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It's a reflection of how Tomas aka "Saint2323" and I used to practice together, lap after lap after lap, not much said other than "good lap 
" or to give each other points to improve on some parts where one of us was faster so the other would be faster too. I really do miss that, the way he and I both pushed each other to beat our best times, each time he got a good lap, I would try to beat it, when I beat it, he would beat mine.It was a partnership that gave us both the drive needed to win, and the friendship that I will always remember and be in his debt to that I'm sure he felt the same way, because we had always talked about that. Well, that and how crazy our girlfriends were when we raced and focused on each other instead of them but that we still both loved them a lot.
Even though I did say bye when I first learned about his accident and that stupid drunk driver that took him from our lives unfairly, I never got the chance to explain to him why I had so many laps that he had asked about.
I had so many laps because I spent so much time on ovals, and especially the mini ovals which I was determined to set the record and eventually did, but only after 1,000's of laps. 6 seconds a lap in mini-oval, multiplied by 1000 = 6000 secs, or 100 minutes which is just under 2 hours.
Minitracks also were rarely updated so the lap # rarely reset. Only the F1 tracks (and Nascar tracks in my case) were really the ones Saint focused on even though he had them all. Saint was the better driver, hands down, but he always gave me the tips he never gave anyone else, to get times only he was able to get.
It was that 1 difference that gave me so many laps than everyone else Saint, I was determined to beat myself and set a record, which in the process gave me at one point over 120,000 laps, but there was nothing I had focused on more than getting the record back then, including the girlfriend I had at the time.
I speak here to Tomas as if he is reading it, because I know that as I am writing it and thinking about those times we shared, he can still hear my message to him and is why I wrote this post about lap tips, it's in his honor. It's the last tip I leave for Tomas as a way to honor his memory and to pay tribute to our friendship. We never really shared some tips with others but only each other, mostly because we had formed a bond and knew we both truly appreciated it.
Think of it as something he and I used to do to help each other, that I am giving you all so you can all also improve in MRO. The story of how he and I used to push each other to new limits, and to improve our skill by beating each other is the theme of this story.
By meeting new friends in MRO and helping each other, and by pushing yourself to beat your best effort, those are the best parts in MRO, it's not just about the love we all have for the game and for racing, it's also about friendly competition and determination to improve your best efforts.
Lastly, I also have always thought of Tomas anytime I hear this one song, it was one of my favorites at the time, but always reminds me of him and of our friendship. In case youtube deletes it, it is called "King of The Night" by Initial D.
