Milestone in sight

Lauderbaugh nears 100 career feature wins

By BRETT BOWMAN

Many race car drivers spend their entire careers looking for that ever elusive cherry on top of the sundae — winning a feature event. It’s the insatiable appetite for success that leads them to race tracks around the country.

For 30-year-old U.S. 24 Speedway standout Nate Lauderbaugh, his appetite is yearning for something most drivers find unimaginable — bagging 100 career feature victories.

Heading into the final month of the season, Lauderbaugh is but three victories shy of obtaining the feat that very, very few have attained and even more only dream of attaining.

“We’ve still got a few weeks left and I would really like to get it done yet this season,” said the humble Lauderbaugh reflecting on the milestone. “I’ve run both with and without the wing off and on the last few years and with U.S. 24 still running up into October, I would like to think we can get it done before the season ends.”

Getting the job done is what has made the popular driver as successful as he is. Not afraid to stand on the gas and stick his nose into tight places, he has parlayed into arguably the most successful mini-sprint career of any driver in Central-Indiana’s storied history.

“I would have to say that Nate is the best driver out there,” said fellow competitor Drew Salisbury, who has competed against him at both U.S. 24 as well as the Miami County Speedway the last couple of seasons. “We raced against one another a couple of weeks ago and my dad (who doubles as crew chief) just told me to get in behind him and follow him. He said that Nate would make a hole and for me to be close enough to follow him and I could get through the pack too. It worked too. I followed him from the back of the pack up to third place just like dad said I could.”

Having the respect of his peers is but one of the traits that has helped Lauderbaugh succeed. Never giving up is another.

“I remember one night when I was still running a 250 mini-sprint,” lamented Lauderbaugh. “I hadn’t moved up to the 600s yet at that time. But we decided that we would try to run it with the 600 Stock Class and we went out and qualified third quick and finished second in the feature in a car that was definitely underpowered.”

Despite all his feature wins, Lauderbaugh noted that he had only one track title to his credit, but that doesn’t deter him at all. Like many drivers out there, track titles aren’t his primary goal, winning races is his motivation.

“To be honest, other than maybe a year or two,” Lauderbaugh reflected. “I have never really been into chasing points. It doesn’t pay any more to win the track championship, and it pretty much ties you down to competing at just one track. We like to go wherever the money is at and not get all caught up in points battles.”

Though he isn’t concerned in how the points shake out, he does admit his love for the local track west on U.S. 24.

“Not trying to run any other track down around the state by any means, but U.S. 24 is the best mini-sprint track out there,” he stated. “I’ve run at many different tracks all over the country, but [U.S.] 24 is the best track with the best drivers week in and week out. I know I probably could have more wins if I cherry-picked some of the lesser tracks, but if I want to be considered among the best I have to compete against the best.

“That track is just a great place to race. There are about always two or three grooves to run in, and it is a great track to visit and race at if you like to see cars making passes. There are a lot of tracks around that a car that may not be that quick, but can hug the bottom can hold off a bunch of cars that are a lot faster just because there aren’t any other grooves to let us race in and try to work around the slower cars that were fortunate enough to start on the front row.”

His biography of accomplishments pales in comparison to no other driver. He’s won the prestigious Pike County Nationals, the Indoor Winter Series at DuQuoin, Ill., and finished second in another major event, the 600 Nationals in Little Rock, Ark. Throw in two wins in the Gene Oberlander Memorial and a win in the Blair Luyster Memorial as well as countless quick times and track records, and that is just the tip of the iceberg of all that he has done in his brief career. He was also honored by the Kokomo Tribune as the 2003 600 Mini-Sprint Driver of the Year.

Despite his mind-boggling numbers, Lauderbaugh is still hopeful to open the eyes of a sprint car owner who is willing to take a chance on him.

“As long as I can remember that has been my goal,” said Lauderbaugh of making the move to the full size sprint cars. “I saw where Chris Windom won at Kokomo the other night and I remember racing against and winning against him when he was coming up. The same thing with guys like Dakoda and Caleb Armstrong, Josh Spencer and a lot of the other guys who race sprint cars now. I feel like I have proven that I can race with them, but I just would like to get a chance to show that I can do it at the next level.”

“There is no doubt in my mind that if I were to get an opportunity that I could be successful in a sprint car,” he continued. “Granted, I might tear some stuff up while I was learning, but if a car owner would give me a chance, not just a couple of races, I know I could do well. It’s a lot of the same guys up there now that I’ve run with over the years and did well against. I just need that one break. Right now it’s just mainly my dad (Tom) and I footing all the bills, mainly dad, and the money is just not there for us to field a full-size sprint car.”

In addition to inching to his milestone 100th win, Lauderbaugh also made another milestone decision in the last month when he wed his longtime girlfriend Ashley. The ensuing honeymoon forced him to miss some events, but he’s not complaining whatsoever.

“It’s funny. She and I met at [U.S.] 24 a few years back and started dating,” he said. “She liked the races but wasn’t nearly as up to speed on it as dad and I were. Now, she’s great about getting the lineups for me and the qualification times and just doing all those little things that help out so much. She’s a great wife.”

Having spent virtually all of his life around the sport, naturally his family is very involved. His father turns the wrenches and helps with the bills while his sister, Nikki Parkhurst, makes sure all the race results are sent out to the various race publications around the area. His sister’s husband, Dusty, was a standout racer in his own right, and though there are no official records to substantiate it, it is believed that the pair are the winningest family in the history of U.S. 24.

When the two were on the track together, there were some rather tense moments that would make Thanksgiving dinner seem a little cold on occasion.

“We had some scuffles,” said Lauderbaugh with a laugh. “I mean when I was coming through the ranks, Dusty was ‘The Man.’ He was the veteran that everyone was trying to catch and we had our moments when I began to start winning some races. Let’s just say that we had some shockwaves throughout the family a few times over the years. But now he’s pretty much gotten out of the car and put his son, Chris, in it this year. But last year he was right there alongside dad and I helping out getting the car ready. Everything is fine between us now.”

Lauderbaugh noted that the support that former sprint car pilot Eric Shively of Shively Racing Engines has really sped his program along as well as the help of Richard Smith, Concept Chassis, Hoosier Tire, Paul Moyer Racing and Carroll County Tire of Flora.

“I am 30 years old now, but I really don’t feel it,” he quipped. “I know I can keep on doing this for many more years to come, but I do worry sometimes that potential car owners look at my age and aren’t willing to take a chance on me. Even though I might be a bit older than they are looking for, I know that I deserve just as much of a shot as a lot of the guys I see every Sunday at the Kokomo Speedway. I only hope that I get that shot some day very soon.”

First things first, however, there’s the matter of racking up those last three wins to pick up his 100th win, then worry about what the future may bring. Those fans who want to see one of the best of all time should venture to the track each Saturday night to possibly see history in the making and say that they got the opportunity to see one of the best showcase his amazing skill. In a few years, if a car owner needs a proven commodity, he just might be moving on to the level he’s dreamed of all his life.

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