Track.One's Shop Build

[Track.One]

I'm still slacking on this update...slept on my desk in the new shop for about 2-3 hours this morning...first all nighter in the shop haha.

What pictures aren't showing up?

 

[dubber]

I'm still slacking on this update...slept on my desk in the new shop for about 2-3 hours this morning...first all nighter in the shop haha.

What pictures aren't showing up?

Ouch! Now that's commitment, well done. I think the pics are all good now, at least from my vantage point. Now wake up and get back to work LOL!

 

[Ferrari-lover]

Update?

 

[sloci]

Wow, I just put 2 and 2 together. Best of luck Mike. Everything will work out in the end, and enjoy your time with family and friends.

Sent from my SCH-I535 using BimmerApp mobile app

 

[got2boostit2]

Yep gotta be happy in the end. Good luck, will miss reading about all the great projects.

 

[PeteMoore]

Hey! I'm gonna update you guys tonight on whats been going on... it will be a rather LARGE post with plenty of pictures to say the least haha. I'll be back on here later on with the update

Come on, come on.

I know you are probably working very hard, but you gotta share man, gotta share.

 

[Mavawreck]

Wow, I just put 2 and 2 together. Best of luck Mike. Everything will work out in the end, and enjoy your time with family and friends.

Sent from my SCH-I535 using BimmerApp mobile app

Not to pry, but anyone care to share what is going on?

 

[JbTech]

Not to pry, but anyone care to share what is going on?

Not too versed on it, but I think he's shutting down the shop for personal reasons.

Kudos to him for balls of steel and a great run.

 

[yjWrangler]

https://www.facebook.com/TrackOneMotorsports

For anybody interested. It's the second post on there right now.

 

[illmatyk]

Wow! Just saw this now. I have followed your shop build when it started at NWP and then on here and FB. Alot of progress and tho I don't own my own shop I know the feeling of stress and the feeling of being used/taken advantage of.

Good luck in the opportunities and goals that you pursue after closing down Track.One. Your shop was awesome from my POV.

 

[Kevin54]

Mike....I left you a reply on your FB page.

 

[hpw]

https://www.facebook.com/TrackOneMotorsports

For anybody interested. It's the second post on there right now.

since I don't do fb, can u copy/paste here what is up?

 

[Kevin54]

since I don't do fb, can u copy/paste here what is up?

Here is what Mike says:

[QUOTETrack One
Friday
Alrighty, this is going to be a pretty large post...so here's the cliff notes:

I'M SHUTTING DOWN TRACK.ONE

I've got to do what is best for me right now, and quite honestly...I'm not happy doing this anymore. I've been battling depression, stress has been really been affecting my health, a lot of my friends stopped talking to me, I just want to be happy again. The rush to move to a new location, lack of funds to make the new location work, and just the sheer amount of work I have to do all on my own right now is just too much to handle. The passion I once had is gone, and I hate being here. I took some time to really think about the reason I started Track.One and what made me happy, and really it was just having a place where my friends and I could work on our cars and have fun. I also enjoyed helping other people without having to charge them a lot to do so. With the way I started, the very low overhead allowed me to do so. I dove into entrepreneurship with no experience at all, just a desire to accomplish my goals and live out my dream. In that respect I feel like I succeeded. In only 3 years Track.One had been featured in multiple magazines, on television, and the name spread like crazy. When it started to become a very serious business and the money required to keep it running increased....so did my stress and overall I wasn't a very fun person to be around most of the time. A lot of friends who supported me moved on and stopped talking to me, I became an ******* in a lot of ways just because I was so focused on the business and I felt like everyone just wanted to use me. Not having a proper business plan dug me into a hole, trying to grow too fast made that hole deeper, focusing too much on marketing and notoriety dug me down further....and I just have to stop digging. Failure is necessary, many of the greatest entrepreneurs throughout history had failed many times over before finding success. I spent a lot of money, most of it I'm not getting back...but I feel like it was money well spent. The things I learned you can't find in any school. I'm going to walk away with a nice big chunk of debt...but not anything I can't handle. I have some really great opportunities that I want to pursue, and I want to get back to what I loved about this industry. I have an amazing, supportive girlfriend that I want a future with, tons of great friends I want to reconnect with, and the greatest family in the world...what more could I ask for? This has been an amazing adventure and a great experience....I have no regrets at all. I've had customers from all over the world and been able to inspire so many to pursue their dreams just as I did, but the one thing I've learned that is more valuable than anything...is being happy. I'm smiling as I type this up, I honestly can't wait to get back out of this hole, keep pursuing my future, and even just working on my RX-7 in hopefully my own small garage. I still may just scale down Track.One and continue selling parts and developing some small products with my brother. I want to thank everyone who has supported me throughout this journey, I can't thank you all enough. And to all of my friends I have lost touch with over the years...I'm sorry, and I can't wait to see everyone again.

