You only have to briefly cast your eyes across the pages of a tabloid newspaper these days to be bombarded with all the details of your favourite sporting stars personal life. Mainstream media seems to prey on the talented and famous in a way that only serves to create a bigger gap between you and the people who you admire.Thankfully RC racing is not plagued with such nonsense, and a recent discussion with a few of the scenes top drivers prompted me to set about gathering our very own, and far more real insight into what makes the elite racers tick on a daily basis. What really interests me about this format is that we are all sometimes far too quick to judge individuals without really understanding who they are and what they do. Articles such as this one are designed to connect us all with those people who are at the very top of their game.
Snap forward a few weeks and I was presented with the opportunity to catch up with world class racing legend and ORRC friend Lee Martin, who jumped at the chance to explain a little more about what goes into an average day of a multiple national and European off-road racing star. As Lee will explain, it's not all trophies and racing girls!
A day in the life of Lee Martin
5.30am - Normally woken by a crying baby at this time! My boy Scott is
teething, so this is his general alarm clock period. We try to get him to go back to sleep, but some days it just doesn't work.
7:30am - Scott now fed and changed, its time to take my wife to work and
drop Scott with his Grandparents. Its great they can have him a few days a
week as it helps me with RC work and they get to spend some time with him.
9:30am - I am home by now and if I'm not heading to the track then I'm in my
office. Normally my first task is to check my emails and responds
accordingly and then package up the LMR orders for that day.
11:30am - Orders should now be complete and emails finished, so I will head
out to my friends house to post the orders (his company gets post collected
daily, so it makes life easier). While I am there, I am normally cheeky and
invite myself to lunch! His wife Louise does the best lunches! ;)
1:30pm - Back home now and I start wrenching, which cars this is depends on
my schedule and forth coming races. Lately I have been wrenching on my Mugen
MBX6 EU as the 8th scale worlds are fast approaching and I am trying to get
the maximum track time available in this torrid English weather!
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| When he is not winning at 10th scale, he races 8th with the 'big lads' |
3:30pm -Still Wrenching.... music pumping out of my Beat box ;)
5:30pm - At 5.00pm I collect Liz from work and then Scott from his
Grandparents, then I will head home, family in toe and start to make dinner
(yes, I'm the cook!). While Liz would normally bath Scott ready for bed.
7:30pm - After eating dinner, playing with the boy and giving him his night
time bottle we will get him to sleep, hopefully for the whole night!
9:30pm - If I have lots of work on, I'm normally in the office again after Liz goes to sleep. If not then I'm talking to the eastern side of the world with regards to LMR products or one of my sponsors with development parts in mind.
11:30pm - SLEEP!!!!!
1:30am - you wish!
It serves as a healthy reminder that no matter what somebody does for their living or social enjoyment, there is always a bigger picture to consider. Imagine the pressure of being at the top of your sport every single day and also having a family to look after and everything else thrown in there for good measure. Lee is a real gent when you meet him and the thing that always strikes me about Lee Martin as a person is, no matter how stressed the situation is, no matter how busy his racing or other life commitments are, he will always spare you some time for a chat and some words of advice. A real professional. Well done Lee.
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