Evan Lande
| Motorsports Journalism | IUPUI |
I'm a racing and motoring fanatic. Motorsports is my world and my passion.
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Twitter: @landemann
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The Role of Sports in My Life
My name is Evan Lande and I'm a sophomore at IUPUI, studying Sports Journalism with a focus in Motorsports.
I've grown up around racing, fast cars, and fast boats. My Dad has owned his own auto repair shop for the past 20-some-odd years, I'm the reason why it's not open on Saturdays anymore (I was born on a Saturday.) I've grown up in the shop, playing with his tools, helping fix/work on cars, riding my bike and/or scooter around his shop, and so much more memories. When I was in preschool, my Dad's shop was only a two to three minute drive away, so I was constantly there at the shop all the time.
When I was younger I also had a lot of surgeries on my left hand because it only has four fingers on it, as it did not develop correctly in the womb. So, I was always at the shop or at home after surgeries. After a surgery you could usually find me with a McDonalds Cheeseburger, fries, a Sprite, a huge cast on my arm, and sports of some kind on the TV. It didn't matter if it was at the shop or at home. After a surgery it was McDonalds and sports time.
I would watch old basketball games from IU Hoosiers to Indiana Pacers, I'd watch old Cubs games, I would watch old NFL games, and I'd watch racing. A lot of racing. It didn't matter whether it was Formula 1, NASCAR, Indycar, or Boat racing because I loved racing and you bet your ass I still love racing.
To this day one of my favorite things people have said about me is that because I've grown up around racing and the shop, I probably have gasoline running through my veins. We (my parents and I) would joke around with my surgeon (who used to race Porsches) about how I had high-octane blood and how it doesn't help my case when my Dad works on cars and my surgeon races Porsches that I'll be anything less than a 'car-nut' or 'gearhead' when I'm older.
I used to always play with lots of emotion and passion and effort in gym and at recess when I was younger, because I wanted to prove to the other 'normal' kids that just because my hand was deformed didn't mean I couldn't play sports as well as them. In fact, I was usually more careful of my hand when playing sports. I also was small and full of energy (thanks to short parents and my ADD) which meant I could last/endure longer.
I proved my worth by being the running back for football games in recess, playing wide receiver and going for catches I should not have caught, and of course being great at trick plays. In gym I always showed off my speed and agility in basketball. In dodgeball, I gave every single throw massive amounts of force and effort. In tag, well I was usually one of the last out and one of the main targets.
The fact of the matter is sports have played a huge role in my life. They've helped me get over my surgeries and prove to others that I'm just as capable as they are.