I've got a lot of stuff to sell as I begin to liquidate my shops assets....there's not much I don't have to just lemme know if you want anything! I'll be posting up pictures and pricing for everything that's for sale. The more I sell, the more I chip away at my debt...so every cent is appreciated.

The dream isn't dead, and in all reality I haven't failed. I will only consider myself a failure if I stop trying...and that will be the day I take my last breath on this earth. I will be successful, there isn't a doubt in my mind.

Thank you all,
Mike Zusin][/QUOTE]

 

[hpw]

thanks, Kevin

 

[LCG]

Oh I have been there a couple of times.. a hobby turns into a full time stressing job, that ain't pretty and he describes it to perfection.

 

[IPACA9]

Mike I started reading this post about 2am last night. I thought I was just going to check on the site and before I knew it I was reading this thread from beginning to end. It breaks my heart to see the posting that was transferred from your Facebook page. From the first thread it was almost like watching the movie The Truman Show. Watching you from day one of your adventure and then in the end it is crushing you. One word. VACATION!!!. Man you hit the ground running and have been going full speed for 3 years it's only a matter of time when you hit the wall.

I've been there and I'm still there. A self made business owner. What a stressful roller coaster. I've been a professional car audio and accessory installer for nearly 25 years. For many years I was always an employee or manager for installation shops or big box store car audio departments until I decided I wanted to live my dream in 2004. OWN MY OWN BUSINESS!!! I have wanted to throw in the towel so many times I can't even count. I sometimes think life would be so much simpler if I just worked for another shop again. I know there'b be much less hours. I went from a 40 hr week to a 90 hr week then throw a few kids into the mix along the way.

In our case we like to go tent camping. That's my great stress reliever. My wife is my scheduler for that. She can always tell when I've had enough, I'm about to snap and hurt someone. She'll tell me "don't schedule anything for next weekend" and we'll pack up and go. I LEAVE MY PHONE AT HOME!!!! It feels amazing to break free from the business tethers. Then on Monday or whenever we return I feel refreshed for another month of stress. We try to do this several times a year.

I'm not trying to tell you to go camping but I'm telling you to dig deep and ask yourself what it is that you really like to enjoy to relieve your stress and just let the other stuff go for a few days. People will understand. If they don't then that's not the customer I want. I've had plenty of people that at first are upset that I didn't get to them that weekend but after I explain that I needed a break they get it. Everyone has been there. A dream can turn into a nightmare if you don't figure out how to manage it.

 

[illmatyk]

Mike I started reading this post about 2am last night. I thought I was just going to check on the site and before I knew it I was reading this thread from beginning to end. It breaks my heart to see the posting that was transferred from your Facebook page. From the first thread it was almost like watching the movie The Truman Show. Watching you from day one of your adventure and then in the end it is crushing you. One word. VACATION!!!. Man you hit the ground running and have been going full speed for 3 years it's only a matter of time when you hit the wall.

I've been there and I'm still there. A self made business owner. What a stressful roller coaster. I've been a professional car audio and accessory installer for nearly 25 years. For many years I was always an employee or manager for installation shops or big box store car audio departments until I decided I wanted to live my dream in 2004. OWN MY OWN BUSINESS!!! I have wanted to throw in the towel so many times I can't even count. I sometimes think life would be so much simpler if I just worked for another shop again. I know there'b be much less hours. I went from a 40 hr week to a 90 hr week then throw a few kids into the mix along the way.

