS, AND HOPEFULLY THE FAN BASE DEVELOPED OVER THE YEARS WILL BE EVERY BIT A WELCOME BACK TO WHAT I CONSIDER MAGICAL IN MY LIFE.

THANK YOU ALL FOR STOPPING IN. I HOPE YOU ENJOY THIS CONTINUED WORK IN PROGRESS. I CAN ONLY HOPE YOU SHARE OUR PASSION FOR OUR SPORT OF AUTO RACING AS MUCH AS WE DO.

Yours in Racing,
Dwayne Williford
B~BAD Autosports