I’ve found the secret to long life and a way to keep things interesting as one grows older: find your passion.

Find your passion in sports or music or art or recreation and keep doing it as long as possible. If you find you thoroughly enjoy something as a young person, keep it going forever.

I know of two great examples of this from the world of sports.

The first is that of NASCAR racing legend 81-year-old Hershel McGriff, whom I met yesterday in his motor home in North Salt Lake. McGriff traveled this summer from his permanent home in Green Valley, Ariz., to a race in Sonoma, Calif., then to a race in Portland, Ore., and now to Utah to compete at Miller Motorsports Park on Saturday in the NASCAR Camping World Series West.

He started racing when he was 17 years old and has cut back on his passion at times throughout the years to build successful business enterprises in the timber and mining industries. But even then he continued his passion as a weekend racing fanatic.

“I’m not out to prove anything,” he said on Wednesday. “I just love racing and I’m enjoying some time on the road.”

From what I can see, he has a great support group in his wife, five children, six grandchildren, seven great grandchildren and two great-great grandchildren. It also appears he relishes the abundance of friendships he’s developed over the years in the sport of racing.

Twenty years ago he became the oldest driver to win a NASCAR feature race when he won the AutoZone West Series race in 1989 at age 61.

He was nursing a sore foot on Wednesday, but said he enjoys road racing so much it is likely he will be back for more racing next year on the Camping World Series West circuit.

I’ve always also been a bit enthralled by the longevity of Tooele American Legion coach Angelo Cerroni. I think he may be out there in the third-base coaching box giving signs to batters 10 years from now, even though he’s 79 years old now.

His clubhouse at Dow James Ballpark is filled with so much baseball memorabilia that it leaves little doubt about Cerroni’s passion. Cerroni also was the main man behind building Dow James Ballpark and maintaining the facility for decades.

Back in 1993, Cerroni was inducted into the American Legion Baseball Hall of Fame. A newspaper story then stated that Cerroni liked to be called “Godfather” because he’d been running Tooele’s American Legion program for nearly 45 years.

Whether a person agrees or disagrees with Cerroni’s antics on the field — he can keep a game exciting for fans with sometimes loud debates that wear on the nerves of umpires — there is no doubt that he battles for his players.

And there is no doubt that Cerroni stays young by continuing to coach baseball. Like Hershel McGriff, he lives for his passion, and his passion gives him life.

Mark Watson: mwatson@tooeletranscript.com