In our case we like to go tent camping. That's my great stress reliever. My wife is my scheduler for that. She can always tell when I've had enough, I'm about to snap and hurt someone. She'll tell me "don't schedule anything for next weekend" and we'll pack up and go. I LEAVE MY PHONE AT HOME!!!! It feels amazing to break free from the business tethers. Then on Monday or whenever we return I feel refreshed for another month of stress. We try to do this several times a year.

I'm not trying to tell you to go camping but I'm telling you to dig deep and ask yourself what it is that you really like to enjoy to relieve your stress and just let the other stuff go for a few days. People will understand. If they don't then that's not the customer I want. I've had plenty of people that at first are upset that I didn't get to them that weekend but after I explain that I needed a break they get it. Everyone has been there. A dream can turn into a nightmare if you don't figure out how to manage it.

That is some awesome advice right there IPACA9!!

 

[metalhead212121]

That is some awesome advice right there IPACA9!!

X2 on that! Very sad to see Track one close up shop... but I can understand wanting to be happy. Years ago I managed a garage when the boss was gone. I made a ton of money but I was beyond miserable! One day I blew my top and put my two weeks notice in. I just couldnt do it anymore.


Good luck Mike in whatever you do..

Dan

 

[LoRollinLS]

Wow, I loved this place. I'm sorry to see it go. Was wanting to get over there and visit some time. You seemed like you were always busy but we couldn't tell on here that you were under that much stress and were near closing. My condolences, and please update this thread with what you are doing from time to time.

Cheers...

 

[NUTTSGT]

Wow, I hate to see this happening but I'm not surprised. From the onset, I was afraid that you might be burning the candle at both ends and you were going to prematurely burn out.

I have not doubt once you gather your thoughts, make the decision and set your future boundaries, that you'll be back in the game. I fore see Track.One back in the not so distant future. You are a smart, diligent young man with a vision, that has already done more than people twice his age.


Good luck and best wishes for your future.

 

[Track.One]

Wow, I just put 2 and 2 together. Best of luck Mike. Everything will work out in the end, and enjoy your time with family and friends.

Sent from my SCH-I535 using BimmerApp mobile app

Appreciate it! I'm not too worried...I've got a lot of support and great opportunities in front of me

Yep gotta be happy in the end. Good luck, will miss reading about all the great projects.

I'm keeping this thread alive! Now I'll have more time for updates! This is not just a "garage thread", this is a build thread for a business..good or bad!

Come on, come on.

I know you are probably working very hard, but you gotta share man, gotta share.

About to share, I'll fill you guys in on EVERYTHING!

Not to pry, but anyone care to share what is going on?

Not too versed on it, but I think he's shutting down the shop for personal reasons.

Kudos to him for balls of steel and a great run.

The run is never over

https://www.facebook.com/TrackOneMotorsports

For anybody interested. It's the second post on there right now.

Wow! Just saw this now. I have followed your shop build when it started at NWP and then on here and FB. Alot of progress and tho I don't own my own shop I know the feeling of stress and the feeling of being used/taken advantage of.

Good luck in the opportunities and goals that you pursue after closing down Track.One. Your shop was awesome from my POV.

More to come from Track.One! Or another business venture..just depends on how I get out of this lease lol.

Mike....I left you a reply on your FB page.

I'll shoot you a reply

since I don't do fb, can u copy/paste here what is up?

Here is what Mike says:

[QUOTETrack One
Friday
Alrighty, this is going to be a pretty large post...so here's the cliff notes:

