August 1, 2009
By Brenda Benedict
Mark Martin is having a great season of Sprint Cup Racing and is currently in 9th position in the Race for the Chase.
His statistics this year include 4 poles, 4 wins and 6 top-5 finishes and 10 top-10 finishes. If you were just looking at the statistics for the past two years, you might think Martin was an up and coming young racer.
But follow the trail back and you will see that he has been racing in NASCAR’s top series since 1981.
Martin’s career seemed to peak in the 1990’s but he is now in contention for the Sprint Cup Championship and he may be reaching untouched milestones. I believe that Martin’s success may in part be due to his physical and mental preparation that makes him able to function as a much younger man. His ‘real age’ may be the same as Jimmie Johnson or Tony Stewart.
Real Age is a concept that your age in years is not necessarily an indicator of the age of your body and mind.
Your Real Age is the age when you take into consideration how healthy you are, what your lifestyle is and how you are dealing with the circumstances of your life. Real Age is your biological age as opposed to your chronological age. It gives hope to those of us who are older that we may have some life in the bones left yet.
Disciplined is the word I would use to describe Mark Martin. In an article posted on markmartin.org from 2004, a Orlando Sentinel reporter stated, “Once addicted to bad habits -- alcohol and fast food -- Mark has become consumed with all things healthy. Admittedly obsessive and compulsive, Mark now channels that energy toward a four-day workout schedule that begins at 5:30 a.m. in his office/training complex in Spruce Creek.”
Martin is known for his strenuous workout regiment, his strict diet and his ability to focus on racing in the crazy world around him.
Martin’s disciplined life did not start this year or even last. It is a lifestyle he has chosen and followed for many years. It has been said that, “Discipline is the refining fire by which talent becomes ability.”
Mark Martin has certainly taken his talent and refined it with discipline to turn it into a great showing.
Discipline has given Martin the focus to forego those times with his family or the donut in the morning with his coffee. Discipline is the bridge that goes between his goals and his accomplishments. His discipline has been as a result of knowing what he wanted.
Martin is not a new comer to such success but his previous strong running have all come a decade or more ago. He had second place finishes in the Cup standings in 1990, 1994, 1998 and 2002.
“Mark is pleased by his success and won't bemoan the near misses.” Discipline also applies to Martin’s emotions and his ability to stand strong in the face of second place finishes.
Mark Martin started out last weekend by winning the pole at historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway and that set the stage for another great finish on Sunday’s running of the Brickyard 400. He also set a record for being the oldest pole winner at the track. Martin gave a valiant effort on Sunday but he was unable to overtake Jimmie Johnson in an exciting finish that saw the two Hendricks’ drivers finish first and second.
When asked this week if thinking of all these second place finishes in big events wears on him, Martin replied, “It’s better than 42nd, man.” That’s the response of a person who understands life and dealing with it.
Disciplined is what you have to be to have the results that Martin is experiencing. But this discipline needs to be coupled with good equipment and great people behind you. Martin has all these ingredients needed for reaching a championship.
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The thoughts and ideas expressed by this writer or any other writer on Insider Racing News, are not necessarily the views of the staff and/or management of IRN.
