Post by Bama on Apr 20, 2006 8:38:58 GMT -5
Keith Hays, one of Alabama's own loved Late Model drivers, was suddenly taken away from us the 4th of July weekend 2004.
It is with a lot of sadness that we remember Keith but there is also alot of joyful and good memories of him from fans and friends as well.
Keith was single, racing was his passion, living for the next time to roll the # 8 car onto the track with his racing buddies and put the pedal to the metal.
Fun loving, easy going, care free, outgoing and never meeting a stranger, just fans and friends waiting to be met is how people who knew him saw him.
Although I never met Keith, it is with a heart of appreciation and admiration to those who knew and loved him and never want to let him and his memory fade that I wanted to share in this the week of the Keith Hays memorial at Green Valley.
One can only imagine the heart felt thanks and love Mom and Dad Hays feel for all the support given, and the mixed emotions it must bring to see the # 8 car on the track.
I myself can only pray that God gives comfort and joy at such a time.
I have asked one of Keith's best friends to write his thoughts and here is what Bizkit had to say:
I was asked to write a few things about Keith Hays for the Southern Dirtmessage board. When I first thought about it, I really didn't want to.
Iknew it would really bring back some memories and what self respecting macho racecar driver wants to put himself in a position to get all tear’d up on purpose?
I’ve thought of several different ways to talk about Keith and the
memories he left me with. See I raced with Keith probably from his first race all the way until his last race.
I will never as long as I live forget that cloud of smoke off turns 1&2 at River Valley speedway.
At first a couple of us just stopped and parked down in turns 3&4 and got out of our cars and was cutting up some. We all knew Keith would come back over that turn on the hook and would need some help or need to borrow something so he
could compete that night.
But they never brought him back over and as more time went by the more all of us drivers got quieter, finally someone came
back over the hill and told us that it wasn’t good. I’ve never had so much trouble driving a racecar back to the pits in all my life. I stopped just short of my trailer to try and regroup my emotions, to put it bluntly I was squalling like a 3 year old and that’s just not the appropriate thing for a macho racecar driver. We all quietly loaded up and left River Valley speedway that night, with nothing more than what we have right now, our memories of a man.
Keith Hays probably had a racing story, more like the one that all the media tells of the late Dale Earnhardt. How he would sacrifice everything else he has to make it to one more show. Keith could take equipment, that I would personally get lapped in and get that car all jacked up 3 wheeling around a racetrack and put on the best show as anyone at the track could do. The man could man handle a car as good as any one. He would will his car into just about every show he entered. If there isn’t a racer out there
that doesn’t respect that, then you need a new sport.
These are all great things to remember Keith by, along with many stories of how he came up with money to even get in the pits are to pay his entry fee’s. But when I had to sit back and try to think of some things to remember to put in this story, and I’m all but about to brake down in my tears (again not very macho of a race car driver) All I can do is remember Keith’s smile. It never matter what was happening around Keith, he could be mad as hell about something, but he always had that smile, even when mad.
If there is one thing I learned from Keith Hays it was to always smile.
When you start thinking about the accident and how
bad it was and start feeling that yukey feeling in your heart, All you have to do is remember his smile. I remember I was going to staging and I drove by Keith he was just sliding into his car and he had that smiled and threw out a big wave to me. I might have been one of the last people to see that smile. He was pretty much by himself that weekend. Allen was in Flordia
with his kids. I'll never forget him or that big smile..
Keith if you read this from heaven, I want you to know, brother, that smile will always be with me. I don’t always portray that smile as brightly as you did and as often, but I do try and use that smile to brighten all of the rough situations that comes along with this sport we both love.
I miss you bro and I hope to rub paint with you on that hooked up dirt track in heaven one day!!
Bizkit