I'M SHUTTING DOWN TRACK.ONE

I've got to do what is best for me right now, and quite honestly...I'm not happy doing this anymore. I've been battling depression, stress has been really been affecting my health, a lot of my friends stopped talking to me, I just want to be happy again. The rush to move to a new location, lack of funds to make the new location work, and just the sheer amount of work I have to do all on my own right now is just too much to handle. The passion I once had is gone, and I hate being here. I took some time to really think about the reason I started Track.One and what made me happy, and really it was just having a place where my friends and I could work on our cars and have fun. I also enjoyed helping other people without having to charge them a lot to do so. With the way I started, the very low overhead allowed me to do so. I dove into entrepreneurship with no experience at all, just a desire to accomplish my goals and live out my dream. In that respect I feel like I succeeded. In only 3 years Track.One had been featured in multiple magazines, on television, and the name spread like crazy. When it started to become a very serious business and the money required to keep it running increased....so did my stress and overall I wasn't a very fun person to be around most of the time. A lot of friends who supported me moved on and stopped talking to me, I became an ******* in a lot of ways just because I was so focused on the business and I felt like everyone just wanted to use me. Not having a proper business plan dug me into a hole, trying to grow too fast made that hole deeper, focusing too much on marketing and notoriety dug me down further....and I just have to stop digging. Failure is necessary, many of the greatest entrepreneurs throughout history had failed many times over before finding success. I spent a lot of money, most of it I'm not getting back...but I feel like it was money well spent. The things I learned you can't find in any school. I'm going to walk away with a nice big chunk of debt...but not anything I can't handle. I have some really great opportunities that I want to pursue, and I want to get back to what I loved about this industry. I have an amazing, supportive girlfriend that I want a future with, tons of great friends I want to reconnect with, and the greatest family in the world...what more could I ask for? This has been an amazing adventure and a great experience....I have no regrets at all. I've had customers from all over the world and been able to inspire so many to pursue their dreams just as I did, but the one thing I've learned that is more valuable than anything...is being happy. I'm smiling as I type this up, I honestly can't wait to get back out of this hole, keep pursuing my future, and even just working on my RX-7 in hopefully my own small garage. I still may just scale down Track.One and continue selling parts and developing some small products with my brother. I want to thank everyone who has supported me throughout this journey, I can't thank you all enough. And to all of my friends I have lost touch with over the years...I'm sorry, and I can't wait to see everyone again.

I've got a lot of stuff to sell as I begin to liquidate my shops assets....there's not much I don't have to just lemme know if you want anything! I'll be posting up pictures and pricing for everything that's for sale. The more I sell, the more I chip away at my debt...so every cent is appreciated.

The dream isn't dead, and in all reality I haven't failed. I will only consider myself a failure if I stop trying...and that will be the day I take my last breath on this earth. I will be successful, there isn't a doubt in my mind.

Thank you all,
Mike Zusin]

[/QUOTE]

thanks, Kevin

Oh I have been there a couple of times.. a hobby turns into a full time stressing job, that ain't pretty and he describes it to perfection.

Yep, I want to get back to being happy first and foremost.

 

[Track.One]

Mike I started reading this post about 2am last night. I thought I was just going to check on the site and before I knew it I was reading this thread from beginning to end. It breaks my heart to see the posting that was transferred from your Facebook page. From the first thread it was almost like watching the movie The Truman Show. Watching you from day one of your adventure and then in the end it is crushing you. One word. VACATION!!!. Man you hit the ground running and have been going full speed for 3 years it's only a matter of time when you hit the wall.

I've been there and I'm still there. A self made business owner. What a stressful roller coaster. I've been a professional car audio and accessory installer for nearly 25 years. For many years I was always an employee or manager for installation shops or big box store car audio departments until I decided I wanted to live my dream in 2004. OWN MY OWN BUSINESS!!! I have wanted to throw in the towel so many times I can't even count. I sometimes think life would be so much simpler if I just worked for another shop again. I know there'b be much less hours. I went from a 40 hr week to a 90 hr week then throw a few kids into the mix along the way.

In our case we like to go tent camping. That's my great stress reliever. My wife is my scheduler for that. She can always tell when I've had enough, I'm about to snap and hurt someone. She'll tell me "don't schedule anything for next weekend" and we'll pack up and go. I LEAVE MY PHONE AT HOME!!!! It feels amazing to break free from the business tethers. Then on Monday or whenever we return I feel refreshed for another month of stress. We try to do this several times a year.

I'm not trying to tell you to go camping but I'm telling you to dig deep and ask yourself what it is that you really like to enjoy to relieve your stress and just let the other stuff go for a few days. People will understand. If they don't then that's not the customer I want. I've had plenty of people that at first are upset that I didn't get to them that weekend but after I explain that I needed a break they get it. Everyone has been there. A dream can turn into a nightmare if you don't figure out how to manage it.

Awesome post, I really appreciate the kind words, advice, and reading through my story! I have been on the craziest emotional roller coaster over the past few months, I'm still having a hard time processing it haha. But now...that I've accepted this decision to get back to being happy...I've felt a huge weight lift off of my shoulders. I would love a vacation...maybe after I get all of this closing stuff taken care of I can get go somewhere and clear my head

That is some awesome advice right there IPACA9!!

