Thursday, December 22, 2011

Nicole Bower. You go, girl!

Nicole Bower is the one and only girl who races at Port Royal Speedway religiously. She is only 21-years-old, and has been racing for five years. She hasn't won a race yet, or even been in the top five, but she gets major respect, especially from women, for having the guts to get strapped into a sprint car. Many people say "she's to scared to get up there with the big dogs," but that's not true. It just takes time to get a good handle on the car, and to know the track. Anyway, Nicole is from Camp Hill, PA, and she says her parents, Gina and Gary, and her sister, Brooke Bower, are her biggest supporters. Her sponser is ABC West Lanes, which is a bowling alley she goes to when she's not racing. Nicole's second hobby, racing being first, of course, is bowling. Bower is going to Delaware State University. Nicole's favorite band is the Red Hot Chili Peppers, her favorite restraunt is Hoss's, and her favorite drink is Iced Tea. When Nicole first started racing, she raced Quarter midgets. Bower's favorite track is Selinsgrove Speedway, and her chassis is made by Schnee. Her motors are made by Rider Racing Engines, and her future goals are USAC, and NASCAR. That's all I can say about the 75 of Nicole Bower!

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Justin Henderson.

Justin Henderson is a 30-year-old lean mean racing machine. He is from Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Henderson has a dog named Zeus, and aside from racing, his hobbies are golfing, paint ball, and working on his El Camino. Justin began racing when he was only five-years-old. He started out racing karts, then 4-wheelers, and before he even turned 16, he was behind the wheel, and strapping into a sprint car. He began racing IMCA 360 sprint cars near his home in Sioux Falls after his father, Rod, turned over the family car to him. He was fairly successful as he finished in the top two in points at all three of his local racetrack. Justin quickly showed he not only had the desire to race professionally, but also showed he had the talent to do so. In 2006, opportunity knocked, and Justin was offered a chance to race wih the World of Outlaws, and he made the most of it by finishing 7th in points as a rookie out of 16 full time traveling cars. The mild mannered Henderson always has time to talk to the fans, and sign autographs, even though it can get annoying, and even if he loses a race, he still talks to them, and puts a smile on his face. That's what I like about Justin. He's very mannerly, and respectful. In 2009, Justin joined the PA Posse team for the entire season. Justin is a very successful driver. In 2010, he raced 73 races. With one win, 10 top 5's, and 23 top 10's, and over 50 wins altogether, he's an amazing driver, and I'd be highly disappointed if he ever stopped racing.

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Daryl Stimeling.

Daryl Stimeling was born on March 21, 1966. He was born and raised in good ole' Lewistown, Pennsylvania. He's married to his wife, Paula, and has two daughters named Rachel and Tiffany. Aside from racing, to put dinner on the table, he is a logger. His hobby is obviously racing, and his favorite food is a cheesesteak from Parkway on Shaw Avenue. Stimeling is a country music fan, and his favorite singer is Garth Brooks. Daryl started racing in 1978. He first raced Go-Karts, then later switched over to Sprints in 1987. Stimeling has a very successful 15 career wins title. His chassis are J&J, and J&B, and he would never get someone else to make his chassis. Stimeling's motors are 410, and 358 Ford. Daryl's crew members who he gives major credit to, are Cliff, Duff, Harry, and Craig. Daryl says his favorite track is Sharon Speedway in Hartford, Ohio. Stimeling says the biggest impact on his racing career was his dad because his dad took him to the races all the time, and his racing heroes are Todd Shaffer, and Bobby Davis. Stimeling plans to stay in the Sprint Car division, but he wants to move from 410's, to a limited division like 358's, and his career dream is to run with the All-Stars.
"The winner ain't the one with the fastest car. It's the one that refuses to lose."
-Dale Earnhardt Sr.
This will forever be my favorite quote.
Not only is it by one of the greatest drivers in NASCAR history,
but it also means something to me. It reminds me that even if I don't win something,
I still won because I didn't give up.

Monday, December 12, 2011

Todd "Mr. Excitement" Shaffer.

