A passion for racecar driving made Davey Hamilton a top competitor in the Indy Racing League Indy Car Series, but an accident in 2001 sent him back to his spiritual roots.
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RACING WAS MY GOD. RACING
WAS WHAT I STRIVED FOR, LIVED
FOR. IF IT WASN'T ON MY MIND
WHAT IS THE NEXT STEP? WHO I
DO
WANT MY UNIFORM TO LOOK LIKE?
WHAT ABOUT MY SPONSOR?
HIS FATHER WAS A DRIVER AND
THE RACING BUG BIT HIM TOO.
WHEN I WAS 2 I FOLLOWED HIM
FROM THAT POINT AND I WANTED TO
PURSUE.
LIKE MANY DRIVERS DAVEY SET
HIS SIGHTS ON THE INDIE 500.
IT WAS A GOAL KNOWING TO
MAKE THAT RACE.
HE WAS LEAD INTO FAITH.
A SOMEONE IN MY DAD'S
COMPANY WAS A BELIEVER AND HE
TALKED ALL DAY AND I LISTENED
AND OPENED MY EYES. I WENT TO
CHURCH AND GOT BAPTIZED.
RACING TOOK A PRIORITY OVER
HIS LIFE AND HARD TO COMMIT TO
BOTH. HE WATCHED A COUPLE
FRIENDS DIE ON THE TRACK AND
INCLUDING HIS BEST FRIEND BILLY
AND KILLED IN 1990.
THAT
THE GUY WAS PASSING, BLEW
AN
EMERGENCY AND GOT OIL ON THE
TIRES AND LOST CONTROL AND I
WAS
ON THE SIDE OF THEM.
CONTACT WAS MADE.
CAUGHT THE BACK OF MY CAR
AND FLUNG THE CAR UPSIDE DOWN.
ALMOST UPSIDE DOWN.
IT PULLS THE SHOOT OFF OF
THE TOP OF THE CAR AND LEFT MY
LEGS EXPOSED TO THE ELEMENTS OF
THE TRACK.
DAVEY'S LEGS WERE DRAGGED
FOR SEVERAL HUNDRED YARDS.
THEY
TREATED HIM AND PUT HIM ON THE
LIFE FLIGHT HELICOPTER.
I HEARD A PHONE CALL BY THE
NURSES AND IT'S GOING TO BE
LIFE
FLIGHT COMING HERE AND APPEARS
TO BE A DOUBLE AMPUTEE.
SEEMS HE WOULD LOSE BOTH OF
HIS LEGS.
I WOKE UP AND THE FIRST
THING
I WOKE UP TO WAS MY DAD AND THE
FIRST THING I ASKED "MY LEGS
ARE GONE; RIGHT? ." NO.
THEY'RE TRYING TO SAVE THEM.
WE'RE ALL PRAYING.
HIS DOCTORS SAVED HIS LEGS.
I KNEW I NEEDED GOD MORE
THAN
BEFORE, RELYING ON HIM MORE
THAN
BEFORE. THE FIRST MONTHS WERE
INTENSE, A LOT OF INTENSIVE
CARE, A LOT OF TRANSPLANT
UNITS.
THEY TOOK MUSCLES AND BONES OUT
OF MY HIPS AND KNEWS AND 21
SURGERIES IN TWO YEARS TIMES
AND
REHAB TIME. THE DOCTORS WERE
AMAZING WHAT THEY WERE ABLE TO
DO WITH MY LEGS.
DURING THE LENGTHY RECOVERY
HE HAD PLENTY OF TIME TO THINK
ABOUT HIS LIFE, FAITH AND
FUTURE
IN RACING. DAVEY SAYS HE ALSO
ASKED GOD A LOT OF QUESTIONS.
LAYING IN THAT HOSPITAL AND
PRAYING AND I ASK EVERYDAY WHY
ME? I MEAN I FELT I WAS LIVING
A CLEAN LIFE. MY LIFE WAS IN
HIS HANDS, TOTALLY WAS A
BELIEVER AND I JUST COULDN'T
UNDERSTAND IT. WHAT I FOUND
OUT
THOUGH EVERYTHING GETS
ANSWERED.
IT MIGHT NOT GET ANSWERED THEN.
DAVEY DIDN'T WANT TO GIVE
UP
RACING BUT HE KNEW HE COULDN'T
DO IT.
I SAID I'M NOT FINISHED
WITH
THIS GAME. I'M NOT OUT OF THIS
GAME. THAT WAS PART OF MY
DRIVE, DETERMINATION TO GET
HEALTHY AGAIN WAS GET BACK IN
THE RACE CAR. I DIDN'T WANT TO
END MY CAREER THAT WAR.
AFTER THE RECOVERY HE
PARTNERED WITH KINGDOM RACING
ORGANIZATION.
HE TOLD ME WHAT HIS
PASSIONS
AND VISION WAS FOR KINGDOM
RACING AND I TOLD HIM MY GOALS
AND WHERE I CAME FROM AND IT
JUST MATCHED.
DAVEY GOT BACK IN A CAR AND
RACES TODAY BUT NOW HE SEES
RACING AS HIS MINISTRY.
IF I WAS RACING ON SUNDAY I
WAS TRAVELING ON SUNDAY SO IT
TOOK YOU AWAY FROM THE CHURCH
ATMOSPHERE TO HEARING THE WORD
AND WHAT HAS CHANGED TO TODAY
AND THAT IS ONE THING THAT
KINGDOM RACING REALLY BROUGHT
IN
IS CHURCH IS AT THE TRACK NOW.
DAVEY SAID GOD ANSWERED
MANY
QUESTIONS HE HAD ABOUT HIS
CRASH.
WHETHER IT'S A SPEAKING
ENGAGEMENT TO ENCOURAGE PEOPLE
TO DO WHAT THEY LOVE OR THEIR
PASSION IF IT'S GOING TO CHURCH
TO SPEAK TO PEOPLE ABOUT MY
STORY AND THE RECOVERY I CAME
THROUGH. NO MATTER WHAT IT IS
I
WOULDN'T HAVE THIS STORY AND
HAVE THE OPPORTUNITIES TO REACH
OUT AND MAYBE IN LIFE THAT ONE
PERSON OR MAYBE SOMEBODY A
BELIEVER. I DON'T KNOW IF I
HAD
THE STRENGTH OR THE
OPPORTUNITIES OR THE KNOW HOW
TO
DO THAT IF I DIDN'T KNOW
THROUGH
WHAT I WENT THROUGH.
DAVEY SAYS HIS PASSION IS
SHARE THE LOVE OF CHRIST
THROUGH
MOTOR SPORTS.
WHEREVER WE GO RACE WE BRING
UNDER PRIVILEGED CHILDREN
BEHIND
THE SCENES AND JUST GIVE A
LITTLE LOVE AND DIRECTION AND
TALK TO THE KIDS AND THE
PARENTS
AND SHOW WHAT PRAY DOES AND WE
HAD TOUGH TIMES THAT WE
OVERCAME
THROUGH JESUS CHRIST AND WE
WANT
TO PASS THAT ON.
