The women of Valley racing

DARRELL L. BREESE/Frontiersman reporter

WASILLA - The face of auto racing is changing.

Gone are the days of scruffy, unkempt beer drinking good old boys.

They have been replaced by the softer, gentler look of a growing number of women who are moving from the grandstands to a seat behind the wheel.

With women like Danika Patrick and Shauna Robinson making a name for themselves in the nations top racing circuits it's no surprise that women are showing up in large numbers behind the wheel of cars at local tracks.

Saturday 11 women were treated as equals as they settled in for the driver's meeting at North Star Speedway. But once on the track they showed that they belong.

"The guys were a little surprised by our numbers," Charlotte Sandstede said of the number of women racing this season. "Then we started being competitive and they really took notice."

The women - who are accountants, bankers, shop owners, students and respiratory therapists by day - share the passion for racing and the adrenaline rush that comes with going fast.

There are at least two women in each of the bandoleros, legend, mini- stock and thunderstock divisions. The three women driving thunderstock cars are in the top 10 in the season's points race.

Amanda Pruhs is in a battle for the top spot in the bandoleros class, sitting less than 100 points behind leader Aaron Landrum.

Mini-Stock driver Joanne Schwochert, who has been racing stock cars for over 50 years, recalled when it was difficult for women to get into the pits and racing was unheard of.

"We've come a long way," Schwochert said. "I had to fight just to be able to race our old Ford with my brother back in Nebraska when I started. The guys didn't want women on the track with them. I wasn't acceptable behavior for a young lady.

"I loved racing," she added. "And nothing was going to stop me."

Things have changed and so has the number of women who are driving race cars.

"When I first started and was a back of the pack runner the other drivers were really helpful," Legends driver Michelle Black said. "It was really nice. But when I started beating them the help went away."

Black, who became the first woman in the nation to win the state pro class for legends last year, currently leads the pro class by 80 points this season.

The future of racing might be in the hands of the young women who compete at the track. In addition to Palma, there are two other girls in the top-10 in season points, including 14-year old Chelsea McDonald.

"I saw a girl racing last year and decided that I could do that too," McDonald said. "We would come out to the track to watch my uncle race and I just got hooked on it."

Competing in her first season, after pestering her father all winter, McDonald has struggled this season, crashing twice, requiring major repairs on one occasion and even the replacement of her No. 17 car.

"That's how she lost her fear," her father Jason McDonald said. "It was tough going while she learned how to race, but she has really improved."

"I put on my mean face to get past the fear and get through the race," Chelsea McDonald said. "It helps me keep focused."

Adding to the fun being had by the women is the pretty paint jobs that adorn their rides. For two years running Black's No. 10 legends car has been voted best appearance, while Sandstede take a more in your face approach with her bright pink paint job.

"I wanted to let the guys know that there are real women out here racing and having fun," Sandstede said. "And when they get past by my pink car, I like to think it really get them."