By Jaime Polmateer
Two local teens have taken up an adrenaline inducing hobby and they say they’d like to bring it to Clearwater.
Gregory Sorenson and Brant Settle, 15 and 17 years-old respectively, have been getting behind the wheel for dirt track stock car racing, traveling to places like Merritt, Penticton and Williams Lake just to compete.
When it comes to what the two love about the sport, their answer is simple.
“Anything and everything,” Settle said.
“Me being 17 and Greg being 15, there’s always that (aspect) of going out on the road and this teaches us things like motor skills and what to do in a crisis.”
Sorenson runs a Honda Civic DX while Settle hits the track in an Acura Integra, both customized and reinforced specifically for the sport.
Though Settle and Sorenson said they’re the only youths in the area they know of who participate in stock car racing, they said they feel more kids would be into it if Clearwater had a dirt track of it’s own.
Settle’s father, Jim, said there used to be a dirt track in town, but was shut down years ago due to rising costs of the sport, making it unaffordable for many local enthusiasts.
Sorenson agreed, saying he thinks more youths would be interested in stock car racing if there was a local track, adding a lot of teens aren’t as quick as he and Settle to spend a day on the road to participate.
“We’re the only two, but there would be more if there was a track, for sure,” Sorenson said.
“The big thing is the traveling, not many people want to wake up at 8 a.m. and drive all the way to Merritt just to turn around in a couple hours and come back.”
Jim said racing started in Clearwater a couple decades ago, though in the beginning people were racing snowmobiles, until it progressed to cars in the late 1980s, which saw a good run until the early 2000s when the sport died out.
As mentioned, costs increased until it became unaffordable for most participants, but with his son and Sorenson getting into racing, and doing well, he has hope the sport can be revived again locally.
“The more kids we can get involved, the more we can hopefully get the interest back,” he said.
“The main thing is kids are out there, and like Brant said, learning driving skills and people skills; you’re dealing with people on the track, it’s an all around good thing—better than the kids sitting inside playing on the X Box.”
Sorenson currently sits in 6th place in the 2018 points standings at the Merrit Speedway, with Settle not far behind in 8th place.
One of the big ticket items in terms of bringing racing back to Clearwater, Jim added, is the insurance costs involved.
Insurance is key so nobody becomes liable for any issues that may occur on the track, and with the speed involved with the sport, things could happen.
He said potential racing organizers would have to find an insurance company willing to put an affordable insurance package together and the last time the local track was in operational, costs were getting up to the $10,000.
“Nowadays, with the way things are, (insurance) could be more; the rest of it comes with a lot of volunteers because it takes a lot of people to keep that track running,” he said, adding sponsors are also integral to make the sport run smoothly for participants.
“Each one of the kids have sponsors that have gone out and helped, whether it be car parts or just putting the car together, without the sponsors it makes it tough.”
Jim said he thinks it’s worth it to try and bring the sport back to town, because along with the adrenaline rush that comes with ripping around the track, there’s another side of the sport which is equally fulfilling.
“The comradery with everybody there, the other drivers and other crews, they’ve all got different cars—some might run a Honda, some might run a Chevy, Dodge or a Ford—but the comradery in it is still absolutely amazing.”
