I met Andrew in 1990 when he came home from Dubai. I was 17 years old and I remember feeling very intimidated by him; he had at 27 already achieved and lived a more exciting and full life than anyone I had ever met before, and he still is to this day. He worked so hard to achieve all that he had; yet would never boast or brag about his accomplishments. He is someone I admire.
Woody wrote to me in June about a funny story involving Andrew and racing - which I am sure most of you can relate to. I will read it to you:
"I remember he was in the fall 4 hour a few years ago and my team was in the hunt for the 3/4 man (woman) team lead and I was doing the last lap ..in a hurry shall we say and came up on Andrew and had a very hard time getting by him ...he did eventually move over after what seemed an eternity and made it clear he wasn't at all happy about being passed. We had a very good laugh after the race. Woody."
Andrew hated losing. I think this is what drove him to succeed.
To me, Andrew was about living life and enjoying it to the fullest - work hard, play harder. He brought so much pleasure to our lives, wonderful experiences; his generosity was overwhelming at times, and wisdom, because even though he played on the edge, he was also calculating and careful, always in control, thinking several steps ahead. Andrew was an interesting mix of crazy and sane wasn't he?
To me, Andrew is someone for my boys to look up to, to aspire to be like, someone who set goals for himself and achieved those goals through hard work and sacrifice. And now also the hard lesson: Not to sacrifice too much of yourself, the cost is much too high.
Thank you Andrew for being a part of our lives. We love you.
