The Dragon Slayer

The Tail of the Dragon: 318 curves over 11 miles of road stretching from Tennessee to North

Carolina.

To some, it is just a road. To me, it is my version of heaven.

Intense focus is required to safely travel this road, with every move having to be completely

calculated to ensure you don’t go careening off of a cliff.

One may fear the Dragon, as many who attempt to conquer it don’t make it back.

Others conquer it.

Much like creativity and our own lives, we tend to shy away from the things that scare us; the

things that make our hearts beat faster than a car’s engine climbing up the revs.

But when that inner voice is screaming “SLOW DOWN! YOU WON’T MAKE IT”, I drop a

gear and stomp on the gas.

Turn after turn made me feel more and more free. My car accelerating along the winding road

with every gear change giving a loud “CRACK” from my exhaust.

The nature surrounding me cheers me on like crowded grandstands as I feel myself living out my

dreams.

Every corner giving me new challenges, each of which requiring the perfect solution to maintain

my speed and my safety along this path.

With tears in my eyes and a massive smile on my face, I slayed the Dragon.

We all have our own Dragons in life, but mine just happens to require a Focus RS to conquer it.

Name: Michael Shock

Year: Senior

Major: Marketing

Hometown: Columbia Station, Ohio

Fun Fact: I have four national records in powerlifting!