Most, if not all, of the females racing in the pro classes have college degrees; communications, marketing, business. And most of them started in juniors and advanced through the classes. College and racing at a professional level go hand in hand. Drag racing is great because the girls are so marketable and they get noticed. And I can tell you, they can be the toughest racers. She can be whatever she wants and I don't think one has to be sacrificed for the other. Racing during the summer, interning with pro teams, lots of opportunities. Super Comp is great if she likes dragsters. Stock or Super Gas for door cars. You need to drag her to a national event and have her meet people like Leah Pritchett, Erica Enders, the Force girls. Even Randi Lyn Shipp, Brenda Grubbs, Vonnie Mills, and on and on.

So how would I make that happen? I mean, I just don't have the connections to hook her up to intern for a race team. Do you run Divisional races and hope to get noticed? She has met some of the professional racers at Etown Summer nats, collected signatures and such. We just don't know how move in that direction...it's not like one can pick up a book and read how to apply for a position as a professional driver and career path...

Intern with a team as part of a college education. Running divisional and national events and doing well will get her noticed. Drag racing is a pretty tight community. Talking to people like Leah and Erica, and females in other positions with some of the teams, even in passing, establishes connections. Introduce herself, not as a fan but as a participant, tell them what she intends to do, ask for advice. Being involved in the sport for a long period of time and learning everything that comes from being involved, will be valuable experience.