Justin Wilson meant a lot to the racing community. He touched so many lives and helped so many drivers. I'm fortunate to be one of the many he made time for.

The racing world is different from other sports; you can't always be friends with your competitors and drivers don't normally go out of their way to help each other. Drivers are single-minded in their approach to the sport, at most times thinking me first, others later.

Justin was the opposite, a rarity in our sport.

I knew who Justin was from his Formula Palmer Audi Championship victory and from his Formula 3000 season in 2001 when he beat Mark Webber to the title.

Those two junior racing series were extremely tough to win in. Just 18-years-old, I wasn't strong or experienced enough to race in either one yet. All I could do was watch and learn. At that point, I was racing in Formula Ford, a very junior level of racing where you cut your teeth and learn things the hard way.

By the end of my stint, I was asked to do a test for a chance at racing in the North American Formula Renault series - the feeder series into Formula One.

I went and did the test with Condor Motorsports. I was signed to a contract right there on the spot to take one of the two seats that were available. I had finally become a professional racing driver at the age of 19. The team liked me so much that they covered a lot of my costs, but I still needed to find that extra bit of finance to fund my ride.

My family never had a lot of money, but they did the best they could to try to help me chase my dream. Things became very difficult during the winter months. I was struggling to make ends meet and was becoming discouraged by my attempts at finding funding to race in Formula Renault. My family did everything they could to try to keep my spirits up, but to no avail.

One night, feeling a little sorry for myself, I took a trip into town and went to the local Chapters store. I went into the automotive section and picked up a racing magazine. When I arrived home, I opened it up and out popped a pamphlet. On it was Justin Wilson and it explained how he was going to be selling shares in himself to help pay for some of his ride into Formula One.

It went into extreme detail on the business aspects of racing. Wilson's approach educated and inspired me. I kept telling myself that if he could do it, then so could I. I was able to find the funding I needed and entered the championship.

That very same year, I was racing at the Montreal Grand Prix in Formula Renault. Being a part of the championship, I was given access to the Formula One pit lane and team garages and brought my father along with me. My dad was off meeting and taking pictures with Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello, while I was doing my own thing and happened to run into Justin.

At first I was a bit star struck. This was the guy whose career I had followed all the way up to Formula One. But instead of being reserved I figured I'd introduce myself and tell him what I was doing and how his approach to racing really inspired me.

I had so many questions for him, and we shared stories of just how hard we had to work to make our way through the racing world. He was very uplifting and helpful, someone I could bounce an idea off of and get a very positive response in return. He said if I ever needed advice to not be afraid to reach out to him.

This was a bit of a shock to me because, up to that point, I had never been given a lot of advice by my racing peers. Drivers who are ahead of you in a series don't normally reach back and help the juniors out of fear of maybe losing their ride to the individual they helped. But not Justin, he truly wanted to help, and I admired that straight away.

My dad was snapping photos left, right, and centre when I asked Justin if it was all right if we took a couple of pictures of his car. Taking pictures of the cars during a Thursday technical inspection is frowned upon in Formula One. Teams like to keep their secrets with their cars. But not Justin, he let us get right in there and we got great access.

A few years later, our paths crossed again in Portland. I had made my way into ChampCar Atlantics, and he was now living in North America, racing as a full time ChampCar driver - now known as IndyCar - with a team called RuSport.

ChampCar Atlantics followed the ChampCar circuit around North America as a feeder series.

Justin Wilson

The car I was in at that point was very difficult, both physically and psychologically, to drive. It didn't help that it was falling apart at times. I had never raced at Portland International Raceway before, and my first practice session in the C2 championship was a struggle.

Justin remembered me when I ran into him in the paddock area, and again we got to chatting. He was busy with his sponsorship obligations, but told me I could come by the garage and talk more once he was finished. A racer's weekend is quite stressful; there are sponsorship obligations, you're under pressure to perform, and win. For Justin to take time to speak with me was a big deal.

When we sat down later that afternoon I spoke of my frustrations with racing, finding funding, and finding a team that would help. He could relate, and provided me with contacts that might be able to help me in my career.

We also spoke about his shares program that he had put in place to get into Formula One. He told me how he was trying to re-pay every single one of those people who bought shares in him. I really admired that. He could have easily cut bait and run, keeping his winnings and earnings, but not Justin. He was a man of his word, which can be tough to find these days.

We also talked about the track at Portland and where I could improve. That was of great value to me, because I knew of his talent and how he took teams that had no business of winning and put them on his shoulders, dragging performance out of the car and the team. His advice helped because I ended up finishing second in the C2 race.

He told me, like others have in the past, that if racing was easy everyone would do it. He told me that when things get rough, because they can get very rough in racing, that I'd have to remember why I race and not get discouraged. He told me that the moment that I give up is the moment I would be defeated.

What Justin did that day is not normal for racing drivers. He didn't have to do it, but that is what made him so unique to everyone in the paddock. All Justin ever wanted to do was help.

We met again in 2012. Justin was clinging to his ride, like always, and I had stopped racing due to a lack of funding. He was sad that I wasn't racing but kept encouraging me to keep at it, to try to find ways to get back into a race car.

If there is one thing that I regret, it's not telling him how much he inspired me. His encouragement kept me going in a sport where it is very difficult to make a career. In all honesty, I may not be writing this article right now if it weren't for his advice and encouragement to keep pushing, even when times were toughest.

His concern for someone he didn't really know was a sign of the kind of man he was. I will always remember how he made the time for a fellow driver.