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So, you're going to go for it, right?

Oh, I wish it was that easy.

That's fair. It's only too bad that it didn't come up until after your contract was over, right?

Among other things.

[She's just had a conversation with Shane about how hard of a decision this is.]

Did I tell you about my friend Scott? The one I'm driving against for the championship right now?

Yeah, you've mentioned him a couple of times, I believe.

[She did not envy the hard decision that Shelby had to make. Even if she was approached by a rival company to come and work for them instead of the guys, she could never do it. But that was a much different situation, all things considered.]

His boss wants me to be his teammate.

[Omitting the fact that she watched him race as a college student and has looked up to him her whole career. Les doesn't need all that backstory.]

Oh wow! Shelby! That's amazing!

Yeah, it is. Kinda something we've talked about on and off for forever.

[Bashful chuckle.]

It's not official yet but the ask should happen in the next week.

Do you know what you're going to do yet?

I actually don't, if you can believe it.

I can believe it. I imagine it'd be a really hard decision to make.

There are a lot of factors I have to consider. It's actually making me kind of depressed.

I've heard any huge decision can be like that, so I get it.

It's crazy. This could be the biggest decision of my career.

No, I'm not panicking at all.

[Laughs]

Nope, I see no panic happening at all. A question to ask yourself is... if you turned it down, would you regret it?

Yes. I've already turned it down once before and I regret it.

But I've also got to think about my future, my team, my relationship. It would change everything to go to another team.

That's a good point. Have you told Derrick yet?

I haven't. I don't want to tell anybody until the offer is official.

[Exhales.]

That's another thing. It would put us on different teams so we would be apart. I mean, we'd see each other around the track and of course in the offseason, but a couple of minutes in the paddock is different from working together.

That's fair.

That would be a strain on your relationship and make it a little harder. Still, you guys could work it out. I'm sure he'll be happy for you.

[Smiles. She wasn't exactly the 'happily ever after' sort of romantic but she liked to see others in happy relationships and genuinely wanted things to work out for her.]

He would be.

[For her certainly. He knew all about taking a leap to chase a dream; he'd just done it himself. For them...maybe not so much. They were both uneasy trying to balance work and dating.]

Anyway. My focus is on St. Petersburg this week and winning the championship. Then I'll worry about everything else.

[She knows if she doesn't completely focus all of this will get to her.]

Good plan. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you this week - hope it's a great race.

[Everything else can wait.]