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Chris's Story
MY STORY A Senior Sprint Car Driver…..
Sometimes Life can be that dream. My name is Chris Meredith I drive the #66 Sprint Car, This is my story. I am a native of Southern California. I grew up in the west San Fernando Valley. I am and have always been a motor head. Growing up here we all have hobbies. Like most guys mine typically were motorcycles, cars and electronics. Building my own motors and always doing all my own maintenance. I had all the cars; Ford Mustangs(2), Chevy Nova, VW and even an MG. Motorcycles too both street and dirt.
I went to the races on Saturdays for something “to do”. Back then. I mostly went to Saugus Speedway and Ascot Park. Those places were always full of action. I rode dirt bikes and ATV’s in the desert and even at “Indian Dunes”. So when I met my wife back in the middle ‘80s we were always doing something on our weekends. We would go do anything together. I was lucky that I found someone that had the similar interests that I had. We would go watch super cross, flat track bikes, truck pulls, Nascar, drag racing you name it, if it had a motor we were there. Back then Nascar was exploding on TV and we started watching and became big fans. We went to Sears Point and Phoenix Raceways and even the last race at the Infamous Riverside Raceway.
So life rolled on, we got older settled down had a son and slid into the daily routines that seem to envelope all of us. My Work and family seemed to swallow up the time. Like most of us that have small children we seemed to go out less and I got my motorsports fix on TV. Hauling the little guy around is not so easy. As the local tracks here in SoCal that I went to went by the wayside, what a loss. We still went to some races but it was much less than we used to. As Nascar started to become this big over advertised sport revolving around big money changed I had become less of a fan as the action that hooked me had seemed to go away. The driving part of nascar racing is not the same. I still watch it on tv but it has now turned into “NapCar”.
So a few years ago we ended up going out to Ventura Raceway and we found some of that action that seemed to be missing the past few years. There’s nothing like a good dirt track race. Still as race fans we started going more to our local Short tracks; Ventura, Irwindale, Perris, Santa Maria and Victorville are the norm now. It was good to get out of the house on Saturdays for a racing fix as TV wasn’t cutting it.
So here we were midlife with my wife Sheri and son, Matthew one Saturday night enjoying racing at the beach at Ventura raceway, there’s nothing like it. The summer nights at the beach can’t be beat. So Sheri asks me what do you want for your birthday? As it was just around the corner. Being the motor head I am I always wanted to drive a real race car and having many dirt toys over the years driving a sprint car “Slideways” looked like fun. Like many fans I sat there in the stands and always said “I can do that”. So looking at the race program I saw the ad for the Kruseman School that runs here at Ventura Raceway. We always see the school Sprint cars in the field. So I say what about this? Sprint Car, do you think I will fit? I am a tall guy, maybe, she says. So I make the point “What if I like it?”…. Sooo She called them and the next week I sat in a couple of his cars and found one I fit in, not the first one…here we go boy it was tight .
So I did the Kruseman school. So I got the bug when I finally got on the pedal and got the car to turn. The sprint car is an animal, lots of motor, lots of tire, light car, right on! Ventura Raceway supports Senior classes for many of its racing divisions. 45 and over is the rule and the cars are the same as the Pro class. The seniors don’t seem to wreck as much as the Pros do. They mostly own their cars, so they leave a little more room. So my family agrees to let me give it a try. So look for a car. We find one and work out a deal. It’s well used but the motor is fresh and the owner agrees to help mentor me. What luck! These cars are so different than anything else out there. Yea the motor is a Chevy kind of, only the block. So we put out the $$ buy the Car, Truck, Trailer, and Quad as the old ford beater truck of mine wont cut it. LETS GO RACIN’ and we're off. Boy this wasn’t cheap.
Well the learning curve, it has been tough. Driving a Sprint Car is not like any other vehichle. I field this beast and tune it myself with support from my family and close friends. Yes it is a lot of work but worth it. People ask me what I raced before, I say nothing. They respond with “And You Get In that?” I am still getting better and working at it. Getting that seat time is the most fun I have ever had. My family now comes to most of my races and I never expected that. And I get to race against some of my old idols I watched years ago too. Yea I may race as a senior but my heart says 20. It could be a dream, but it’s better than that. I can say never give up on that dream. I work hard with reasonable goals and maybe with a little luck……Come watch us RACE, you might have an enjoyable evening as there is nothing like it. Asphalt is for getting there, DIRT is for racing!