Todd Shaffer, AKA Mr. Excitement, was born on November 8th, 1961 in Millerstown, PA. His wife's name is Allyson, and they have a daughter together named Salene. Todd is a building contractor. Gary and Patty Beam are Shaffer's race team owners, and his head wrench's name is Jim Russell. Todd has four crew members, and four sponsors. Mr. Excitement's chassis is a JEI, and his Engine was made by Don Ott. Outside of racing, he likes hunting, snowmobiling, riding his motorcycle, and golfing. Shaffer raced go-karts for 19 years, has 300+ feature wins, eight Grand National Championships, and he competed for three years as a touring prfessional in the World Karting Association for Link Enterprises of Dove, Delaware. After go-karts he moved up to the 410 Sprint Cars. He's been racing Sprints for 25 years, has 195 feature wins, and 13 track championships at Sharon Speedway, Williams Grove Speedway, Port Royal Speedway, and Selinsgrove Speedway. After everything went down with Tyler Walker, (Read post below), he got in the number 17's driver seat. A lot of people, including myself, do not like Shaffer. On the other hand, a lot do. He races dirty, and he'll do anything to win a race. I hate dirty racers. He's a nice person, but a dirty racer!

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Bye, bye, Walker!

Tyler Walker used to be one of the best racers to ever set foot on the Port Royal Speedway. He won the King's Royal race in Eldora, Ohio, and he has so many more accomplishments. He ruined it all by not taking a drug test. Drivers are randomly drug tested in every single form of racing machines that there is. They have to make sure that the drivers are able to get behind the wheel of a car safely. All he had to do is take one simple drug test. Walker refused. Walker is out. Bye, bye, Walker!

Friday, December 2, 2011

Happy Birthday to the best racer I know.

Stephen Michael Yarnall was born on December 2nd, 1989, in Nook, PA. He now lives in Mifflintown, PA. He moved to Mifflintown when he was just five-years-old. Right down the road, there was this guy, Gary, who raced Pro Stock cars. Stephen went to Gary's house everrrrrrryday, and learned so much from it. Gary got him started in his racing career, and I'm so happy he did, because Stephen is the most talented driver I know. He won 96% of his races this year, and that's over-the-top good. Yarnall rarely gets into an accident, but if he does, LOOK OUT. He's coming after you, if it was your fault. I'll never forget the night of the 66-lapper at Penns Creek. Some idiot wrecked him, and Stephen went up in the air and flipped three times, and landed on his head. Thinking about it now gets me shaking. After that race, I was determined to seriously injure that man. I went up to him, and got in his face, and he raised his fist at me, and out of nowhere Stephen comes and punches him in the mouth. The guy went and complained to the track officials, and they said, "Hey, man.. We saw what we saw. What you did was wrong, and you deserved what you got." That made me extremely happy. As you can tell, it can get a little heated at the race tracks. But it's so much fun, and it's what I live for. Stephen is not only my boyfriend, but he's my best friend, and my hero. Happy Birthday, <3.

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Fast Freddy Rahmer, not so fast?

Freddy Rahmer, "Fast Freddy", was born on March 3rd, 1958 in Pottstown, PA. He now lives in Salfordville, PA. Freddy has been married to his wife, Deb, for 27 years. He is a father of triplets. Brandon, Freddie, and Francesca are the triplet's names. Rahmer's father raced modified stock cars. Aside from racing, Freddie works full-time at CJB Motorsports. In all of his years of racing, Rahmer has earned 400+ wins. However, this year, he wasn't so hot. Everytime he went out on the track something new blew up on the car. Better luck in the 2012, season, Freddie!

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Daryn Pittman.

Daryn Pittman is 32-years-old and from Owasso, Oklahoma. He now resides in Pittsboro, Indiana. He's really, really, really, cute: But, he's married. :( His wife's name is Mandy, and they have a daughter together named Taylor. Daryn grew up around racing, and he has always loved it. He was 21-years-old when he started racing in the World Of Outlaws. Pittman has had 35 World Of Outlaw wins in his career history. Also, he has 20 victories in Austrailia. Daryn is a good race car driver, and a big time family man. Good luck next season, Daryn, :).

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

That was a close one, Stewart.

Tony Stewart and Carl Edwards both ended the NASCAR Sprint Cup racing season with 2,403 points. The tie breaker? How many races they won this season. Tony won five. He won the championship for the fifth time. He also won the Ford 400 on Sunday. He is the ninth driver to win more than three championships. On the way to lead the race, Stewart passed 118 cars. After the race, Stewart said, “I feel like I passed half the State of Florida. I mean, 118 cars is a lot of cars to pass in one race. I don’t care what series you’re in or where you’re at. To do it under the circumstances and the pressure that we had today, I’m very, very proud of that. And, man, I’ve been racing 31 years and I can’t even remember some of the races I’ve won. But I would have to say that, under the circumstances, I’ve got to believe that this is definitely one of the greatest races of my life.” I would much rather had Carl Edwards win. (Not just to see his amazing backflip.) But whatever. It is what it is.

