Sam Christie Racing Sponsors

While all of his friends are still dreaming of the day they can get their driver’s licenses and get behind the wheel of a car, 15-year-old Sam Christie whizzes around a race track at speeds of about 100 mph. Sam travels to the Whip City Speedway in Westfield, Mass. every Saturday for sprint car races. The races usually involve about 20 cars and take place on clay and dirt quarter-mile tracks. In fact, Sam is one of only three 15-year-olds that compete with the adults. But he proved that age is merely a number as he won his first race June 26 in his seventh race of the year. He has four top-five finishes out of eight races thus far as well. It didn't take him long to get over the fear-factor of racing against mainly adults.

"Either you win or lose.
Second place is nice, but no one
remembers who comes in
second at a race" - Mr. Christie

“It was pretty intimidating when I first started to say the least,” said Sam. “But now they’re just other cars that I have to go out and beat.”
“They used to not talk to Sam because he was so young, but now they'll tell him he ran a good race if he does well,” said his father, Mike, who is also his coach and mechanic. “The older racers will actually try to knock the kids out of the races because they don’t want to lose to a kid, but they seem to have accepted him as part of the group. They respect him and what he’s trying to do.”
“I started the race out on the poll,” Sam said. “I jumped out to an early lead. With about 10 laps to go I hit lap traffic. I had to get through the cars I was lapping to maintain my lead. It was a pretty amazing feeling because I didn't expect to win this early.”

The thrill of victory is nice, but it’s not what keeps Sam coming back.
“What I like most about racing is the speed and that it has no limits,”he said. “I can just keep going and going. Racing is everywhere. If you want to jump in a car and race, you can most anywhere in the country. There are many opportunities to race. The speed is what keeps racing exciting, though. It makes you focus that much more. When you’re going 100 miles per hour on a closed track you can feel it. You have to pay attention and stay focused.”
For every race at Whip City Speedway, Sam has been amassing points based on what place he finishes. Mr. Christie said the original plan was to participate in some races at other tracks, but that has changed due to Sam’s early success at Whip City.
“We’re way ahead of schedule right now,” said Mr. Christie. “No one expected us to be a front runner in the standings. We can’t really afford to miss any races at this track since we’re so high in the standings. But if we do fall out of the race, we’re hoping to do some races in Pennsylvania where some of the best drivers race.”
Although it doesn't involve kicking a ball, swinging a bat or tackling someone, racing is a sport and Sam will be the first one to say the same. “There is one of the biggest guys you will ever meet at the races every week, and when he gets out of the car he is sweating and exhausted,” Sam said. “It’s not easy muscling a car around the track. In the first 20 laps I ever drove a sprint car, after the first 10, I didn't know if I could go anymore. You have to be aggressive with the car and shift with one hand while still steering.”

And although no one is tackling each other like in football, the cars often hit each other causing crashes. Sam experienced his first crash the first time he switched over to a sprint car.
“Nothing was really going through my mind when it happened because I was just shocked by it,” Sam said. “My dad and a bunch of others came over to help. I felt like I owed it to them to get back in the car so I did and I loved it. When it happened it basically felt like it was going OK, then all of a sudden I hit the wall going into a turn. I just closed my eyes when I hit the wall and when I opened them I was upside down.”

The races every Saturday also turn into an all-day affair for the father and son duo. It is about a two-and-a-half hour drive to Westfield, so the Christies leave at about 11:30 a.m. Once they arrive Sam has a warm-up, a heat race and then finally a feature race. About 150-170 cars from all over the Northeast race in several different divisions. By the time the two get home it is about midnight.
"Not only has Sam been able to drive at an early age, but racing has also turned into a source of income.“
He basically races for money now,” said Mr. Christie. “Prize money is given out all the way down and first place gets $250. At his age it’s tough to earn money so this is nice for his savings account.”
“When I would come home from go-karting races all of my friends would ask me if I won any money,” said Sam. “But now that I'm driving sprint cars I can show them a $250 check and they’re like ‘whoa.’ It’s really exciting, but once you’re in the car you’re not focusing on the money.”

Getting started

Sam started racing when he was eight years old. “I always watched racing since I was five or six years old,” Sam said. “When I turned out I decided that I wanted to get a go-kart.”
“Sam had read an article in Sports Illustrated for Kids about Jeff Gordon and he read that when he was five years old, Jeff Gordon raced go-karts,” said Mr. Christie. “Sam wanted one after that but I had no idea how to get one or where to race it. We were at Lime Rock watching a race and there was a booth set up with information about go-karts. I had never done anything mechanical in my life and then all of a sudden I had to be a mechanic."
Sam started racing every Saturday in Norwalk on the beach at Calf Pasture. “That's where he learned the basics,” said Mr. Christie. “He was able to go 35-40 miles per hour and had to learn how to do right and left turns. It was the entry level for him and taught him how to accelerate and brake. The karts were designed low to the ground with five horse-power engines and slick tires.”
After about a year of racing on the beach, Sam took the next step and moved on to asphalt tracks. His home track was in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., but he traveled to national events all over the East Coast. Racing on the national circuit led to a lot of travel time, which in turn resulted in a lot of missed days from school for Sam.“

