Don't get me wrong. I absolutely love to travel. And I've always said that I'd be perfectly in my element if I was living out of a suitcase. But right now I have to say that I am so glad to finally be home enjoying something that resembles normalcy in my life.
I just finished up the trade show season that comes to the racing industry this time every year. Hundreds of manufacturers, distributors and dealers vying for your company's attention and on going revenue stream. All trying to get into your catalog and onto your shelves.
Normally in the past only one show covered it all. And for one week in December I myself as well as a few others that I work with would descend on Orlando Florida for the grand daddy of them all. The Performance Racing Industry trade show. One million square feet of absolute eye candy to anyone involved in motor sports.
Historically that's where our show circuit would begin and end. And for my colleagues it did. But for the second time in as many years I had to jump off my plane from Florida and immediately catch one to Indianapolis for their show the following week. Two weeks after that I would find myself in Birmingham England.
Slight detour to London
The UK show was a new one for me this year. I was told that the caliber of vendor over there is head and shoulders above what we have here in the states and it couldn't have been more true. The parts churned out by some of these companies was absolute jewelry! Motor sports really does command a much higher level of respect in Europe than it does here in the states and I'm so glad that I got to see this first hand.
As in all my trips in the past, business or pleasure, I pour out an enormous amount of effort researching every potential deal on air fare, hotels, and anything else that one would need when abroad. And if I may say so I'm not all that bad at it.
But the one thing that I usually have no impact on is where I sit on a plane. Whether I'm allowed to choose my seats or not, I always seem to find myself on the wing of an aircraft. You know that part of the plane that amplifies every little dip and bump in the earth's atmosphere?
The reality of this became quite evident on my eight hour flight back to the states this past weekend. For a good portion of my time in the air I couldn't read anything, nor could I play any of the in flight games on the headrest in front of me. Just keeping a drink on my tray at times proved to be a monumental task. Now I know it wasn't solely the fault of my bad seat assignment, but whatever mother nature was throwing at us outside was sure made painfully clear from where I was sitting inside.
And unfortunately I'm the kind of guy who will always have preconceived ideas of what things are going to be like. Or more to the point, what they should be like. At least in the Book of Mike.
In anything from racing, my fitness routine, fixing my car or house, to how I'm going to navigate the streets of London. I can go from zero to moody to absolute lunatic mode in the blink of an eye if everything doesn't fall exactly into place as I imagined. This kind of particular behavior is normally reserved for ten year olds but here I am working my fifth decade on this earth and sometimes I find that I haven't changed a bit.
Episodes like this can sap the energy out of everyone involved and quickly escalate an otherwise tiny set back into a monumental fubar. One deep breath and maybe a little patience and composure could drastically change the outcome of the event but not when I'm seein' red! At those moments I'd be surprised if I could remember those words much less live by them.
Just ask my wife who had to endure my wrath as I tried to find our hotel from the airport in England. Two hours to find a place that was only seven miles away! And would I immediately accept defeat and pull over for directions? I sure would, but only after about an hour an a half and three requests from my co-pilot.
One beautiful place to get lost in I will admit, but I still have to curse them for all those damn roundabouts. There was a time when I used to laugh at just the thought of Chevy Chase in National Lampoon's European Vacation - "Look kids, Big Ben, Parliament", but trust me no one was smiling now!
Trips like this always breed the worst in eating habits as well. From dinners with clients to stuffing something in your face while you're on the run. To even attempt to eat healthy is sometimes not even in the cards. A few drinks after the show will most likely lead to late night snacking and the next thing you know you're blogging everyone about your weight issues.
But let's spare each other the drama here and not try and portray something that I'm clearly not. That being the ever health conscious person who counts calories and is genuinely concerned with everything they put in their mouth. I like to take care of myself but more than that, I'm pretty sure I like to eat!
If the label is still even being used today, I consider myself something of a foodie. I will go out of my way for a dish that I know is good or I've even heard from someone that it was. And when you're in a new country c'mon, how are you supposed to stick to your lettuce and smoothie diet when Fish-n-Chips, Cask Ales and Full English Breakfasts are beckoning you?
Will power my friend, the answer is will power. And as of this writing (with ten pounds that have found its way on to my frame) it is with great regret that I must say to you that I possessed none. Not a shred!
I tried to taste it all in my short period of time there. And if the artery clogging goodness that I enjoyed remains with me longer than the taste on my tongue and the memory in my head, then that's something I'll have to live with.
For all ten thousand miles on my bicycle and an equal amount on the treadmill!