Friday, November 18, 2011

March, where are you?!

I'm going through racing withdrawl, already! I know it may sound weird, but I miss the smell of the fumes, and the fights in the pits, and the intensity throughout the track, and the happiness when your driver wins. I miss my racing families that I have made at all three racetracks. I miss being the "tire girl", I miss the annoying announcer that talked more about the food in the concession stands than he did about what was going on out on the track. I miss the long rides in the old van that hauled the trailor with our racing stuff in it. I miss the hot head track owner, and his sweetheart of a wife. I miss it when I had to say "I can't do anything this weekend because we're racing Friday, Saturday, and Sunday." I miss sitting in the grand stands, and rooting for my favorite driver and the person in front of you, or behind you always had some smart remark to make about that driver. I miss the racetrack fries. I miss either freezing until you're almost determined that you have hypothermia, or sweating until you think you've lost eight pounds, but no matter what kind of weather, we were always there. I miss always being out in the garage working on the karts. I miss the noise of the karts and cars racing around the track. Most people see racing as cars running around in circles, but once you really truly get into it, you know there's a lot more. There's everything I described above, and what most people don't know, is that they actually keep points. I love Winter. It's my favorite season. But if we could have racing in the winter, that would be the most perfect thing ever. So, in conclusion, the main question is: WHERE ARE YOU, MARCH?!

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Update on Lance

After the terrible crash that put Lance DeWease in the hospital, and a neckbrace, he is doing much better. DeWease saw a neurosurgeon on Thursday. It will be a few more weeks until Lance can drive around himself, and he can't wait for that. He will get more x-rays in three weeks, and will most likely keep the neckbrace on for the full 12 weeks. On Lance's website, his wife wrote:  "We would like to thank everybody for the well wishes, prayers, and cards. It will be a long road to recovery, but so far it's going well."

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Kyle Busch is on time out!

Kyle Busch had the whole weekend to think about the choices that he had made on Friday during the Truck Series race. Kyle Busch races for JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing). Joe Gibbs is one of the toughest men to please in NASCAR. However, when asked about Busch's actions on Friday night, Gibbs said "I take full responsibility for it." Friday night during the truck race, while under caution, Kyle Busch intentionally wrecked Ron Hornaday. NASCAR.com stated that "He can go days, weeks, and sometimes even months without blowing up or doing something stupid -- and then blow all that good work in a split second of anger-infused idiocy." Hornaday was in the chase for the points, and Kyle ruined that for him, becacause Ron couldn't finish his race due to his car being smashed. Kyle hit him hard. Nose-first into the wall. Busch had to sit out all weekend. He had to quit the Truck Series, and sit out of the Sprint Cup Series on Sunday. In the chase for the points, Busch was 57 points behind the leader. Then he had to sit out, and he's way way way behind. The fact that Busch is young is no longer an excuse like it used to be. He's 26, now. Time to grow up, buddy.

Monday, November 7, 2011

Little Greenwood Raceway's rules.. Yippee.

Although Little Greenwood randomly makes up their own rules half way through the season, that is the track where I fell in love with racing, and I love that track. Many people go to Late Model or Sprint races, but not very many go to the kart races, so I'm going to fill you in on some main rules.

1. No one can be in the pits without a pit pass. In order to have a pit pass, you need to pay the ten dollars, and sign in. When you sign in, you have insurance protection automatically.
2. (This one cracks me up.) Everyone must present themselves with sportmanlike conduct. Anyone using threatening, or vulgar language, or gestures, or any type of harassment can and will be disqualified from the event. Anyone starting a fight will get a suspension from the track before they're allowed to return.
                             First of all, every time someone pulls of the track there is someone cussing. That's what makes it racing. And second of all, I've punch a guy in the mouth, and got in a guys face. That's two times that I should have been disqualified and thrown out and I never was.

3. In adult classes, driver's are responsible for their pit crew's actions. If anyone is in the pits with you without a pit pass, that will result in points being taken off your score for the night.

