Late to Grid - Grassroots Racing

Send us Fan Mail It was great to have Marlon Sumlin on again .  He was first on with Jay Andrew in Season 1, Episode 7 . In this episode we talk about Marlon's B Spec racing, his new role at Rad Air in Wickliffe as their Motorsports Manager, and Marlon's 2022 plans which includes NASA Great Lakes, Grid Life, One Lap of America, and spotting in the Skip Barber series. Learn more: Contact...

Send us Fan Mail Betsy McIntyre is an active member of the Neohio Region of the SCCA and was introduced to motorsports by her friend, Tim Fulgham.  She attended an Autocross event, said looked fun, bought Tim's MINI Cooper and she was hooked. So what keeps Betsy coming back and getting even more involved in regional motorsports?  The fun and friends!  Plus, she likes being involved and helpin...

Send us Fan Mail If you want to get into motorsports - this is the episode to listen to!! Want to learn more about Time Trials events - this is the episode to listen to! So why listen to this episode?  My guest, Vinnie Taibi, does an awesome job of explaining the progression from volunteer to being an on track racer.   Plus he walks us through what Time Trials event looks like. Vinnie is the Socia...

Send us Fan Mail Jimmy Peters from Resolute Motorsports Club joins me on the latest edition of the Late To Grid podcast. It all started with a 1972 Chevy Nova  that was built for Autocrossing and track days.  Jimmy found a gap in track day offerings and wanted to create something that would fit everyone's schedule.  So now he's building a 500 acre motorsports venue! Lots of great insight...

Send us Fan Mail Like many of our guests Chris grew up in a motorsports family. Chris raced jet skis and has a funny Late To Grid story that he shares.  He made it to the Jet Ski World Finals in 1998! When he was done racing on water he found the SCCA and started racing RX-7s. In 2004 he started LMS-EFI and has been focused on engine management systems, data loggers, dashes, and complete vehicle w...

Send us Fan Mail Dave was our most listened to episode in our first season and he won races after being on the show.  Podcasts work folks!!   Learn more about Dave In Episode #9 Dave had a great 2021 racing in SRF.  2nd in Great Lake Division (SR3) 4th in a major at Mid-Ohio 4th at Grattan Wins at Nelson Ledges He also raced in AER in the Junk Player Special at Mid-Ohio. For 2022 Dave is planning...

Send us Fan Mail Karting is where it starts for many racers so it only makes sense that we have two guests on this episode that are heavily involved in karting in the midwest. Like many in our sport, family got them involved in motorsports.  At age six Dan started going to the Indy 500 and Eric's dad had a vintage car business and was dragged to Lernerville Speedway. Dan's worked in the...

Send us Fan Mail Can you believe that we have an Indy 500 winning race mechanic on the show?  Not only that though - he has an awesome background in motorsports which includes Penske's Indycar and IMSA programs, worked with Mario Andretti and Paul Newman, and graduated from the Jim Russell Racing School . Michael Ribas gives us some great advice, " Show up,  work hard, and have a good at...

Send us Fan Mail We catch up with Aaron Quine at his race shop and learn more about his racing and motorsports career.  Aaron's story is another great example of how networking, being a professional, and looking for opportunities can pay off. Like many of our guests, Aaron got the racing bug from his father who raced Corvettes and Aaron grew up at Mid-Ohio and Nelson Ledges.  In fact, his dad...

Send us Fan Mail If there's a lesson to be learned here it's, Say yes to any opportunity . As you'll listen Andrew Rains has had a busy career in motorsports and he's still a young man.  From working at a performance auto shop to flying on a private jet with a Grand Am team as a pit crew member, Andrew has built a foundation for solid career in our sport. While at Auburn Univer...

Send us Fan Mail David Kalb Jr is a young and upcoming professional race car driver out of Aurora, Ohio.  At age 4, David's love for racing sparked through playing with matchbox cars, and watching NASCAR with his uncle Tom. A year later, he would begin his racing career in a kid kart racing at Thompson Raceway Park. After Thompson, David started kart racing at Pittsburgh International and won...

Send us Fan Mail If you've been around motorsports for any length of time you know the fast rise in popularity  that endurance racing has seen.  It's one of the easiest ways to get into wheel to wheel racing - and it's a blast! We caught up with the Dana and Bill from the ChampCar Endurance Series to learn more about their series and the 2022 season. Plus, they have a podcast coming...

Send us Fan Mail In our first episode for season two we chat with Luca Mars.  As you'll read below, Luca is an accomplished racer and he is only a sophomore in high school! Connect with Luca on Instagram & Facebook . Luca talks about his recent announcement to race in the Michelin Pilot Challenge in 2022 and he's participating in the third edition of the HPD in the Acura GT3 for 2022...

