As many of you know, my wonderful husband, Matthew, comes from a large family of 16. He has eight brothers and five sisters so, as you can imagine, he likes to hang out with his brothers. They are friends for life whether they like it or not.
Since before we were married, there would always be a certain hobby that many of the Matties boys would take up and have fun doing together. First, it was playing pool. Then, it was ping pong (until everyone realized they couldn’t beat Benny). Last year, they started playing golf, which they have mostly continued doing. At one point, they even got me to play, along with my husband’s parents, grandfather, and some in-laws. Earlier this year, right around when Lent began, they decided they were going to take up racing remote control cars.
The reason they started this new hobby could have been because many of the Matties’ gave up video games for Lent and needed something new to occupy their time. It could also be because this past winter in Texas was extremely long and they couldn’t golf as much as they wanted to because the weather had been so cold (cold down here is in the 50s and below). Whatever the reason, they had to start a new hobby and so began their new competitive obsession.
Now, these aren’t just regular remote control vehicles you get from the store. You HAVE to have expensive fast ones with special tires and special batteries. $250 only buys you a cheap one without all the upgrades. So of course, my husband bought one of the cheaper ones (not cheap in my opinion haha), but it wasn’t good enough so a week later, he was looking for a new one. Finally, he found a decent used one which already had lots of upgrades for a great price. I am especially thankful that he didn’t go out and keep buying new trucks like some of his siblings who now have five or more. You can only race one at a time anyway!
Honestly, I’m not even mad about having a track in my backyard. It’s at the very back of the property anyway in space we didn’t use for anything special. It’s also far enough away from the house that the kids won’t go out there alone and start digging potholes. I’m sure all the racers and their vehicles appreciate that.
Matthew’s brother declared that this racetrack is probably the best on this side of Houston. Only time will tell, I guess. It’s already better than the one down the road from our house that hasn’t been taken care of. We have joked about charging entry fees for people that want to come race on it but who knows, maybe it will eventually become a business opportunity. I even had the idea that we could make it free for Matties Auto Repair‘s customers. So maybe, it could help bring us business while advertising at the same time. Probably wishful thinking on my part but you never know!
I’m actually glad it’s at our house as now I don’t have to be worried about being left alone every weekend like when my husband would go across town to go racing at his brother’s house. If you are a stay-at-home mom like I am, I’m sure you understand that sometimes we need some adult interaction and/or a break from being home alone with the kids all day. I already don’t get to spend much time with him as it is since he is always working, whether it be with his full-time job or with his automotive side business, so any time when he is home is precious. The kids also get to spend more time with him and we all get to watch the Matties boys try to outdo each other. Not only are they super competitive, but they can also be quite entertaining.
I’m glad my husband found a hobby he can enjoy from home and that we can enjoy as well. The kids even have their own small remote control car so they can pretend they are racing too. What does your husband or significant other like to do as a hobby?