X2 on that! Very sad to see Track one close up shop... but I can understand wanting to be happy. Years ago I managed a garage when the boss was gone. I made a ton of money but I was beyond miserable! One day I blew my top and put my two weeks notice in. I just couldnt do it anymore.


Good luck Mike in whatever you do..

Dan

Thanks! This is just a speed bump...nothing can stop me

Wow, I loved this place. I'm sorry to see it go. Was wanting to get over there and visit some time. You seemed like you were always busy but we couldn't tell on here that you were under that much stress and were near closing. My condolences, and please update this thread with what you are doing from time to time.

Cheers...

It's hard to be honest about what is really going on with a business. You want everyone to see the shop as a strong, thriving place that is doing great...when a lot of the time is can be the exact opposite. This is how I've learned..and I look at this now as the best education debt could buy! haha. I'll be sure to keep you guys updated!

Wow, I hate to see this happening but I'm not surprised. From the onset, I was afraid that you might be burning the candle at both ends and you were going to prematurely burn out.

I have not doubt once you gather your thoughts, make the decision and set your future boundaries, that you'll be back in the game. I fore see Track.One back in the not so distant future. You are a smart, diligent young man with a vision, that has already done more than people twice his age.


Good luck and best wishes for your future.

Thank you! Yes, I already have quite a few plans and some great opportunities with the contacts and reputation I've built over the past 3 1/2 years. I'm only 25, going on 26 in November...I've got a lot of life left to live...and I'm sure more failures along the way. But there is no doubt in my mind that I will be successful...as long as I have a breathe in my body...I'm going to be moving forward

Now...I'm going to get some pictures together for a big *** update!

 

[patent pending]

You've obviously got skills and a serious work ethic.... you'll definitely land on your feet, and be successful whatever you're doing.

Glad you stopped now before it all caught up with you though. Enjoy this new time with your family and friends!

 

[tskills10]

Don't look at events as failures, look at them as lessons in how NOT to do something.

“I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.”
― Thomas A. Edison

Good luck in your future endevours.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Mike, glad to see you still posting. Anytime, you need a break, stop into the Journal and take a rest.

 

[metalhead212121]

Now...I'm going to get some pictures together for a big *** update!

 

[SiGmA_X]

Man I'm really sorry to see you're closing the doors. I hope you can restructure, find a more suitable location, and keep up the good work! Best of like Mike, and please keep us posted.

 

[e-tek]

Time to pay you $5 user fee.....

 

[roadracer97]

sorry to hear about it man. i havent been on gj in a while and didnt know this was happening. you will be successful in whatever you choose to do, best of luck

 

[Ferrari-lover]

Are you ever going to post an update about the new shop? The last one is from may

 

[Audicon]

Are you ever going to post an update about the new shop? The last one is from may

Go back and start reading at post #369

 

[dubber]

Go back and start reading at post #369

Unfortunately not everyone (including myself) is a Facebook user. It is sad to see a great thread with lots of interest being left in the dust as it were.

 

[Audicon]

You can read the facebook post in post # 373 & 381.

That is why I said "start" at 369.

But here is is again( I broke it up s it is a bit easier to read):

Here is what Mike says:

Track One
Friday
Alrighty, this is going to be a pretty large post...so here's the cliff notes:

I'M SHUTTING DOWN TRACK.ONE

I've got to do what is best for me right now, and quite honestly...I'm not happy doing this anymore. I've been battling depression, stress has been really been affecting my health, a lot of my friends stopped talking to me, I just want to be happy again. The rush to move to a new location, lack of funds to make the new location work, and just the sheer amount of work I have to do all on my own right now is just too much to handle.

The passion I once had is gone, and I hate being here. I took some time to really think about the reason I started Track.One and what made me happy, and really it was just having a place where my friends and I could work on our cars and have fun. I also enjoyed helping other people without having to charge them a lot to do so. With the way I started, the very low overhead allowed me to do so. I dove into entrepreneurship with no experience at all, just a desire to accomplish my goals and live out my dream. In that respect I feel like I succeeded. In only 3 years Track.One had been featured in multiple magazines, on television, and the name spread like crazy.

