Driven to Perform

NASCAR by Todd Ellis
photo courtesy of publicdomainpictures.net

It’s a muggy summer morning

And the fans have filled the stands,

Anticipation building 

As they await the start command.

Would-be heroes of the asphalt

Are now strapping in their cars,

To fire up those engines

And go racing toward the stars.

The drivers are all focused

On the massive task ahead,

Except for one, whose thoughts trail off

To his post-race plans instead.

The freedom that he finds in speed

Sure makes his soul take flight,

But he finds the same wild feeling

On the stage at karaoke night.

He channels thundering metal

On the track and at the shop,

But when he’s got the microphone

It’s strictly girly pop.

Mariah, Whitney, Katy,

Man, that boy can sing it all;

In a smoky bar or Victory Lane

You’ll find him standing tall. 

We know the boy’s got talent,

He can drive like Dale or Jimmie,

But he loves to belt out Winehouse 

With an extra shake and shimmy.

So when the green flag flies

He drops the pedal to the floor.

The end of that first lap

Will find them racing door-to-door.

Lap by lap the miles race by

At a frenetic pace.

He drives his crew chief crazy

While he’s humming “Poker Face.”

By the time the race is over

And he sees the checkers fly,

He’s energized to go and chase

His karaoke high.

It’s just two sides of the same coin,

You can’t tear his worlds apart,

‘Cause he’s got motor oil in his blood

And music in his heart.

~~~ This poem was written for a personal challenge from over at Imaginary Garden with Real Toads asking me to write a poem combining car racing and karaoke.