World Endurance Championship

Exactly one month ago: My trip to Europe had just come on my radar as a pipe dream. I did not have a passport, I did not know anyone living in Europe and I had no contacts at the FIM or ACO. The idea to attend the Le Mans 24H as a volunteer with a race team was something I was shooting for in 2007.

As of yesterday: I will be attending the first two rounds of the WEC as a mechanic, volunteering for the Belgian Primo Racing concern. I will be fully press credentialed at both races and have access to professional photographers, hi-res images suitable for publication, as well as numerous team managers and riders in the paddock for interviews. I have also been contacted by Eurosport for an on-air interview at Le Mans and will likely meet a lot of people from the organizing bodies that I can interview.

One month ago: I did not have airfare to Europe, let alone a US Passport. Now I am preparing to fly overseas to meet, for the first time, a team of 15 racers and mechanics with whom I shall spend 2.5 weeks on the road racing in The Netherlands and France. My only contact with the team has been a handful of emails and a single phone call.

To top it all off: I'm not concerned in the least with the trip and barely have a grasp on what is about to take place. And all of this was started by one simple question posted to a forum on the WEC website.

Now, someone tell me this doesn't make for a killer story...