Mama said my daddy had a heavy foot,
Took off fast, never looked back like he should.
Left an empty chair and a last name stain,
I learned real young how to deal with pain.
House full of shouting, doors and fists,
Rules written tight, no room to exist.
While the other kids were running free,
I was learning silence by the age of three.
Dreams were the only place I could go,
When the lights went out and the walls got close.
Yeah, I found God in the roar of a motor,
On a dirt track night getting older.
Met a man with grease on his hands, steady eyes,
Said, “Son, I wanna give you my last name.”
He didn’t share blood, but he shared his time,
Showed me wrong from right, showed me how to climb.
Yeah, I lost one dad, but I gained another,
Under checkered flags, I found my father.
Racing junk cars, numbers taped on the side,
Living for the laps where I felt alive.
He leaned on the fence yelling, “Hold that line!”
First grown man ever proud of mine.
Never raised a hand, never raised his voice,
Just let me learn how to make my own choice.
Taught me respect, taught me how to stand,
How to be a man with a steady hand.
Yeah, I found God in the roar of a motor,
On a dirt track night getting older.
Met a man who showed me what a dad can be,
Not by fear, but believing in me.
Yeah, I lost one dad, but I gained another,
Under checkered flags, I found my father.
Eighteen came hard like a slammed shut door,
Two trash bags, nowhere to go anymore.
But every mile and every scar I got
Proved the lessons he never forgot.
Still hear his voice when I’m pushing too fast,
“Easy now, son, this ain’t your last.”
Yeah, I found God in the roar of a motor,
On a dirt track night getting older.
He raised me right when my world was wrong,
Taught me love is something you stand on strong.
Yeah, I lost one dad, but I gained another,
Blood don’t bind what the heart discovers
Under checkered flags, I found my father.
If you see me racing on a Friday night,
That win ain’t mine it’s his too, right.
