Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, July 5, 1995 TAG: 9507050005
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: STACY JONES STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
She's a typical 12-year-old girl, except for one thing: In her spare time, she drives a drag racer.
"She likes anything that moves," said her father, Danny Carter. "She just likes to go."
Or as Raeann said, ``I ride anything with four legs, and I drive anything with four wheels.''
That's serious business, coming from a girl who has had a horse, a go-cart and a motorcycle - not to mention the dragster - in her short life.
Slight of frame - she's under 5 feet tall and weighs no more than 80 pounds - and usually bespectacled, Raeann looks more like a bookworm than a thrill seeker. In reality the Roanoke County girl is both, with an unyielding thread of feminism woven throughout.
She named her car ``Fast, Fun and Female.''
``She's not afraid to drive,'' said Carter, who built his daughter's purple, teal and hot-pink dragster with the help of friends. ``When she gets in there, she's serious. The laughing stops.''
A competing member of the National Hot Rod Association's Jr. Drag Racing League since last fall, Raeann is in training for her first official NHRA-sanctioned race.
She is taking it slow for now, but feels she is nearly ready. ``I need to work on my reaction time,'' said Raeann, speaking from under her white, confetti-coated helmet.
``Ninety percent of races are won or lost in the first second,'' said Carter, though he doesn't like his daughter to dwell on losing - or winning.
``She's just getting started,'' he said. ``This is just a hobby. We don't want to pressure her. We need to keep it fun.''
``When she tells me she's ready, we'll go, but not before,'' explained Carter, who said Raeann's drag racing is as much a hobby for him as for her.
That approach is just fine with Raeann. She said her interest in racing was sparked by the drag racer her dad used to own, but it was the way her busy family rallied around her new activity that sealed her enthusiasm.
``I thought that this is a way to get the family together,'' Raeann said.
``And to get driving experience,'' she added as an afterthought.
Raeann's driving machine is a head-turner; "Exorcist"-like neck twists take place whenever the race car appears in public. ``One man turned his head completely around,'' laughed Raeann. ``I thought he was going to cause a wreck.''
``I like the attention,'' she whispered.
At the Natural Bridge Speedway where she practices, attention is all the Northside Middle School seventh-grader gets. She's not hard to find; just look for the crowd of little boys who follow her around constantly. To them, she's cooler than POGS.
``They ask to be in the pit crew,'' Raeann said. ``They just like to be near the car. They think it's neat.''
Often, Carter says, when Raeann is away from the racer and he is standing guard, boys will stroll over, look at the car and say, ``Those are girl colors.''
"I tell them `a girl drives it.' Usually, they just stand there with their mouth open, speechless.''
``They never even bother to look at the name of the car,'' huffed Raeann, who said she doesn't mind being the only girl at the track. ``It shows them that girls aren't helpless.''
Her car is a near replica of those that professional dragsters drive - except for the ``Daddy's Pride'' etching on the hood - just scaled down and slower. According to NHRA guidelines, Jr. Dragsters must adhere to the same rules and regulations as their adult counterparts. Raeann's car has a roll cage, removable steering wheel, and arm restraints. She also must wear a neck collar and abrasion-resistant clothing when driving.
Raeann's dragster is fitted with a 5 horsepower Briggs and Stratton engine - basically, a lawn mower motor. It can go as fast as 42 mph, though that speed is beginning to bring a yawn to her face.
``She's getting bored with it,'' said her dad, standing in the garage of his Salem auto shop. ``She thinks the car is slowing down.''
While Raeann is something of an anomaly here in Roanoke, the NHRA's Jr. Drag Racing League is quickly spreading across the country, attracting both boys and girls. National NHRA spokesperson Angie Brown estimated that 35 percent of Jr. League participants are girls. Of the eight national Jr. League Champions, three are girls.
Begun in 1992 as a way to make racing more of a family event, the Jr. League is open to kids ages 8-17. It has 6,000 members, of which 2,800 race competitively. ``Kind of like Little League is to baseball,'' said John Blickenstaff, NHRA Jr. League coordinator. ``It's the same type of relationship. Youngsters have an interest, and adults are willing to promote and honor that interest.''
