Racing is a sport, much like rodeo, where sons and daughters follow in their father's footsteps. For veteran IMCA driver Bill Smith this year has been very different as his son and daughter began their racing careers.

For 13-year-old Dalton, an eighth grader, and his sister Shay, an 11-year-old fifth-grade student, it's a natural as they grown up around the sport.

However, their entry into racing is in two very different machines as is their background in organized sports and activities.

"I think I was five when I started playing baseball," Dalton said. "Now I'm in a prep league, just before high school."

Shay has been in dance and this year will start playing basketball.

While Dalton explained that his father got him interested in racing, his sister had a different take on how she got involved.

"If people asked me what's my favorite sport, I thought it would be cool to say racing so I guess it was my dad that got me started," she said.

Both race on oval tracks with Dalton at the wheel of a Dwarf Car while Shay pilots an Outlaw Kart, which is made for very short ovals and has a wing.

Like most racers, both found their first time in competition an eye opening experience.

"My first race was at Thunderbowl in Mound House," Dalton said. "And it was way different. I felt I was fast but I wasn't as fast as I felt and it was a lot different than watching it."

Shay began her season a bit later and said, "I started on my birthday, July 25th, at Lovelock and I felt it was going to be scary and that's how it was."

They both agreed it was a very exciting time for each of them.

Unlike most rookies, Dalton tasted success early in his seventh race at Lovelock when he won the Dwarf Car feature.

Both youngsters are finding that oval track racing has a learning curve all of its own. A driver has to learn a lot in a very short period of time, as practice sessions are quite limited.

"The learning curve was a lot steeper as the only thing I was used to was running around in my quad and it's real easy to spin out in the little cars." Dalton said.

This is complicated by the speeds and how easy it is to spin out a Dwarf Car.

Besides his father, his uncle, Billie Canham, is a Dwarf Car racer and his given his nephew a lot of help this season. Something Dalton credited his first victory to.

While there are a lot of adjustments that can be made to a Dwarf Car and Outlaw Kart is a very simple machine. So racing one of these is a whole different ball game and Shay goes to school every time she's on the track - with the help of her fellow drivers.

"Well Dylan Garretson is my teacher and so is Zach Cail," she said. "We don't even talk but I'm following them and seeing how fast they are going."

Any racer as young as these two has an interesting relationship with their school mates, who are years away from having driving permits, and don't always realize what they actually do on the track.

"My friends know I race cars but at first they thought it was go karts and were surprised that it was actually cars because I'm not old enough to drive a regular car," Dalton said. "They don't really understand it because they've never been out to the races."

His sister has exactly the same challenge when she tries to explain what she does on the weekends.

"They don't know and during a field trip I said I can't wait to get home because I'm racing this weekend," she said. "And they're like, 'ok, then trip at the finish line for me,' and I told them it's not like that, I race an outlaw go kart."

Then she usually tries to explain just what her kart is, something that's not always successful.

"Then they just walked away as they didn't know what I was talking about," she said.

On a recent field trip she did meet one boy that knows racing since he competes in motorcycle events. But even he didn't understand what she races.

While Shay will continued to race, Dalton's year came to an abrupt end in Quincy when he spun out and his car hit one of the tires that line the inside of the track. The impact spun his car's steering wheel and broke his wrist.

"There's a two-day show in Fallon, and they're going to have the Dwarf Cars there but I can't race because my doctor said I might re-break my wrist," he said. "I'll probably race once or twice in December down south then start up with DART again. "

Even though Lovelock's season is over, Shay will continue to race through the winter at an indoor once-a-month, two-day shows in Winnemucca.

Looking back at his rookie season, Dalton said, "I think it was a pretty good year for only getting 10 races in. But it's really hard to learn how to drive the cars, how to set them up and only racing on two tracks doesn't help out. But it helps learning from dry-slick to tacky tracks like in California so it was a pretty good year."

His sister had some of same thoughts even though she basically races on one track. But in her case, there was the challenge of gaining confidence.

"It was fun and was easy though because I never thought I was going to get second and then I did," she said. "I jinx myself a lot because in my first race I said, 'I'm going to win,' and I got third to last. And then in my second race I said I'm going to do ok and I did ok, I was sixth of 15.

