It was at an early age that Kate Cook knew her passion in life was art. By picking up commission pieces in high school, Kate was able to purchase her first car, a 1966 Jeepster Commando that she worked on with her father and brother. It would be that Jeep that inspired her to combine her two loves into an artistic technique she calls “pinstripe illustration”. While she started her career in watercolor, ink and oil paint, she decided to meld the traditional methods of paintin...
While Anja Kempermann may be the U.S. Events Manager and Race Series Manager for Masters Historic Racing, it’s her zest for life and her mantra of choosing to be happy that will have you smiling from ear to ear while listening to her chat with host Amanda Busick about her journey to her “happy place”. Her passion for life coupled with her love for racing has made this self-proclaimed petrolhead one amazing woman. Kempermann’s podcast marks our milestone 50th episode of Women Shifti...
Her love for Ford Mustangs started in high school when she was looking for a “cool car” with her dad. When her parents met, her mom had a 1965 Mustang Coupe while her dad drove a 1966 GT. Growing up, her dad would share stories about how much fun he had with his car, so when the time came to purchase her first ride, she knew she wanted a Mustang. Her first Mustang was a 1966 Coupe. When that car was totaled, she took her insurance money and purchased her 1965 convertible tha...
Her love affair with Porsche started with a “FOR SALE” sign on a Saturn Yellow ’72 914 that Mia Walsh saw while on her bicycle just prior to her 16th birthday. Somehow, she convinced the owner to let her take it for a spin. It wouldn’t be until 25 years later that she and her husband would purchase their first Porsche and join the Potomac Region of the PCA. With over 300 total track days under her belt and encouraged by other racers to make the move to Club Racing, Mia modified he...
It all started with a chat just prior to the start of the 2021 Indianapolis 500. Racing legend Lyn St. James has been a longtime advocate for women in motorsports and had basically run out of gas while carrying the banner for equality. But, when she witnessed first-hand what Beth Paretta was doing with her Paretta Autosport team at the Indy 500, she was refueled. She reached out to Paretta about forming an organization to help facilitate women’s participation in the sport they bot...
Sonia Rief is vice president, Vehicle Connected Services & Program Management Office for Nissan U.S. and Canada. She was appointed to this position in March 2019. In this role, Rief is responsible for managing vehicle line profitability and leading Nissan’s Connected Services organization. Overseeing the Connected Service organization includes planning, delivery, marketing and operations for internal and external customer content.Previously, Rief was director, Program Management Office at...
17-year-old Chloe Chambers is truly driven to succeed. From an early age, she had her sights on Formula 1 Racing, and now her dream is becoming reality as she races on the same circuits in the W Series with hopes of one day running F1 as one of its first modern-day female drivers. She is confident that she’s prepared, having mastered go-karting at the top level and joining Jenner Racing with top W Series racer, Jamie Chadwick. She begins her W Series journey this weekend with the ...
Automotive expert Lauren Fix is the nation's industry-leading expert in all things automotive and appears weekly on national television and radio as well as His Turn-Her Turn™ and Car Coach Reports. Lauren is an automotive authority who teaches drivers everywhere to love their choices and love their cars. She has written three books on automobiles as well as having appeared on CNN, FOX News, Newsmax TV, CNBC, and USA Radio's Daybreak USA show and was Oprah’sgo-to gal for everything...
Southern Californian Sara Price has been racing most of her life. She first raced at the age of eight and by 16, she was racing professionally. In 2010, she was the first female factory-supported motocross racer with Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing. She has won 19 national motocross championships. Prior to making the switch to four-wheeled racing in 2012, she also medaled in Women's Super X at the 2010 X Games, and holds the record as the winningest female amateur to da...
Stefy Bau was born and raised in Italy. As a child, she barely remembers a time when she wasn’t on a motorcycle. She was first introduced to bikes by her father at age 4 and by 6, she was hooked on motocross. At that point, she told her parents that she would one day race professionally and live in the United States. Because her parents supported her 100% and told her she could be anything she wanted to be, she pursued her dream with great passion.She was successful fr...