There were about 16 national races during the year,” said Mr. Christie.“ One year Sam missed five weeks of school. Fortunately he's an ‘A’ student and is able to make up the work.”
In his sixth year of go-kart racing, Sam finally achieved the ultimate goal. He became a Grand National Champion at age 13. “When I was at my very first Grand National Championship, I saw a room where they had all of the Eagle trophies lined up,” Sam said. “From that point on I knew I wanted an Eagle. I started in the poll position and led every single lap. It's an easy way to win, but anyone would take it. It took about a day before it sunk in that I was a Grand National Champion.”
“Everyone was all over his bumper,” said Mr. Christie. “But he was just faster on that day. Either you win or you lose. Second place is nice, but no one ever remembers who comes in second at a race. Getting an Eagle is like getting a Superbowl ring. It's the crowning point.” Sam began the next season back in go-karts, but after a couple races, Sam and his father realized it was time to take the next step.

Bonding time

Spending so much time on the road and at the race tracks over the years has certainly given the Christies ample time for some father-son bonding. “I'm definitely very close with my dad,” Sam said. “Sometimes my mom would tell my dad that he had to spend some time with my other brothers and sister. Racing takes up so much time, but it wouldn't be the same without my dad.”
“Sam is only 15 years old, but from the day he got in that car I've had so much respect for his courage,” said Mr. Christie. “He's a big inspiration. He's willing to pursue his passion even through dangerous conditions. He respects the fact that I put a lot of time in. I would never be able to get into a car like that and drive it. I like being the coach. It's like when a father coaches for his son's team except with us I'm the coach and Sam is the whole team. Every day we go racing is just a privilege.”

Sam and his father don't travel as much now as they did when he was on the national go-kart circuit, but over the years the two have seen some nice sites.
“I do miss the traveling,” said Mr. Christie. “We saw some of the most beautiful places from the car. So many people around here would fly, but Sam’s had the luxury of seeing the countryside of Vermont and Maine and the Blue Ridge Mountains. I can’t imagine how many roadside motels or Comfort Inns and Red Roof Inns we've been to together.
“We've also developed a form of communication. He has to tell me what's going on with the car. I like talking to him on that level. It’s not like we're father and son then. It's like we're driver and crew chief. It's almost a business relationship. We could be fighting about something in the morning, but when we're out on the track we forget about that. It's taught us some life lessons as well. When we have a problem we try to think to ourselves ‘how would we fix this at the track?’”
When Sam isn't racing, Mr. Christie also helps his other kids with their athletic endeavors. He and his wife have twin 12-year-old boys, George and Ollie, and a nine-year-old daughter, Emma. George and Ollie play baseball and hockey for the Greenwich Blues while Emma enjoys playing soccer.
“The thing I've learned is that in a racing family you have to sacrifice a lot,” said Mr. Christie. “It's not just sacrificing the money but, even more so, the time. Sam also has other interests. He's a member of the ski team at Greenwich High School and is active in the school's theater program. “I love being on stage,” Sam said. “It's like a second home for me. It's so thrilling. And skiing was really exciting. I didn't think I'd be good enough to make the team, but I grew to love it.”

" It's Like when a father coaches
for his son's team except with us
I'm the coach and Sam is the
whole team" - Mr. Christie

The Future

Sam said that he plans on attending college to pursue a degree in engineering, but he also says that racing will remain a part of his life. “I might race this car for another year and then we'll see what I want to do,” Sam said. “I might go back to asphalt or stay at this speed. It all comes down to what I want to do and what opportunities I have. Ultimately I'd like to be in the NASCAR Nextel Cup with my idols like Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. But so many people are shooting for it. There’s a chance I can make it, but I'll have to work hard for it.”

Even since Sam was a little kid, Mr. Christie said the signs were there that this might be the future he would want. “When he was really little, he would get in his Big Wheels car and set up two cones and just drive around in circles for hours,” said Mr. Christie. “He would wear out holes in the plastic tires. There was just something about the concept of going around and around that he liked. He would even turn it into a real racing situation with his brothers. They would make checkered flags and everything. I didn't realize it at the time but now I see that’s what he’s always loved.”
Sam also has his own Web site now where friends and fans can keep up with how the racer is faring. At www.samchristieracing.com there are several photos, news, a bio and even a video sample of Sam's racing.“ All of our friends would always ask how Sam was doing so we set up this site so they can check whenever they want,” said Mr. Christie. “It’s also at the point where we're going to need some sponsorship help to support his development. Our race budget for the year is already $15,000 to cover equipment.”

[TOP OF PAGE] [HOME]