Women's Motorsports Network Podcast - Fuel Her Future Podcast

Send us Fan Mail

16-year old Adrianna Timmerman from Iowa joins me and shares how she got started in racing and where she hopes to go!

Support the show

FACEBOOK:

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/womensmotorsportsnetwork/

LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

TIKTOK: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

https://www.patreon.com/posts/womens-network-144773298

X: https://x.com/IWMANation

FACEBOOK Personal Page: https://www.facebook.com/melinda.ann.russell

Send us Fan Mail

See Blog for show notes.

Support the show

FACEBOOK:

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/womensmotorsportsnetwork/

LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

TIKTOK: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

https://www.patreon.com/posts/womens-network-144773298

X: https://x.com/IWMANation

FACEBOOK Personal Page: https://www.facebook.com/melinda.ann.russell

Send us Fan Mail

See show notes in Blog.

Support the show

FACEBOOK:

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/womensmotorsportsnetwork/

LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

TIKTOK: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

https://www.patreon.com/posts/womens-network-144773298

X: https://x.com/IWMANation

FACEBOOK Personal Page: https://www.facebook.com/melinda.ann.russell

Send us Fan Mail

January 17, 2022

Elana Scherr, Senior Editor for Car and Driver Magazine

Support the show

FACEBOOK:

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/womensmotorsportsnetwork/

LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

TIKTOK: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

https://www.patreon.com/posts/womens-network-144773298

X: https://x.com/IWMANation

FACEBOOK Personal Page: https://www.facebook.com/melinda.ann.russell

Send us Fan Mail

Podcast transcript available on Blog tab at www.iwmanation.com

Support the show

FACEBOOK:

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/womensmotorsportsnetwork/

LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

TIKTOK: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

https://www.patreon.com/posts/womens-network-144773298

X: https://x.com/IWMANation

FACEBOOK Personal Page: https://www.facebook.com/melinda.ann.russell

Send us Fan Mail

Racing Girls Rock Podcast with Judy Dominick

December 4, 2021

Hello, everyone.

This is Melinda Russell with Racing Girls Rock podcast. And it's my honor today to have Judy Dominic as my guest. I met Judy two or maybe three years ago. Now time flies, doesn't it, Judy? I met her at PRI in Indianapolis, and I reached out to her to see if we could have her as a guest on the podcast, because I know she's been involved in motorsports, and I want her to tell us how she got involved. But first we're going to learn a little bit about Judy, so please tell us a little bit about yourself. Whatever you're comfortable sharing, where you live, your family, pets, whatever you're comfortable with. And then we'll go from there.

JUDY: I currently live in Winston Salem, North Carolina. But I was born in Colorado and lived on a cattle ranch out in Eastern Colorado when I grew up. Then I've lived all over the country ever since. Indianapolis, Kansas City. I can't even remember where else? New Mexico, whatever. And the reason truthfully, my grandfather was a rodeo rider, and my dad was a race car driver. And so I grew up in the boys locker room no matter what I did. And I decided that I liked cars better than bulls. Bulls think they're smart cars don't.

So I started being with my dad and his racing, and then it just evolved. I took a few stops along the way to be a banker and to be a lobbyist. Then I owned a motorcycle dealership, and the racing started for real at that point when I bought the motorcycle dealership.

MELINDA: You've had a lot of fun over the years then I can tell.

JUDY: Probably too much, but that's okay.

MELINDA: And you can never have too much fun, I don't think…that's important. So, Judy, you started a little bit of your story, how you got involved in motorsports. So you owned a motorcycle dealership. So how did that lead then to you getting involved. I know you've been very involved in motorsports for a number of years. How does that go from owning a motorcycle dealership to getting involved in motorsports?

JUDY: Well, my motorcycle dealership allowed me access to some various kinds of motorsports in Colorado, world racing, sidetrack, motocross. And then I had some friends who owned a midget and a sprint car that I sponsored. And then a friend of mine named John Harmsen owned Jolly Rancher Candy. And I grew up with the Vandermere family because my dad raced against Johnny Vandermere up Pikes Peak and in different what they called big cars then, which are now champ cars. Well, champ dirt cars. And John Harmsen called me one day and he said, I have a driver I want you to meet and see if you think I should sponsor him. And I said, Why me? And he said, because you have good instincts. And I said, okay, so I drove down to Jolly Rancher. I was in Boulder, my dealership was in Boulder and Jolly Rancher was in Westminster, Colorado, and I walked in John's office, and there sat John Force… John Force, 1983; John Force, who hadn't washed his hair or put on a clean T-shirt or owned a decent pair of tennis shoes.

