Posted on August 9, 2007

The Grass Roots - Semi-Pro Legend Car Driver Nicki Evans

by Chris Corter About The Author	Email   Print

Texas Motor Speedway (August 3, 2007) – Semi-Pro Legend Car driver Nicki Evans of Rockwall, Texas arrives at the track for the first day of a two day racing weekend. During the summer, Nicki races the Summer Stampede at Lil Texas at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas. The Summer Stampede consists of a 10 race schedule starting in June and ending in August where Nicki will race every other weekend on Friday and Saturday night; a grueling schedule for even the most dedicated racer, but take into consideration that Nicki Evans is all of 15 years old and on summer break from school. I caught up with Nicki and had the opportunity to talk to her about how she prepares herself for all the time she spends at the track.

CC: Is this normal, to race on both Friday and Saturday night during your season?

NE: Just for the summer races, because it is the Summer Stampede so it’s our big thing down here (Fort Worth, Texas), so we get to race two nights. But during the normal part of the season we get to race just one night.

CC: How do you prepare yourself for the Friday night race?

NE: During the day I am just usually on the computer, or talking to my friends because when I get to the track I am not allowed to have my cell phone.

CC: You just hang out and not think about racing until you get to the track?

NE: Yes

CC: After you sign in at the track, what do you think about before your first practice lap?

NE: I am thinking about how the car is going to handle. Then I go up into the stands to see if the track is the same from the last race. Since I get to choose when I take practice laps I usually watch the other racers out on the track before I go out.

CC: How long do you have to wait around from practice until your first heat race?

NE: About 30 or 40 minutes. In that time I will watch the other drivers again and then see if my car is alright then I have to go to the drivers meeting. There is not a lot of time to really do anything.

CC: What is the heat race for and how many do you have to race before your feature race?

NE: The heat races are our qualifiers to see where we start in the feature and each racing class will have one heat race each. Semi-Pro usually gets one 10 lap race depending on how many cars are there. There could be more than one heat race if they have to break it up because of all the cars.

CC: How long do you have to wait until your feature race, after the heat race is done?

NE: That depends. If oil gets dropped on the track, it will be a while, but if everything goes good and there are not that many cautions from the other races than maybe an hour to an hour and a half.

CC: Now what do you do? Are you allowed to go anywhere you want in the track?

NE: I usually hang out with other people at the track, and just talk and watch other races. So I usually am watching other races. I can go anywhere in the pit area and pretty much do anything as long as it is not bad

CC: Bad? Bad meaning what?

NE: (Laughing) it depends, as long as I don’t get into trouble or anything. As long as everyone knows where I am going and what I am going to do I can go any where.

CC: When do you start to feel the butterflies before your race?

NE: I get anxious when I am getting into my car. I want to go out there and race! Especially when I am sitting in the starting gate watching the current race from my position strapped in the car, I get really anxious.

CC: The butterflies never really go away then?

NE: (Laughing) No! Not until I come in the pit area after my feature, unless I have to go to tech to make sure everything is clear with my car.

CC: What time do you usually get out of the track and make it home after the race?

NE: We usually stay after the race and just hang out. It is like one big party after the race, if everyone does well (laughing) so we usually don’t get home until after midnight.

On Saturday Nicki gets to relax for most of the day and is back at the track before six pm to do it all over again. I asked Nicki what happens if she crashed her car on Friday, and how that affects her on Saturday. Nicki told me that she has a great support crew and that they work very hard to get her car fixed up in time. If not, then she may have to use a back up car which Nicki would rather not.

I then asked Nicki what she thinks about on Saturday. Does she go over what she may have done wrong on Friday night and think about what she can do different on Saturday? The response I got was that of a typical teenager. Nicki tries not to think about racing until she gets to the track. This shows a level of maturity beyond her young years. Nicki understands that she is still young and that she does have a life outside of her racing. But don’t let that lull you into a sense of comfort if you are a competitor on the track. Nicki is a fierce racer, and she is out there to win every time she gets strapped in. What I learned about Nicki Evans in the short time we spoke together is that she is completely modest about what she has done on the track. Nicki has been racing for only two years and has moved up very quickly in the class she races in.

Nicki started racing Karts in 2005 and won her first championship that same year in the Pure Stock Class at Kam Kartway in Fort Worth, Texas. In 2006 Nicki raced in the QRC Super Stock Series and placed second in points. Now racing in the Semi-Pro Legend Car series at Texas Motor Speedway, Nicki is ninth in points overall and twelfth in points for the Summer Stampede. Keep your eyes on this driver, because Nicki Evans is going places…fast.

You can contact Chris at btwapparel@sbcglobal.net

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