"And then in my third race I said, 'okay I'm probably going to lose,' because I was kind of terrified and then I got second. But now I don't have butterflies like I did in the week before I race."

And like every racer, both have their favorite and not-so-favorite parts of the sport.

What I like the most is the turns and passing people," Shay said. "And what I don't like is spinning out because I have so many bruises on this (left) leg from just getting sideways. And I got one on my back because one boy kept slamming into me last race."

For her brother it's a bit different as he said, "I like the speed of it so it's pretty much the straights. The turns are Lovelock are kind of slick but they're getting better while Quincy is a lot harder as you've got to have a good set up.

"What I like the most is winning, going fast but what I like the least is wrecking or doing bad."

Like any brother and sister there is a bit of needling that goes on. Say explained one of her dislikes comes the day after a race when Dalton gives her a bad time about her race.

Her response is to tell him to shut up.

Still, both added they get along pretty well and Dalton said he jokes with her a lot.

Then she said, "Me and Dalton get along pretty well."

Both have dreams of where they want racing to lead them but they also realize things could change in the future.

"I want to move up to a modified when I'm 15-years old, and then hopefully move into late models or off-road, trophy truck type stuff," he said. I like Rob MacCachren as he drives trophy trucks."

Shay's plans are a bit more extensive but like her brother the goal is to wind up in a professional series.

"When I'm 13, I want to go into a Dwarf Car," she said. "Race there until I'm 20 then probably switching to a Modified and race them for a while. Then into a 360 and into a 410 sprint car as I want to race World of Outlaws."

For driver Bill Smith, not only does he have a rooting section when he's on the track, but now he gets to root for both his son and daughter when they're on the track. And both Dalton and Shay Smith, well they're enjoying being in the fast lane just like their dad.

•This weekend Rattlesnake Raceway in Fallon closes its season with the annual Dirt Track Championships. While all the classes will be there it's an open show for 360 winged sprint cars and the Dwarf Cars will be on hand.

Saturday's action begins at 5 p.m. when the heats and trophy dashes will be run. Sunday, starting at 1 p.m., will be when the main events are staged.

Further east, just north of the Toulon exit on I-80 and west of Lovelock, AMA District and MRANN will host the Wild Horse Enduro. Racing begins at 9 a.m. Sunday and only the adult and family classes will race the 100-mile course.

Closer to home the GFI Nevada series will be at its home track at the Mustang Motor Plex with a 10 a.m. start to Sunday's action.

OTHER RACING NEWS

•At last week's IMCA Madness at Lovelock Speedway, Cory Sample was the feature race winner followed by Randy Artz and Malen Gonzalez. Travis Peterson won the Pro Stock main while young Trey Walters and Vince Evenson won their respective Outlaw Kart races.

Next up for the Speedway is a charity race to benefit the local Food Bank on Oct. 17.

RESULTS

Lovelock Speedway - Sunday, Sept. 27

IMCA Madness - Day 2

B Main - 1. Robert Miller, 2. Jesse Gonzales, 3. Bill Smith, 4. Jake Holland, 5. Don Childs, 6. Bob Cooney

Main - 1. Cory Sample, 2. Randy Artz, 3. Malen Gonzalez, 4. Jeffrey Macedo, 5. Robert Miller, 6. Bill Pearson, 7. Shawn Natenstedt, 6. Jesse Gonzalez, 7. James Delancy, 8. Jake Holland, 9. Rick Rogers, 10. Russ Cazier, 11. Jim Turner, 12. Don Childs, 13. Don Hall, 14. Bob Cooney, 15. Jeffrey Elerick Jr., 16. Jordan Greathouse, 17. Jim Jurad

Pro Stocks:

Main - 1. Travis Peterson, 2. Joe Specchio Jr., 3. Scott Duetsch, 4. Cliff Hagen, 5. Terry Lawrence, 6. Kevin Kentopp

Outlaw Karts:

- (5-8) 1. Trey Walters, 2. Angelica Lopez, 3. Kolbie Mace, 4. Aliyah Garretson

- (9-13) 1. Vincent Evenson, 2. Danneeka Garretson, 3. Dominique Mace, 4. Eric Taylor, 5. Zach Gail, 6. Darrek Gogert, 7. Dylan Garretson