Neil Alberico – Sipping Jet Streams

Redlands, Calif. – Holy smokes! It’s been a while since I’ve written one of these things. I almost forgot how fun blogs are to write. Let’s see, what have I been up to since the last time I talked with you guys? Well, for starters I moved down to Southern California back in February with some really good friends of mine. Actually, they’re more like family. I find myself saying that a lot – I feel blessed to have the family and friends that I have. I wouldn’t trade them for the world! It’s crazy to think this time last year I was living in England. And yes, a small part of me misses being in the UK. I miss how often I got to drive a racecar, I miss the friends I made, I miss the Dempseys’ home-cooked meals; I don’t miss the weather though. Moving to England last year is hands-down the best decision I have ever made in my life, and if any of you young drivers ever get that opportunity, take it.

So, we’re about mid-season now in the Cooper Tires USF2000 National Championship Powered by Mazda; and the best way to put it is we simply have had a rough start. JDC has done a great job as a team to give us the best possible chance to fight for wins. I feel as if we have proven to be competitive; we just need to put all the pieces together, that’s all. Everyone’s been saying bad luck, bad luck, and more bad luck. However, I’m personally the kind of guy that believes in making your own luck. So, if anyone knows the recipe for making luck, please, do share.

Besides racing, I’ve just been at home playing your typical Californian teenager. Most of my friends are back in town for the summer, some graduating college, some working harder than ever, some getting married. Yes, TJ that’s you! Not too long ago a group of about five of us flew out to Michigan to see our good friends TJ and Pauline get married. What is it with weddings? I had never been to a wedding in my life until October last year when Keith and Joanne Dempsey tied the knot. Only seven months later and now I’ve been to two! I won’t go into too much detail about that expedition, but we had a blast. I mean if you really want to know, just read my last wedding blog from Ireland. Let your imagination take over from there.

More recently, I sold my car and bought a 4×4 van. It’s a real son of a gun to park, but its positives definitely outweigh its negatives. For instance, a full-size bed fits nicely in the back, along with an endless amount of surfboards. Great for camping, road trips – you know, the essentials. Only a couple weeks ago I drove up to Los Gatos to surprise my dad for his birthday on the 3rd. I’m telling you, I’ve never seen my dad happier to see me. I think he was just expecting a birthday phone call. I’d say I surpassed his expectations. My mom was in on the surprise so she knew I was coming home. Nonetheless, equally full of smiles. I’ve actually never seen my mom so happy to do my laundry before.

So, I spent the week at home with my family, catching up with all my high school buddies, and of course surfing. There was actually an 18ft great white that attacked a kayaker the morning after we got out of the water. Super sketchy. The kayaker was fine, but my buddy Kyle is probably never going to surf Santa Cruz with me again.

After that voyage, I drove back down to Redlands with just enough time to unpack and repack for my next trip. Spencer Pigot and I had planned a weeklong trip to Indianapolis to train with Jim Leo and all the boys at PitFit Training. Let me be the first to tell you, that was just one week of pure exhaustion. The both of us were on pedialite for five days straight to keep ourselves hydrated during our daily 37,000,000-calorie burns. Not to mention the first day we did hot yoga with Heather. Talk about dehydration! Everyone in that gym works so hard! I’m not just saying that, PitFit is the real deal. Just as an idea, the highest heart rate I saw was 209 during intense simulator/ rowing intervals. The day we were boxing was really tough also. There’s just something about training with other drivers that makes you push that much harder. Most of all the Indy Lights drivers were in there every day. Scott Dixon was there several times during the week. That man is a freak. Spencer said he spotted him jogging at 10mph on the treadmill. Yes, jogging. I think it’s safe to say we left PitFit in much better shape than when we arrived. It was funny seeing Charlie Kimball and Josef Newgarden in there, both Team USA alumni. One day all of us went paddle-boarding on a lake nearby, which was a ton of fun! But, I think my new favorite exercise is boxing. It’s a close one between that and hot yoga.

Anyway, I could probably write another 30 pages about what’s happening next but I think that’s enough for now. Next stop, Chicago with the JDC gang.

Every cloud has a silver lining.
Neil