The Jr. League is more than a network of tracks and winning times; it also is a part of the NHRA's Vision 2000 and Beyond educational program. The program has two components - Jr. Drag Racing and Youth Educational Services.
YES sponsors career fairs, a day at the track and other field trips and workshops. The emphasis is on creating a well-rounded individual.
``The response has been overwhelming and exciting,'' Blickenstaff said. ``We want kids to obtain balance in their life.''
``We don't want them to feel drag racing is the only sport,'' he said. ``We want to make sure they still play hopscotch and jacks.''
Another goal of Vision 2000 is to make kids understand the value of education. That's one reason the NHRA Jr. League doesn't offer cash prizes to winners. Instead, the racing organization supplies scholarships, ranging from $200-$5,000, that are placed in trust until the youngsters are ready for college.
``Like other sports, racing is a highly motivational activity,'' Blickenstaff said. "We want to use that energy as an incentive toward education.''
Brown said awarding scholarships rather than cash ``shows kids the importance of what they are doing.''
``Life is not all fun and games, not just racing,'' she said. ``Education is still important.''
The scholarships are presented annually during the Jr. Drag Racing League National Championships at Indianapolis Raceway Park. ``It's like the Daytona 500 for Jr. Dragsters,'' said Carter.
Last year the four-day race within a carnival drew 512 racers and 3,000 spectators from the United States, Puerto Rico and Canada, according to Brown.
Membership in the Jr. League is $10 for non-racers and $25 for competitors. The fee brings a bi-monthly magazine, posters, decals, a newsletter, car show discounts and invitations to track events.
For kids who want to actually race cars, there is the added cost of the dragster. Brown said interested parties can buy a car ``ready to roll'' for about $3,000 or they can build one themselves, for around $1,700. That's what Raeann's father did, though he admitted it ``cost a little more because I added a lot of extra.''
``A lot of tracks rent cars,'' said Brown. Another alternative is to buy a car from the emerging market in used youth dragsters.
Despite the sport's popularity, Roanoke track owners have yet to show a willingness to offer it. There are 130 NHRA tracks nationwide, but only two are in Virginia: Virginia Motors Sport Park in Dinwiddie and Sumerduck in Culpeper. ``Roanoke is about two years behind the rest of the country,'' Carter said. ``Southwest Virginia is the end of the world, the last stop for everything.''
The Natural Bridge Speedway in Natural Bridge is referred to as ``an outlaw track,'' said Carter. It has races and serves as a practice track for Raeann and others, but it is not sanctioned by the NHRA.
Blickenstaff said he thought more track owners would participate if they knew how much money it brings in. He estimated that each NHRA event ``brings in $2 million to that area.''
``It's a fairly simple process to become an NHRA-sanctioned track, and relatively inexpensive,'' Blickenstaff said. ``Some track owners are enthusiastic, some say they don't want to mess around with little kids.''
Carter said he hopes someone takes the initiative to bring Jr. Drag Racing to Roanoke, because he thinks it is a great family sport.
``A hobby shouldn't be where you spend all your money,'' he said. ``With very little maintenance and 30 cents of gas in the tank, you're ready to go.''
Pat Carter, Raeann's mother, is the official family statistician. She has a notebook full of race information - reaction time, weather conditions, speed. Besides the pure enjoyment her daughter gets from dragging, Pat has seen other positive effects.
``It has taught her a little more responsibility and a little more patience,'' she said. ``It's been good for her.''
Raeann also has something many teen-agers don't - a respect for the power of cars.
``Most people just think about hitting the gas pedal and steering,'' Raeann offered as she sat in her dragster staring at the ``Think'' sticker in the center of the steering wheel, which resembles a steel butterfly. ``But there's more to it than that.''
Seconds later, her dad brought out a new modified motor that will enable Raeann to increase her speed about 10 mph. She jumped out of the car and threw off her helmet.
``Can I see it?! Can I see it?'' she screamed. ``Let me touch it!''
No. Not your typical 12-year-old girl.
by CNB