I started motorsports in my new Miata this past spring when I was 64. After 3 autocrosses and 1 HPDE track day, I'm also hooked
Better late than never, right?
Between work, being a good husband and father, plus balancing the numerous scholastic and extracurricular activities of four kids, 50-year-old Justin Slaughter never seriously considered getting into motorsports–until his wife suggested he get a hobby.
Within a week, Slaughter was the new owner of a C5 Corvette. A few weeks after that, after a local autocross and some HPDEs at NCM Motorsports Park, he was hooked for good.
The C5 was soon traded for a C6, with several upgrades following soon after: Penske 8300 shocks, AP Radi-Cal brakes, dual oil coolers, short shifter, Recaro Podium carbon seats as well as a front splitter and rear wing, just to name a few.
The best part about this Corvette, though, isn’t any of the lap times set or upgrades added–but the strengthened connections it has created between Slaughter and his kids:
This newfound racing interest has significantly impacted my boys, for the better–especially the oldest. He's neurodivergent (think Aspergers) and in support of full transparency, I've struggled in the past to make meaningful connections compared to those easily made with my younger three sons. He's realized a newfound curiosity of how cars are engineered, built, made to go faster, become more efficient and the associated trade-offs.
We’ll get to see this Corvette in action as it returns to Kentucky’s NCM Motorsports Park for the Tire Rack Ultimate Track Car Challenge presented by Grassroots Motorsports, October 24-27, alongside the Tire Rack SCCA Time Trials Nationals Powered by Hagerty.
What is the Ultimate Track Car Challenge? It’s our annual search for the fastest track car on four wheels where the only requirement to compete is that both driver and car pass a safety inspection.
For more information about the 2024 Tire Rack Ultimate Track Car Challenge presented by Grassroots Motorsports, visit ultimatetrackcarchallenge.com.
The Tire Rack Ultimate Track Car Challenge is presented by Grassroots Motorsports and Sunoco, the official fuel of the UTCC, in association with Wilwood Engineering, CRC Industries, HMS Motorsport, XS Power and AMT Motorsport, with trophies from Miller Electric, Vorshlag, Call to Grid, BimmerWorld and Falken Tire.
I started motorsports in my new Miata this past spring when I was 64. After 3 autocrosses and 1 HPDE track day, I'm also hooked
Paul Newman started at 44?
R.K. Smith started in his 50's, and was a successful pro driver.
We had a guy who was a highly ranked senior tennis player come out and race spec Miata at Sebring for a few years. He was in his 70's when he bought his first race car.
My father podiumed in Motorcycle races into his 70s. Only stopped when a heart medication compromised his balance. There's no reason that a healthy individual could not race cars longer than that.
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