4. All participants entering the raceway must be sober.

5. A race may be stopped at any time if the flag men or officials contemplate danger or unsafe conditions.

6. Full face crash helmets, neck collars, or braces, heavy long sleeved jacket (no matter how hot it is) and ankle length pants are required for all drivers to race. Also, gloves, and proper racing sneakers.

7. No one but track officials can approach the flag stand. (That's another lie)

8. No one other than track officials or emergency personnel are allowed to enter the actual track. (Besides racers, of course.

9. Track officials can eliminate a class if there are only four or so karts signed up. (Usually they just combine two classes.)

10. Drivers must attend driver's meetings, or will not be permitted to race.

11.Rough racing will not be tolerated. (This track has three or four favorites, so this rule is an exception to them.)

12. Any drivers involved in three cautions will be given the black flag. The word "involved" will be determined by track officials. (Exception: Kids, and new drivers.)

13. If a kart has no choice but to spin out to avoid a serious accident, the driver that spun out will not be sent to the rear.

14. If your kart is giving you any problems on the grid before you enter the track, you have five laps to fix your problem, or your out.

15. All starts and restarts will take place on TURN FOUR. There is a chalk line drawn to signify the start and finish line.

16. If you jump a start, you will receive a warning the first time, and stay in your spot in line. Second warning, you'll move to the rear of the field. Third, you're out.

17. Heat positions are determined by pulling a number. You pull number one, you start first in the heat. Then your heat finish is where you start in the feature. You get third in the heat, that's where you start in the feature.

18. During a red flag, two crew members per cart will be allowed to enter the track. There will be no tools permitted on the track at this time. No air pressure changes, or anything. If there is a safety issue, you must show one of the track officials, and they will assist you in fixing it.

19. FLAG RULES: (yes, they seriously have what the flags mean in their rule book).
  • Green flag- The race has begun, or restarted.
  • Yellow flag- There is a caution. Slow down, and be prepared to stop. NO PASSING.
  • Red flag- Stop immediately. Turn off carts at this time.
  • Blue flag- You're about to be lapped.
  • Black flag- Penalty for driver. Driver must leave track.
  • White flag- One lap to go!
  • Checkered- The race is over.
20. All karts are subject to pre tech.

21. All numbers of the go kart must be clearly visible to track officials, and carts behind you.

22. All karts must weigh in on the scales after the heat, and feature races. Weighing in light or failing to weigh at all will cause you to start last during the feature, and weighing in light or failing to weigh after the feature will result in disqualification and no points for the entire events.

23. All engines must be shut off prior to crossing the scales.

24. Mufflers are mandatory.

25. Burris tires only.

26. All drivers must register to race by 6:45 P.M.

27. Driver's meeting at 7:00 P.M. if required.

28. Hot laps will start at 7:00 P.M. or immediately after driver's meeting.

29. All heat races will be ten laps, and all features will be 15 laps on a normal race night.

AND FINALLY!!!

30. All drivers must pay a $5.00 membership fee.

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

In the pits!

Being in the pits at the go-kart races is one of my favorite places in the world to be. My boyfriend races go-karts (that's him in the picture), and I always go with him. It's awesome to see how they work on the karts, and what they have to do, and how many things can go wrong. Even when Stephen (boyfriend) wins, there's still always something wrong that could have been better. Stephen wins-- a lot. A lot of people don't like him because he wins so much, and they say he's cheating even though he passes Tech every single time. Tech is when they tear apart your motor, and check your fuel to make sure you're not cheating. If another driver has a problem with Stephen, and they want to put him through Tech, they have to pay $150. The tracks always make good money from people who Tech Stephen. I wash and prep tires. I haven't missed one of his races in over two years. He calls me his good luck charm, :). I love being in the pits at the races, especially when there are fights. It's exciting, unless it involves me. I've gotten myself into enough trouble at the races. When people sit behind me on the bleachers when I'm watching Stephen and they start talking about how "That number 8 car cheats!" I'm definitely going to say something. So it's just really exciting being in the pits!

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Jr. bored at Taledega?

