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Dear Editor:
John Andretti died yesterday at 56. Way too young. I followed his career, at first, because he was an Andretti, then after meeting him and chatting several times, because he was simply a nice guy and a heck of a racer.
John Andretti at practice for the Indy 500 on May 14, 2011. (Photo by Larry Clarino/RIS)
By now you have seen his stats: 11 Indy 500s, hundreds of NASCAR races, and so on, but I most remember him from a few go-kart races when I had the chance to race him myself at the annual Race 4 Riley charity event.
Two memories really stand out for me. I was in third place about halfway through the race, and a kart clobbers my rear bumper. Yep, that was John giving me a little love tap on his way to a win. I learned I was no Andretti!
The second memory was the next year in the special media race. Dave Calabro, from WTHR sports, Dave Furst, from WRTV, and I had a huge battle going for the lead, dodging a bunch of media folks who had never driven a kart before. It was an epic kind of race, clean but very, very tough. I got a second. John came up after and said “Wow, that was a hell of a race, you guys put on a show.” I cannot tell you how that made me feel, a slap on the back from one of my heroes!
John Andretti made the announcement that he had stage four colon cancer in April 2017 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. (Photo by Larry Clarino/RIS)
I was at the press conference at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in April 2017 when John revealed he had stage four colon cancer. He admitted he had put off getting a colonoscopy; he said he did not like doctors. He became an advocate for getting that simple checkup when you turn 45 years old. He started the “Check It For Andretti” campaign.
Please do it. Get a check-up.
Larry Clarino
Westfield