When it started to become a very serious business and the money required to keep it running increased....so did my stress and overall I wasn't a very fun person to be around most of the time. A lot of friends who supported me moved on and stopped talking to me, I became an ******* in a lot of ways just because I was so focused on the business and I felt like everyone just wanted to use me.

Not having a proper business plan dug me into a hole, trying to grow too fast made that hole deeper, focusing too much on marketing and notoriety dug me down further....and I just have to stop digging. Failure is necessary, many of the greatest entrepreneurs throughout history had failed many times over before finding success. I spent a lot of money, most of it I'm not getting back...but I feel like it was money well spent. The things I learned you can't find in any school. I'm going to walk away with a nice big chunk of debt...but not anything I can't handle. I have some really great opportunities that I want to pursue, and I want to get back to what I loved about this industry. I have an amazing, supportive girlfriend that I want a future with, tons of great friends I want to reconnect with, and the greatest family in the world...what more could I ask for?

This has been an amazing adventure and a great experience....I have no regrets at all. I've had customers from all over the world and been able to inspire so many to pursue their dreams just as I did, but the one thing I've learned that is more valuable than anything...is being happy.

I'm smiling as I type this up, I honestly can't wait to get back out of this hole, keep pursuing my future, and even just working on my RX-7 in hopefully my own small garage. I still may just scale down Track.One and continue selling parts and developing some small products with my brother. I want to thank everyone who has supported me throughout this journey, I can't thank you all enough. And to all of my friends I have lost touch with over the years...I'm sorry, and I can't wait to see everyone again.

I've got a lot of stuff to sell as I begin to liquidate my shops assets....there's not much I don't have to just lemme know if you want anything! I'll be posting up pictures and pricing for everything that's for sale. The more I sell, the more I chip away at my debt...so every cent is appreciated.

The dream isn't dead, and in all reality I haven't failed. I will only consider myself a failure if I stop trying...and that will be the day I take my last breath on this earth. I will be successful, there isn't a doubt in my mind.

Thank you all,
Mike Zusin]

 

[Track.One]

You've obviously got skills and a serious work ethic.... you'll definitely land on your feet, and be successful whatever you're doing.

Glad you stopped now before it all caught up with you though. Enjoy this new time with your family and friends!

Thank you! I already have a ton of great opportunities in front of me and I'm excited to get started!

Don't look at events as failures, look at them as lessons in how NOT to do something.

“I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.”
― Thomas A. Edison

Good luck in your future endevours.

Exactly! and thank you!

Mike, glad to see you still posting. Anytime, you need a break, stop into the Journal and take a rest.

I want to start posting on here a lot more and keep you guys updated with what's going on. I have one week left in the new shop and then it's on to the next challenge

Man I'm really sorry to see you're closing the doors. I hope you can restructure, find a more suitable location, and keep up the good work! Best of like Mike, and please keep us posted.

I will! Sorry for not posting up much...it's been very hectic with closing down. But this is my last week in the old shop so I should have some more time to make posts

Time to pay you $5 user fee.....

sorry to hear about it man. i havent been on gj in a while and didnt know this was happening. you will be successful in whatever you choose to do, best of luck

Thank you! I'm staying positive and looking forward to the future

Unfortunately not everyone (including myself) is a Facebook user. It is sad to see a great thread with lots of interest being left in the dust as it were.

I know...I do like this forum a lot and wished I had more time to update it during the move and the events that followed. I have a ton of pictures and a large story to tell of the adventure though. I'll be uploading pictures and filling in the blanks on much of my story once I'm out of the new shop. I have one week left here before I break the lease.


So here are a few pictures I'll put in now and throw a little update in for now since I have to get back to work packing up the shop.



This was the last day I saw my old shop...so many great memories here and so many lessons learned. I really miss the old shop now. For those that didn't know my parents had to sell their house and property (shop included) and the sale ended up happening a lot faster than we could have thought. This rush to move without a solid plan was one of the factors that ended up closing us down. But every decision, weather it be good or bad...is a leasson learned.



Celebratory burnout in the new shop...it was exciting moving into a place like this. I think I was blinded by the potential, the dream....I didn't know what I was getting into with a place that big...I expected the work to roll in but that didn't happen.



