I just wrote this about Jerry in my 'The Book of Smiles'.
Some are looking forward to retirement. I tell them about my speedway trainer, Jerry Bridson. When racing in 1979, my trainer taught me: “Don’t look back. You will hit the wall.” We raced on flat dirt on an oval track using excessively powerful 500cc motorcycles running on methanol. The track had a solid sleeper wall. He was concerned that looking back would cause me to lose direction and run into the wooden fence. He also said: “Don’t look back. Just go.” He meant that I should not look back to see where the other riders were behind me and that I should concentrate on going faster. I was very quick off the start line and often reached the first corner first. He also said: “Don’t follow the person in front. You will come second. Race your own race.” I use all three of these as a metaphor for life. I’m not sure that metaphor is the correct word, but people understand.
Don’t look back. You will hit the wall.
Don’t look back. Just go.
Don’t follow the person in front. You will come second. Race your own race.
The first one I give as advice. Some people go to psychologists. The psychologist says “Let’s dig up your history and make the situation worse. Then come back next week and give me more money.” I say not to delve back into your past as there is a tendency to remember the things you got wrong rather than the thousands of things that you got right and were complimented on. That is in the first advice: ‘Don’t look back. You will hit the wall.’ Then I advise to follow the second advice: ‘Don’t look back. Just go.’ I don’t look back to see what I did or got wrong in the past, I look forward to what might happen in the future including today. I leave the house with the positive attitude that something good will happen and I will put effort into making sure that good things happen. I go into each encounter, whether it be a shop person, a business customer, mechanic, telephonist, or whatever, with the attitude that this will be fun and enjoyable. The enjoyment usually arises from making that persons day or life happier. The third piece of advice is: ‘Don’t follow the person in front. You will come second.’ Don’t just follow the patterns of others, do what is best. I do things the way I see best. I don’t just follow the patterns set by others. If I walk into a carriage where everybody is sitting in silence and avoiding eye contact, I give a big ‘Giday’ or ‘Good Day’ with some inane comment that is immediate and not planned. I currently have given myself sixty days holiday with the task of circumnavigating the globe by train. I have completed Vancouver to Toronto by train and Frankfurt via Cologne via Prague to Kyiv. Next is to Moldova, Romana, and Istanbul where I can fly to Moscow and take the train to Irkutsk or Vladivostok. I cal it: ‘Round the World by Train’. I don’t know of others doing this.