From there, I ended up being John's very first PR person. I'm very glad that it worked out well for Jolly Rancher. He won the Mile High Nationals that year, and they went on to sponsor him on the Western Tour. And he won two out of the four because that's when they went from Denver to Seattle to Portland to Sonoma. And then Mr. Harmsen was so impressed with that, he said, Well, what else can we do? And I said, USAC Midgets needs a title sponsor. So Jolly Rancher Candy became the title sponsor of USAC Midgets and my friends from Fort Collins with their midget, we all went to Turkey Night at Ascot and finished second. But I was the representative for Jolly Rancher and got to give away a ton of candy and found out that I really liked that. That w

Support the show

FACEBOOK:

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/womensmotorsportsnetwork/

LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

TIKTOK: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

https://www.patreon.com/posts/womens-network-144773298

X: https://x.com/IWMANation

FACEBOOK Personal Page: https://www.facebook.com/melinda.ann.russell

Send us Fan Mail

Hello, everyone.

This is Melinda Russell with Racing Girls Rock podcast. And my guests today are sisters Marie and Kayla Curtis. They were referred to me by another person that I've met through social media. That's how I meet most of these gals. And so I heard that these two girls had a really good summer, and I wanted to have them on because I love sharing the stories of young women in racing, and it's not just because they've been successful. They could have not been successful. I still just love telling their stories.

So we're going to start. We'll start with you. Marie, why don't you tell us a little bit about yourself your age, what you like to do besides racing and that kind of thing. And then, Kayla, when she's done, you can take your turn.

MARIE: Well, first off, my name is Marie Curtis. My parents Rose and Brian, and they helped me out a lot in my racing career. I used to rodeo before I did this, I competed on horses, and then I decided I wanted to go faster. So I got into the stock car racing. I actually had a boyfriend at the time when I was 18, that raced, and he let me race his car in the Pure Stock Division, which was three years ago and then ended up just kept going.

But I'm a fulltime college student. This is my last semester before I get a criminal law degree through Great Basin College, and I'm just about to turn 21 next week.

So that's the big birthday, isn't it? 21? Yeah.

MARIE: I'll be in Vegas, coincidentally, because I'll be racing the duel in the desert.

Oh, what a terrible place to turn 21.

MARIE: I don't see the big thing with Vegas because I've lived here in Nevada, so I've been there.

I've been to Vegas a few times, and honestly, I don't see the big thing either. I'm not a gambler, really. And there's a lot of other places I'd go before I went back to Vegas. But anyway, so, Kayla, let's hear about you.

KAYLA: My name is Kayla Curtis. I'm 18 years old. I just got tired of watching my sister race and decided to do a car of my own. But before doing that, I used to do competitive shooting and rodeo as well as my sister went to Nationals a few times a few times for that. And since I stopped doing that just been rodeoing here and there and just racing when I'm not rodeoing.

Are you still in high school?

KAYLA: No, I'm graduated. I’m taking a gap year to learn more about diesel mechanics, which is the career I want to go into.

Well, that's a great career for a woman, honestly, because you'll be in the minority, and a lot of teams are going to want to hire you when you're ready. So good choice in the career. And as well, Marie, criminal justice sounds a little scary to me right now, but hopefully not.

MARIE: Well, that's just a fallback. I'm actually trying to build engines for race cars, so I'm getting going with that right now, but I just wanted a degree to have to fall back to, and that was a good degree. And I'm into the forensics side of things.

Okay, I think that would be the interesting side. The forensic side. Good plan for the future that you went to school and you have something to fall back on. Good job. So, girls, how did you get interested and involved in racing? So, Marie, we'll start with you. You're the oldest. We're going to start with her Kayla. Sorry. So how did you get interested in racing and then tell us about your summer? I know you've had a really good summer.

MARIE: So my dad used to tough truck and then my mom to demolition Derby. So I've always had the motorsports side of things. But I ended up getting into racing dirt track oval track because of a boyfriend and their family. They let me use their Chevele pure stock card. I raced that class for one year, an

Support the show

FACEBOOK:

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/womensmotorsportsnetwork/

LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

TIKTOK: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

https://www.patreon.com/posts/womens-network-144773298

X: https://x.com/IWMANation

FACEBOOK Personal Page: https://www.facebook.com/melinda.ann.russell

Send us Fan Mail

Podcast Published November 18, 2021

RACING GIRLS ROCK: Melinda Russell

GUEST: Pauline Dougald

Hello, everyone.

This is Melinda Russell with Racing Girls Rock podcast, and I am excited to have as my guest today, Pauline Dougald, we met, of course, through social media as I've met 99% of the ladies that have been on my podcast, but I'm excited to have her here today. We did a story about her in one of our recent magazines, so I do know a little bit about her story, but I'm still going to let her tell us in her own words. So, Pauline, first, I'd like you to just share a little bit about yourself where you live, what you do, just some things so we can get to know who you are and then we'll go from there.

Yeah, sure. Melinda sounds great. And it's great to be on this podcast where I am right now. I'm in Canada. I'm in Canada, Ontario, and I have been living here for a while. I originally moved from Russia back in 98, and I have been in Canada ever since. Right now, I live in a rural area and have a dog and a bunch of cats. So the racing background goes back 2007, and how I got to that was like a story in its own, because I was at that time still learning to drive on the streets of Toronto.