She was boundless. She was Betty Skelton – a woman left behind until three determined women worked tirelessly to uncover her story. Producers Pam Miller (8-time Emmy award winner and NASCAR on FOX producer), Lindsey Mandia (Vice President of Production at FOX Sports), and Cindy Sisson (CEO of GSEvents LLC) are the women behind the woman in this first installment of the docu-series “Left Behind” that was recently released on FS1’s Race Hub. Skelton was a land speed recor...
In Episode 15 of our Women Shifting Gears Driven by Hemmings Podcast, we first introduced you to Renée Brinkerhoff and her Project 356 World Rally Tour. At that time, she had raced in six of the seven continents. In last week’s show (Episode 39), host Amanda Busick, along with Renée and her daughter Christina, set the stage as they made their way to Antarctica. In this new episode, Renée and Christina, along with their Valkyrie Racing team, take on the elements and all that ...
They had accomplished six out of seven continents in their quest to end child trafficking with their Valkyrie Racing Project 356 campaign. The last leg was a cold reality… literally. Even though there had been months (and a COVID year) of preparation, this final journey to Antarctica did not go off without a hitch. The mother-daughter team of Renée and Christina Brinkerhoff share the unexpected hurdles that they had to overcome in the days leading up to their final Project 3...
It’s all about the fan experience. This week’s guest, Jessica Fickenscher, is the Chief Experience Officer for Speedway Motorsports and makes it her daily mission to ensure race fans at their eleven premier NASCAR facilities have an experience of a lifetime. Speaking of experiences, Jessica has experienced a lot in her 25+ years at Speedway Motorsports. She first entered the doors as an intern and will probably exit those same doors when she walks into retirement. ...
TV personality Jamie Little is a woman of many firsts… the first female pit reporter for the Indy 500 and the first-ever female pit reporter to cover both the Indy 500 and Daytona 500 for network TV’s live flag-to-flag coverage in the same year. Most recently, she became the play-by-play voice of the ARCA Menards Series, making her the first woman in history to call TV play-by-play for a national racing series. Little has been a NASCAR pit reporter for FOX Sports since 2015 and is ...
She comes from motorsports royalty. With a racing father in John Force, Brittany Force and her sisters grew up at all the tracks she’s now racing. She feels quite at home at these tracks where her team is also her family – a family that she enjoys celebrating the highs with and learning from their lows. In just five seasons, Brittany Force went from rookie to Top Fuel World Champion by securing the 2017 NHRA Top Fuel world championship. She was only the second woman to ...
Laura Wontrop Klauser is the Sports Car Racing Program Manager at General Motors overseeing the Corvette C8.R, Cadillac DPi-V.R, and Camaro GT4.R cars that race globally. Her responsibilities from prior Cadillac and Camaro GT4.R Racing Program Manager roles have carried over with the additional responsibility for Corvette C8.R program and all future sportscar racing programs. Laura started working at General Motors as a summer co-op student then hired full-time in 2008 after gradu...
Victoria Thomas is the CFO & owner of Kelly-Moss Road and Race, a Porsche-centric brand specializing in custom Porsche builds, along with over 30 years of on-track success.In addition to managing the fiscal end of a team producing over 100 podiums and 4 National Championships in 2021, Victoria oversees the brand vision and marketing strategy for the company.2021 saw the launch of the KMR Online Racecar Driver Academy, a vision Victoria had during the pandemic to bring racing knowledge to ...
Are you scared of taking a leap of faith? If so, this is the podcast for you.Guest Sharon Brawner recently took that leap of faith in a career change that makes for a perfect full-circle story. From growing up around cars and racing, to her 20 years with the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville all the way to her new role as President and CEO of the National Corvette Museum in Kentucky, it’s a story of meant-to-be moments that will surely touch your heart.A self-proclaimed...
After spending 10 years in equestrian show jumping competition, Taylor Hagler traded in the horse for horsepower in 2018. This was a natural progression, as Taylor and her father have been lifelong sports car racing fans. Taylor moved into Spec Miata in NASA Texas and has proven to be a quick study in sports car racing. In her first season of competition, Taylor worked up to 5th place of 69 drivers in the NASA Texas Spec Miata championship. She was also awarded the Rookie of the Year by the N...
Jeni
fantastic podcast! I loved the message and inspiration