Chad SimpsonSimpson is a Late Model driver who, at age 27, has driven just about everything. He and his brother Chris, who also races, were brought up on an eastern Iowa farm, not far from West Liberty Raceway.
As kids, their dad, Ron Simpson, provided ATVs for the boys to ride around the farm. "We would run them things 'til they ran out of gas," Chad says.
Later, their stepdad, Kevin Trca, bought each one a kart. That eventually led to kart racing all across the United States, from 1993 to 2000.
Chad Simpson, who lives in Mt. Vernon, Iowa, and is the married father of a new baby daughter, says he and his brother bought a Pro Stock at the end of the 2000 racing season. They shared driving duties for a short time and then bought a second car.
The brothers ran Pro Stocks through 2003, dominating the division at West Liberty that year. They then moved to Late Models in 2004.
Chad, the purchasing manager at Five Star Shop Service, is a regular Late Model winner. In 2005, he won the Yankee Dirt Track Classic and a special event at Princeton, Illinois. He was Second in points at West Liberty and Fourth in points in World Dirt Racing League events, where he scored Rookie of the Year honors.
He says he races because "it's fun and I just love to do it."
West Liberty is his home track, but he races at Farley and Dubuque, too. In addition, he's running the entire WDRL circuit this year. Simpson shares the owner duties with Bud and Denise Brinkman.
In 2005, Hagen was national...
In 2005, Hagen was national Rookie of the Year in USAC Sprint Cars and Midgets. The 20-year-old is fast on both dirt and asphalt.
Simpson wants to go as far as he can in racing. "In the long run, if I could do this professionally, I'd love to do it," he says. "But you've got to take this one step at a time and see what happens."-Phil Roberts
Michael ColegroveArizona is not often thought of as a mecca for aspiring race car drivers. But in the past 10 years or so, the state has nurtured what seems like a preponderance of talent blooming in the desert. Some examples of Arizona's previous bloomers are the IRL's Buddy Rice and NASCAR's J.J. Yeley.
In the open-wheel ranks, Colegrove is doing just that-blooming in the desert. So far his accomplishments read like a lifelong achievement list at a driver's retirement roast: multiple track championships, championships in karts and Mini-Sprints, Rookie of the Year in Mini-Sprints, and 114 feature wins.
This kid has his act together-at the ripe old age of 16. This season, he drives Elis Racecars' house car, racing 360 Sprints at Manzanita Speedway.
Colegrove is another example of a clean-cut, well-mannered kid who found his way into racing. He is not only well mannered off the track, but he is also well mannered on the track, rarely, if ever, displaying any temper or threatening moves toward other competitors. He still wins with great regularity and wins without crashing the cars around him to get to the front. No bump and run-just clean, talented driving. He drives with not only his right foot, but he also uses his head to get to the front and bring the car home a winner.
The expectation is that some Sunday afternoon, in the very near future, we will see this young man on TV talking to a reporter after a big race about another win or a Top-5 finish. In most circumstances I am not a gambling man, but in Michael's case, it is like betting with the house.-John Hill
Ben SeitzWith over 30 years of winning races, legendary short tracker Nokie Fornoro can recognize talent. "The kid's got what it takes," says Fornoro. "All he needs is the right break and he could go straight to the top."
Fornoro is talking about the 26-year-old Seitz, the two-time defending NEMA (New England Midget Association) Champion.
Seitz (pronounced "sights") started racing go karts in 1993 and had almost immediate success at tracks such as Flemington and Mahoning Valley Speedways. After two years, he moved up to Legends Cars, where he often competed against Massachusetts driver/owner Peter Valeri.
Impressed with Seitz, Valeri hired him to drive, and the pair won the New England Legends championship. The next step was NEMA. They struggled at first in sub-par equipment, and then things turned around.
In his four years in NEMA, Seitz has compiled 10 wins and two championships. For 2006, his sights are set on defending his NEMA championship. Even so, he's not content to just stay in NEMA. "I would love to move up to the national Sprint Cars and Midgets," he says, "then maybe get a Truck ride or a Busch deal."
Keep your sights on Seitz, then thank Nokie for pointing him out.-R.F.