Send us Fan Mail Aaron and I kept the recording rolling and talked about SCCA, racing and life. Thanks for your support during our first season of Late To Grid! Thanks for listening and taking an interest in growing grassroots racing.  The Late To Grid podcast shares the stories and inspiration that help listeners along their motorsports journey.  Find all episodes on the Atomic Autosports website...

Send us Fan Mail Aaron Johnson is an accomplished SCCA race car driver that has an awesome passion for our sport. While Arron's racing resume is impressive, what's more impressive is he's accomplished all of this while raising six children and relocating  domestically and internationally.  Plus, he's a budget minded racer that doesn't break the bank to go fast. In the earl...

Send us Fan Mail Bill was at PRI again and spent sometime catching up with industry insiders to learn about what's new in motorsports and racing. Links to who we caught up with: EBC Brakes Instagram Chillout Systems Instagram Chillout Systems Website NASA Instagram Drive NASA Website NASA Great Lakes Instagram NASA Great Lakes Website AIM Website AIM YouTube Hoosier Tire Website Hoosier Tire...

Send us Fan Mail Bill interviewed a few of the exhibitors at the 2021 SEMA show. Hawk Performance Brakes: Taylor Allen shares more information about Hawk and announces the new endurance racing brake pad. Hawk's Instagram EBC Brakes: Candice and Steve share more about EBC brakes.  We learn RP1 & RPX pads with floating discs and they tease us about a new release that will be announced at PR...

Send us Fan Mail We talk about Miatas with two Miata drivers, Jim Tramontano ( No Money Motorsports ) & Dave Peters ( HPDEjunkie ). Jim created No Money Motorsports - A site with the primary goal to get folks on track, as much as possible, by spending as little money as possible.  He started autocrossing in 2007, started track days by volunteering with NASA in 2012 and moved up the HPDE ranks...

Send us Fan Mail We sit down with Reed Kryder from Kryder Racing and boy did we learn a lot!  What a background! Reed's a former IMSA and SCCA driver who now coaches aspiring racers and owns Kyder Racing which provides car set up services, offers an arrive and drive program, and builds cars for customers. We talk about Reed getting his old GTU car back on track for a vintage race, Reed's...

Send us Fan Mail I grabbed a few of the competitors and the event coordinators to get a recap of the Neohio SCCA Time Attack event at Nelson Ledges Road Course on October 17, 2021. Thanks for listening and taking an interest in growing grassroots racing.  The Late To Grid podcast shares the stories and inspiration that help listeners along their motorsports journey.  Find all episodes on the Atomi...

Send us Fan Mail Coyote was on the cover of Sports Car Magazine ! He's a Honda guy who started with a street car, joined SCCA, sold lots of his possessions, found a truck & trailer for $2500 and went to Summit Point and got his license. He's a road racing driver in the SCCA Majors/ Super Tour/ Runoffs.  Sits on the Steel Cities Region Board of Directors- Outreach Committee.  Coyote i...

Send us Fan Mail What an advice filled episode! Gabe Gutierrez attended a Cleveland Grand Prix with his brother and was hooked on racing and knew he had to get behind the wheel.  Juan Pablo Montoya was influential to him as well.  His wife purchased him a Stock Car Experience and we was hooked (an he blames her to this day)! He started out doing lots of track days and he shares the story of leavin...

Send us Fan Mail Our first Road Rally episode set the bar high!  Greg Lester has been involved with SCCA Road Rallies since 1984 and is the regional guru when it comes to all things rally. Greg has been Neohio SCCA Rally Chairman for many years.  He has organized numerous SCCA Regional, Divisional and National rallies - most notably, the Johnny Appleseed Rally, and the Ohio Winter Rally (OWR).  He...

Send us Fan Mail We could have talked with Mike for hours!  Braking is such an important topic and Mike provides some great insights into what drivers and racers need to know about how to get great braking performance. Mike started racing in 1982 and raced in the Playboy Escort series, he has two class wins in the Longest Day at Nelson Ledges Road Course and won the Kryder Cup. Carbotech Brakes wa...

Send us Fan Mail Time Trials and Time Attack are hot topics these days so let's have another Time Trials racer on the show. In this episode we have Mike Kubiak who is a third generation Corvette racer who truly grew up at Nelson Ledges Road Course.  At 12 years old he'd hop on the track after a race weekend and drive a manual transmission Camaro at 30 MPH! Mike drives a 2003 Z06 in the S...