This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
So, what do you do with what happened at the Indy 500 on Sunday? What do you believe? It reaches far past auto racing and beyond sports, straight to the metaphysical and to the core of religion and the heart of life's mysteries.
Dario Franchitti might have taken his third victory at the speedway and that whole thing was great, but the name that was on everybody's mind — including the racers' — at Indy was the name of the defending champion, a man who wasn't even there.
Or was he?
Dan Wheldon, a fierce, but big-hearted driver who cared a lot about the people around him, died in October during a race at Las Vegas. He was remembered fondly in all kinds of tributes at the storied track, before, during and after Sunday's race. Car owner Bryan Herta drove a single parade lap around the Brickyard before the race started aboard the car Wheldon won in a year ago. Fans wore white sunglasses — the driver's preferred style — during the race. Susie Wheldon, Dan's widow, returned to a track for the first time since her husband's death, and took a victory lap with Franchitti and his wife, Ashley Judd, after the win.
As fate, or whatever it was, would have it, Wheldon's three closest friends in IndyCar finished 1-2-3 at the raceway on Sunday. Franchitti, Scott Dixon and Tony Kanaan were all pallbearers at Wheldon's funeral.
Near the end of the race, with those three friends driving hard for the checkered flag, even they wondered if Wheldon was somehow present or involved, if not intervening.
"Kind of like old times, the three of us back and forwards," Franchitti told The Associated Press. "I thought, 'Dan is laughing at us right now going at it.' "
Said Dixon, who moved his family to St Petersburg, Fla., after Wheldon died to help support Susie: "I think a lot of us that were close to Dan, you know, you wanted it that little bit more. I guess maybe in the back of your mind, you figured he would probably help you out today, too."
The question at hand, then, is: Did he?
Do you believe that interested people who have passed from this earthly existence have any kind of connection with or influence on the lives or fortunes of individuals left behind, inside or outside of sports?
While I wrote this column, an agnostic friend said he thought what occurred Sunday was a "colossal coincidence," end of story.
I've written before that, though I'm a believer, I don't think God is any sort of sports fan with any sort of rooting interest, or that the Almighty influences the outcomes of games for the benefit of particular teams. To the best of my reckoning, the Man Upstairs isn't the Fan Upstairs, and certainly not a season-ticket holder at BYU or Notre Dame or Liberty games.
But what about those who have moved on to happier acreage? On special occasions, are they permitted to give a little push here or a little boost there?
I once interviewed a professional hockey player who was absolutely certain his late father, who taught him the game as a youngster and became the major force in his reaching such lofty athletic heights, not only played a role in that ascension but also kept an active, watchful eye over him. He found a corner of the ice to talk with his dad before and after every game, to ask for his help and to give thanks.
I do not know.
It could be that such a routine helped the player's state of mind and put him at ease. It could be that heavenly help from the great beyond was actually given. It could be something else.
It's a mystery for the ages.
You decide.
It was compelling stuff that after Franchitti's win on Sunday, he paid tribute not only to Wheldon, but also to Michael Wanser, the 6-year-old son of his team manager of racing operations, Barry Wanser. Michael died a week after Wheldon, his life taken by leukemia.
Wheldon visited with the young boy immediately before the racer left for Las Vegas last October. Barry Wanser wouldn't forget that, traveling to attend Wheldon's funeral despite his son's grave condition. Wanser will forever believe Wheldon's reach extended to his son. He told Phillip B. Wilson of the The Indianapolis Star:
"I wouldn't leave Michael's side when we brought him home, when we knew what the outcome was going to be. But I went to Dan's family service in St. Pete because I knew Dan wouldn't let anything happen to Michael while I was away. And, then, [after I returned], he passed the next day."
GORDON MONSON hosts "The Big Show" weekdays from 3-6 p.m. on 1280 and 960 AM The Zone. Twitter: @GordonMonson.