This past Sunday, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series raced at Taledega Speedway in Alabama. Dale Jr. and Jimmy Johnson paired up the whole time. They were attached like a little girl to a puppy dog. Coming out of pit road, Dale would wait for Jimmy, and Jimmy would wait for Dale. Last year at Taledega, Jr. pushed Jimmy the whole way to the front for the win. Johnson and Earnhardt rode the back of the pack on Sunday for almost the whole race. At one point, an interviewer came over Dale's headset and was talking to him, and Dale said, "We're just riding the breeze for right now, when we feel like racing, we race, then we back off again." Then Jimmy and Jr. were talking with 22 laps to go, and Jr said "Do you wanna go show these guys how to race, or should we stay back and let them crash?" They were so bored with it, and it was kind of funny to hear them talk like that. Dale Earnhardt Jr. has been having a lot of problems the last couple years, but he is slowly getting better. He's had a lot of top 15 wins, and that's how he's in the Chase for the points. Jr is one of my personal favorites, because I loved his dad. After his dad passed away, I, along with many other Dale Earnhardt fans, went right to Dale Jr. because we were hoping he could continue the legacy and be "The Intimidator Jr.", but we were let down, big time. Oh well. He's a good racer, and he doesn't race dirty, which is most important to me.

Friday, October 21, 2011

Bad Chad Layton

I don't like him. At all. But, a lot of people do like him, so I figured I'd do his profile.

Chad Layton was born on October 14th, 2011. He has a loving (beautiful) wife named Schenley, and two adorable children, Chad and Tregan. He doesn't have any occupation other than racing (He doesn't really need to have another occupation because he "wins" everything. BUT ANYWAY!) He was born into racing. Chad's father was an SCCA National Champion G Production road racer. He spent his entire youth around race cars and fell in love with it. His brother Jimmy also races. Jimmy, however, got into the 358 Sprints; Chad races 410 Sprints. Chad did start out racing 358 Sprints, where he has 55 wins at nine different tracks, and he holds the all-time win record in PA for the 358's. Now that Layton's gotten into 410's, he has a point championship at Selinsgrove Speedway, he's raced with the All Stars, and the World of Outlaws, and has raced at the Knoxville Speedway Nationals in Iowa. Chad WAS one of the top 410 Sprint Driver's in PA, but he had a bad 2011 season, having only one win.

Thursday, October 20, 2011

"No, he didn't slam into you. He didn't bump you. He didn't nudge you. He rubbed you. And rubbin', son, is racin'." -Days of Thunder
[This is a quote Dale Jr. lives by.]

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Is it over for Johnson?

Jimmy Johnson was four points away from winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship. Going into the Bank of America 500, Jimmy was right where he needed to be. On lap 317 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway, Jimmy seemed to be getting a little frustrated and irritated with Ryan Newman. When Johnson tried to get aggressive with Newman, he ended up putting himself into a wall. After the wreck, Jimmy went from third to eighth in points, and now he's 35 points behind the leader, Carl Edwards. However, Talledega, Martinsville, and Pheonix are some of Jimmy's best tracks, and those are some of the upcoming races. But, you pretty much have to race a perfect race to gain 35 points. If Johnson were to win, this would be his sixth consecutive championship. I think his chances are over. I hope so, anyway. I don't like Jimmy at all. If he wouldn't be such a hot head and a dirty racer, he wouldn't have gotten himself into the position that he's in. He got himself into this by trying to take out Ryan Newman.

So, good for you, Jimmy. Good for you, :).

Monday, October 17, 2011

RIP, Dan

Getting behind the wheel of a race car is dangerous, but the drivers make it look so easy that we forget that sometimes. IndyCar Racing lost one of its most popular drivers, Dan Wheldon, on Sunday, Oct. 16, in a fiery crash in Las Vegas. The last race of the year would be the last race, period, for Dan. Imagine:  It's lap 11. The green flag dropped just seven minutes ago. You're on the outside of turn two, and there's a huge wreck in front of you-- 14 other cars, to be exact, and you end up being the 15th car when you can't steer away from them. You clip another car. You fly through the air. And your car catches on fire.   I don't know about you, but that gives me chills just thinking about it. An emergency helicopter immediately transported him to the hospital. Then the announcement came: "IndyCar is very sad to announce that Dan Wheldon has passed away from unsurvivable injuries. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family today. IndyCar, its drivers and owners, have decided to end the race." The 200-lap race was over after just 11 laps.
After the announcement, the drivers took a five-lap salute around the track, while everyone in the stands stood and cheered. And sobbed. IndyCar hasn't had a fatality since 2006 when Paul Dana died in a morning warm-up race. Wheldon won that race later that day.... Creepy?

