I have had racing and anything mechanical in my blood since I can remember: I won the Georgia State Road Racing championship at the age of 14 racing bicycles. I won the 2005 ADRL Pro Nitrous World Championship.
After blindness, I set my official class record at Bonneville on my motorcycle. I am the only blind man in the world to hold a F.I.M. class record without exemptions for blindness and I am the only blind man in the world to race without human assistance.
That being said, none of these would have happened without dedication, passion, and commitment. This goes for anything you want to succeed at, whether it is basketball, golf, dancing, or farming. Nothing great comes easy and without sacrifices. At 14, when my friends would be playing the early video games, I would ride 100 miles on my bike training. We could not afford modern racing equipment, so I started working at bicycle shops when I was 13 to pay for my equipment. That taught me a skill, work ethics, and most importantly – commitment…
At 35, I had my business – Parker Chassis. The ADRL championship would be decided on the same weekend as the Orlando World Street Finals, an important race for my customers. So, after one week of 16-hour days to get everyone ready along with my own Outlaw 10.5 Mustang, I boarded a plane to fly to Texas to race a winner-take-all race to determine the World Champion. Only hours after celebrating my championship, I flew to Orlando to support my customers and race my Mustang.
After six months of deep depression after coming home 100% blind for life, I had a dream one night that I could race again. So, my motorcycle project was born and my life was saved.
I turned my engineering mindset from inventing ways to kill myself to instead inventing and designing a motorcycle so that I could become the first blind man to race the famed Bonneville Salt Flats and share a special place in history with the likes of Burt Monro “The Worlds Fastest Indian” – watch that on Amazon Prime, if you have not seen it.
This being said, all of this is history in my rear view mirror. Now, the vision through the front is a 2-year project of building a 2008 Corvette to become the world’s fastest blind man with a goal of 210mph.
Over the past several years, my fiancee Jennifer and I have sacrificed vacations, new cars, and luxuries to allow me to chase my dreams. Dreams that many will think are a waste of time and money. That is fine, these are MY dreams.
But, if you want to chase YOUR dreams, it is crucial to surround your self with supporters and block the doubters. Spend every moment available studying your dream. Make a plan, work your plan. Adapt to bumps in the plan and limit your distractions. This is the ONLY way you will succeed. Limit your social media viewing, partying, wasting time, and FOCUS. It will not be easy, this I promise.
Last month, I slept eight nights in a hotel room alone, most without dinner, so that I could rest my brain enough each night to be able to work and contribute to my racing program as the car was getting its finishing touches at Joey Martin Race Cars in Florida.
Everyday, I wake up in pain from my injuries and I go to bed with the same pain. I have limits, and I have taught myself to know when and where to limit myself.
If you say “I cant, the dream is too big or it is impossible,” you lose. If you walk through a cemetery, it is full of people that never tried to make their dreams a reality. You have a choice!
“YOU CAN MAKE EXCUSES OR MAKE IT HAPPEN!!!”
So tonight, write your dream on two pieces of paper. Put one in your wallet and one on your nightstand beside your bed. Every time you open your wallet to buy something, decide “is this purchase needed, or can I put back that $3 Monster or Starbucks coffee and put this towards my dream?” When you lay down at night, and when you wake before you get out of bed, read your dream out loud. Tell yourself “I can do this!” This is your choice.
No big dream came true without sacrifices, dedication, and passion.
Dream it, breathe it, live it, cherish it, and make it happen!!
Now, what is your excuse?!
Sincerely,
Dan Parker
TheBlindMachinist.com