Mike and his wife Christina: Mike with his wife back in 2004.
I FORGOT TO DO SOMETHING…
By: Kevin Ramsell
I recently realized that I forgot to do something when I was at the 38th Annual Oktoberfest Race Weekend at La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway. No, I didn’t forget to write a report or get a pork chop sandwich, those were done. I forgot to share a moment with a close friend of mine.
My friend, Amy, was in town for a wedding. She along with some our friends joined me in the Exhibition Hall after the races. Amy called to tell me that they arrived and came up to help me carry a few items to my car.
It was during that time, I should have done what I forgot to do. That was to have her look over the landscape of the track and share with her the story of where a friendship developed and grew.
Amy and I shared a close friendship with a guy named Mike. Mike and I first met through a marketing organization called the Wisconsin Marketing & Management Association (WMMA). It’s an association for marketing students. I went to Madison Area Technical College and Mike went to Western Technical College in La Crosse.
In March, 1993, Mike and I were elected to state officer positions with WMMA. We both attended a national conference in Orlando that April and a two-day planning meeting in June with the other officers. But, we really didn’t know each other that well until Oktoberfest, 1993.
It was my first visit to the popular event; I was there to assist Wayne Whitford, who was running in the area sportsman, or limited late model division as it is known today.
Mike and I discussed on a few occasions that we both had an interest in racing. I told him what I did and then told him that I was coming up to Oktoberfest. He said to give him a call. Mike came out and joined us on that Saturday night and from there a friendship started.
A few years later, Mike would get married and move to Janesville with his wife. They would come to Madison International Speedway and watch Wayne race and was there the night he won the championship in 1996.
With us living close to each other, we did a lot of things together. Go to races, hockey games, dinner, etc. He became my best friend.
A few years later, his marriage ended and he moved back to the Cincinnati area to live with his parents and get his feet back on the ground. But the distance didn’t keep our friendship apart.
He would get a job with Comair, A Delta airline connection service. My parents had tickets for the Brickyard 400, and for the next four years, I would fly to Cincinnati and the two of us along with his father and younger brother, would go to see the race.
He would also come up to visit and when he did, we invited Amy to meet up with us. Soon after, the three of us were like siblings, we did everything together. Usually, it was me driving them home after a night at a bar, because I always got to be the designated driver, and that was by choice.
Mike would find a new lady in his life and I was honored to be his best man at the wedding. Soon after, things didn’t go that great and Mike relied on Amy and I to help him through this rough period in his life.
Sadly, in March 2005, Mike decided to end his time here on earth. Amy and I flew down to be with the family and attend the funeral. The family asked me to speak at the funeral and I talked about how racing really bonded the two of us, especially with those trips to Indy.
Over the last year, I have gotten Amy into racing. Occasionally, she will join me when I go to do my work.
But, it was Amy’s first time at La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway, and I wanted to share that moment to her and simply forgot.
Oktoberfest will always have a special place in my heart. And to be able to come back and help with the event is something I didn’t imagine 14 years ago. But, I know that at least one person is there with me in spirit every year I go.
Amy, I’m sorry I didn’t share this with you when we were up there. Every story starts with “Once Upon a Time.” For Mike and me, our story began at Oktoberfest, 1993.