I was in a big city and it was so nerve wracking. And one day my work took us to a go car track as a corporate event. And that has changed everything for me. That is how my story begins. I discovered the way to learn how to drive, better to go carts. And then I discovered the racing track, which was used to be called Mossport here in Ontario. And I spent the whole summer there at the Bridgestone Racing Academy, and I was racing rain art at that time, and it was so much fun and it was experienced like no other.

If you are part of racing, you would know that it is. Once you got bitten by that bug, it doesn't go away. And so for me, I completely just quit. My job, went to the track, and I spent the whole summer there racing, hanging out with guys and just wrenching on cars. They learn mechanics. And as a result of that, I was able to be part of the racing teams at some point. And after that, I remained within racing. I didn't race myself, but I was working with a premiere for a number of series after that.

And then I took a break to raise a family. And I just recently kind of been coming back to the sport because I was missing it so much. It is something that is part of me, and I love it so much. And no matter how much time passes between the time, I'm always drawn back to that community.

So when you say you're going back to it, what is it that you're going to do now in the future.

Down the road here? Yes. So this past year, I was actually being able to go back to again supporting the drivers in our local racing series here. And that was great fun, because I love being within the community of the like-minded people. When you don't really need to be told what is going on, everybody knows what is happening the moment they show up at the track. And that is the thing I love the most. So this summer I have been a number of race tracks and materials supporting racing series, and in the future, it depends.

I will likely continue participating in that regard. And I'm discovering and exploring the ways in which I can still go back racing. That is still unclear for me, but somehow in the future, I tried to figure out a way to get back into that.

Yeah. Absolutely. Because once it's in your blood, it never leaves, does it?

Yeah. And I can share a little bit more of my discovery why it is such a way, because as I have been discovering the last couple of years, what we experience on the racetrack and race is actually being in the zone, and I can go into more deeply. But essentially, it's that state where

Support the show

FACEBOOK:

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/womensmotorsportsnetwork/

LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

TIKTOK: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

https://www.patreon.com/posts/womens-network-144773298

X: https://x.com/IWMANation

FACEBOOK Personal Page: https://www.facebook.com/melinda.ann.russell

Send us Fan Mail

Paige Verney founder of Maine’s Lost Speedways, and former race car driver, discusses her influence and role in keeping Maine’s racing motorsports history alive. 

Social Media Contact Info- Maine’s Lost Speedways https://www.facebook.com/Maines-Lost-Speedways-1492379141030722

Personal FB page https://www.facebook.com/paige.verney/

Support the show

FACEBOOK:

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/womensmotorsportsnetwork/

LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

TIKTOK: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

https://www.patreon.com/posts/womens-network-144773298

X: https://x.com/IWMANation

FACEBOOK Personal Page: https://www.facebook.com/melinda.ann.russell

Send us Fan Mail

SHOW NOTES 10-08-2021

Kelly Crandall

Kelly has been on the NASCAR beat full-time since 2013 and joined RACER as chief NASCAR writer in 2017. Her work has also appeared in NASCAR.com, the NASCAR Illustrated magazine, and NBC Sports. A corporate communications graduate from Central Penn College, Crandall is a two-time George Cunningham Writer of the Year recipient from the National Motorsports Press Association.

Kelly is the host of The Racing Writers Podcast, which can be found on all major podcast platforms. She has interviewed current drivers, crew members, and past members of NASCAR among others.

She grew up in central New Jersey and moved to the Charlotte area in 2014. She loves sports, especially racing, and reading. She has two dogs. She became interested in racing, watching with her father.

FIND Kelly Crandall:

FACEBOOK: Kelly Crandall INSTAGRAM: Kelly Crandall TWITTER: @KellyCrandall

www.RACER.com

RACING GIRLS ROCK PODCAST SHOW SPONSORS 

SendOutCards * My Race Pass * IllianaStock Car Radio * iRacing * JS Coaching * Smyle Media

Motorsport.TV * My Car My Rules * Racechick * Torq"d Clothing

INSPIRATION from Kelly: “You must experience the entire race; the sights, sounds and smells! You can only do that in person at a race.”

CHALLENGES: “Asking the tough questions.”

SHARE THE INSPIRATION

If you enjoyed this show, please go to Podbean and leave me a five-star review. That would help tremendously in getting the word out and help others to be inspired by Racing Girls Rock podcast!

WHERE TO FIND MELINDA & THE INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S

MOTORSPORTS ASSOCIATION

Support the show

FACEBOOK:

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/womensmotorsportsnetwork/

LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

TIKTOK: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

https://www.patreon.com/posts/womens-network-144773298

X: https://x.com/IWMANation

FACEBOOK Personal Page: https://www.facebook.com/melinda.ann.russell