He was just 33 years old, and is leaving a wife, a two-year-old son, and a seven-month-old son behind.
"I'll tell you, I've never seen anything like it. The debris! We all had to drive through the lap later, it looked like a war scene from Terminator or something. I mean, there were just pieces of metal and cars on fire in the middle of the track with no car attached to it and just debris everywhere. So it was scary, and your first thoughts are hoping that no one is hurt because there's just stuff everywhere. Crazy." -Ryan Briscoe

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Get well soon, Lance!

Lance DeWease, number 30c, whose motto is, "Trust your instincts" either didn't trust his instinct, or didn't have a very good instinct on Friday night at Lincoln Speedway. When the axle of his Sprint car broke while exiting turn two, the car flipped and landed hard on its LR Framerail. The compression broke two vertebrae in his neck. Lance had a successful surgery on Monday, and the doctors got everything pieced back together smoothly. DeWease will remain in the York Hospital for a couple more days, then he has a three- to six-month recovery. In six months, it will be April, and racing starts at the end of March, so he's only going to miss two races. Filling in for LD in the 30c car on Friday night will be Brian Leppo. Lance is one of my personal favorite drivers, and I was heartbroken to find out about this. So, get well soon, Lance!
"Make a dream a reality, even if you have to sacrifice!" -Lance DeWease

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Lucky #7!

Danica Sue Patrick is an Indy Car driver. She's the first girl ever to do this, and she is my role model. Along with being a very talented racer, she has become a huge pop icon. She graced the covers of Sports Illistrated, SHAPE, and the ESPN magazine. Patrick has guest starred on many TV shows, and she is the star of the "Godaddy.com" commercials. Danica's most memorable achievement is leading the Indy 500, which is a huge race for the Indy drivers. If Danica wasn't racing, she'd be doing fashion. That's what I love about her. She can get dirty and race, then go home and design beautiful clothes.

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Rine gets the memorial win!

There are many memorial races at Port Royal Speedway. However, Butch Renninger's has to be the biggest. All the drivers want to win this race because it's important. It's important because Butch won many races, and he had a huge impact on the Port Royal race track. One of my favorite quotes of all time came out of Renninger's mouth: "If we don't win the race, we win the fight." Butch was a fighter. If he didn't win, something was wrong, and he beat up whoever screwed him over. Then, on May 1st, 2004, Butch had just won his Enduro race. Who would have thought it would be his last win-- ever? He was sitting in Victory Lane, preparing to give his thank you speech. Renninger had told his daughter to go get him a beer, and when she came back, he was no longer living. He had had a heart attack, and everyone else's heart broke. There has been a Butch Renninger Memorial Race every year since this tragedy happened. This year, Jeff Rine worked for the win for Butch, and he got it. Rine, 33, drives the black and orange 2J Late Model. Jeff is the owner of Wing Dynamics, which is where all the best Sprint Car drivers get their wings for the cars. Rine has had 11 wins in 2011, including the Butch Renninger Memorial.

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

"The Man from Mifflintown!"

Career stats: Keith Kauffman is 61years old, and has been racing for 41 of those years. In the four decades of his racing career, he has earned 307 wins and eighteen track championships. Of those 307 wins, 128 were logged at Port Royal Speedway, 51 at Williamsgrove Speedway, 25 were with the All-Star racers, five were at Lincoln Speedway, and many more! Kauffman has won in 12 different states and twice in Australia! According to his website (http://www.keithkauffman.com/), he has won too many awards to even mention-- a great driver obviously. Kauffman has raced Late Models, Champ Cars, Go-Karts and is now in the 410 Sprint division. Keith doesn't have a favorite track. He says he loves all of them. He is so well known, that even Jeff Gordon (professional driver from NASCAR) says Keith is HIS hero!

Personal Profile(from his website): "The Man from Mifflintown" was born on June 9th, 1950, in Mifflintown, PA. He and his wife Kathy have two children, Becky and Chase. Aside from racing, he has a full time job! Who would have thought he has the time?! He's a full-time equipment operator for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Keith has been doing this job for nine years. In Kauffman's free time, he enjoys hunting, yard work, and deep sea fishing with Barry Camp, who is also a driver for the USAC division. Kauffman loves steak and lobster, and his favorite drink is coffee. When Keith is cruising down the road in his car, going the speed limit, of course, he's more than likely listening to oldies music, and when he's sitting at home, hanging out with his family, he's probably watching something with John Wayne, James Bond, or Clint Eastwood.