A lot of friends and customers all came to help, I literally had to move the shop in one week and without them there's no way that could have happened. I just feel bad that they did all that for me almost for nothing..but it is nice to know who my real friends are...and I will be sure to make it up to all of them.



We had a nice amount of working coming in...but it wasn't quality in anyway. This area really ***** for the work we were doing...and I was about to make a change to focus on bringing in more basic maintenance work to pay the bills. Unfortunately my head tech ended up leaving the company during this period only a month after moving in. He hated to do it to me and offered to stay for 2 weeks, train a new tech if need be and make sure he left here on good terms. With money being so tight I couldn't afford his offer and since the company he was going to wanted him there ASAP, he ended up leaving a few days later. Apparently he had been looking for work somewhere else quite sometime...which hurt because I thought he had my back. I just wish he would have told me before I signed this 3 year lease...but it is what it is. He was just looking out for himself...just like anyone else would...so I understand. With the uncertainty of the move, the future of the shop....he had no choice. He was a good friend and I hope we can become friends again in the future. I hired another tech but he had a better offer come in that I couldn't match. For the most part it was just me here by myself to handle everything.



I had another shop owner contact me out of Illinois who was moving into town for his career as a aircraft engineer. He was brining his dyno and drag car and needed a place to store it. We worked out a great deal...storage in exchange for us having full access to it and him tuning part time. I already had a great full time tuner ready to go..but it was too late. The only way to save Track.One at that point was to inject more debt into this company on the risk that it would work. Looking at the future of this country, the economy, and the amount of work I had in front of me it wasn't worth it to continue in my eyes.



I was miserable, my health was in bad shape, stress levels were crazy, on anti-depressants and other meds....it was time for change. All I wanted to do was have some stability in my life, work on my RX-7, and start enjoying my hobby again. I have no regrets, and I've learned so much from this experience, things I could never learn in any school. I'm switching my focus to my skills in marketing which I very much enjoy. I've made some great contacts in this industry where my marketing and pr skills could be of great use. I have a few great business ideas I want to pursue too...but nothing involving owning a performance shop at this time.

What I loved most about Track.One was the beginning...when it was mostly my friends and great customers hanging out in my shop back in the woods. When it started getting very serious the dynamic changed and it started to ruin my hobby which I loved so dearly. I want to get back to that. I will be building another shop again in the future...but not as a career. I want a cool shop to work on my projects, hang out with friends, and not stress about the next client coming in to pay the bills. I'm focusing on now on finding my career path...the next Track.One is going to be all about fun and enjoying car life.


Thank you guys for following my journey over the past couple of years...but don't worry I'm not going anywhere! I want to continue updating this...with more frequent updates as well. I have a ton of pictures to upload of the past couple of months so I'll be back to fill in some blanks. If you have any questions feel free to ask! Thanks guys!

 

[Track.One]

Got the photobucket and flickr app on the phone...took these pictures a second ago. This will make updating a lot less time consuming haha.



I've got a week or so left in here...and there's still so much **** in here haha....gonna be fun! Most of it is going into storage units where it will be easier to sell everything when I'm out of here.





Last thing to do is finish the engine swap on this 97 Land Cruiser and then all the cars that are here will all be leaving. Still gotta find a place for my RX-7 too lol.

 

[1/2 Cup]

Thank you for the update and as you say stay positive and look forward to the future.

 

[jws1467]

I am sorry to hear you had to close up shop but understand also. I also am young at 29 years old. I had started up a small tree business and was trying to keep that going on the side as well as working my everyday job. It went from being able to help family and friends to having to work every free moment i had to try to make the bills and pay people. I was stressed and miserable and understand where you are coming from. It was an unbelievable feeling when i finally called it quits shut up shop. I know i will miss it but at this point in my life like you it was the right decision.

I wish you all the best and hope to keep reading and hearing about your new adventures. Best of luck to you and the future.

 

[Thedoc14]

You have your skills and your dream, nobody can take that from you. You just need a roof over your head and friends.

It will happen again only this time you are prepared and will see it coming.
Keep us updated and enjoy life its too short

 

[dubber]

Thanks for the updates. It really shows your true character to honestly talk about a potentially major set back and take it as a learning experience. This is a unique thing for sure. Good luck in the future.

 

[polexican23]

You know what they say,

"if at first you dont succeed, you arent Chuck Norris."