Tabor student pursues a life in the fast lane

Tabor College Will Wolf student pours a can of PEAK coolant into his car?s radiator. Wolf has entered the 2014 PEAK Stock Car Dream Challenge 2, a contest that could ultimately give him the opportunity to race in a professional stock-car event.Racing comes naturally for Tabor College sophomore Will Wolf, a third-generation race-car driver from Lenexa.

Wolf?s grandfather began the family tradition, racing Triumph Spitfires in the 1960s. Wolf?s father, uncle and mother later followed suit.

So it only seemed right that Wolf carry on the legacy.

?When I was born, my grandma actually said in the hospital that they?re going to start me in go-karts,? Wolf said. ?I got my first go-kart when I was 3, and I didn?t actually start racing until I was 5.?

That same year, he earned his first win.

While Wolf has few memories from those early years, his love for the sport was planted at an early age.

?Most people grow up playing football,? he said. ?I grew up going to race tracks and being around racing.?

When he was 17, Wolf progressed from go-karts to full-size, road-racing cars.

Today, Wolf drives a 1980 Mazda RX-7, a street car that has been converted to a race car, and races with the Sports Car Club of America.

He funds his racing budget by dismantling old cars and selling the parts, much like his father did before him.

?We don?t have any sponsors,? he said. ?If we don?t have the money to go to a race, we have to find a cheap car and tear it apart and be able to sell it and make money to be able to go to the race.?

Wolf has raced on multiple types of surfaces, including dirt, asphalt, ovals and road courses.

He currently races two cars on asphalt road courses. Depending on the track, speeds can reach 130 mph, he said.

While Wolf enjoys this type of racing, he said he is ready to take it to the next level.

PEAK Dream Challenge

Wolf has entered the 2014 PEAK Stock Car Dream Challenge 2, a contest that could ultimately give him the opportunity to race in a professional stock-car event.

Contestants earn points for various criteria, as well as from fan votes posted by an April 30 deadline.

A total of 18 winners?13 based on r?sum?, and an additional five based on total points earned?will advance to a three-day showdown in Charlotte, N.C., judged by Michael Waltrip, a two-time Daytona 500 champion and co-owner of Michael Waltrip Racing, and Emporia-native Clint Bowyer, a NASCAR Sprint Cup driver.

One winner will have the opportunity to race in a professional K&N stock car event in a PEAK-sponsored car.

?It?s a one-race deal to begin with,? Wolf said. ?If you do good in that race, then you?ll get a full season.?

Last year?s challenge winner, Patrick Staropoli, now serves as a development driver for Michael Waltrip Racing and races in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series.

?(Staropoli) finished fifth in his first race, and now he?s running a whole season this year,? Wolf said. ?They?re talking about how he?s going to be the next star.?

Wolf sees the challenge as a chance to fulfill a dream.

?Winning the competition can give me a huge opportunity that I’ve been looking for since I started racing at 5 years old,? he said.

Wolf?s contestant page can be found at www.vote68.com. The public is allowed five votes per day until the April 30 deadline. As of Monday, Wolf had tallied 72,545 points, placing him ninth in a field of more than 100 contestants.

Asked why he is worthy of fans? votes, Wolf said, ?I talked to Kansas Strong. They promote the oil and gas industry in Kansas, and I really want to start giving back to Kansas and the communities that I?ve been involved in.

?If I?m able to do this, it?ll be a good opportunity, and I?d be able to give back. I?m determined and have the work ethic and the ability to do it.?

Work involved

Wolf said many people do not realize the amount of work it takes to race.

?Most people think that just sitting behind the wheel of a car is easy,? he said. ?It can be if you?re driving a street car, but racing at 100 miles an hour, 150, 200, takes a lot of work, and your muscles get tired.

?I?m in the weight room all the time. I?m running all the time. It?s just as much work and athleticism as any other sport.?

Wolf also trains with a computer simulator and steering wheel that allows him to practice various tracks. He?s even raced against Dale Earnhardt, Jr. online?and won, he said.

The racing season runs from mid-March to November.

So far this year, Wolf said he has just completed a test day. His first weekend of racing will be April 25-27, with most races happening this summer.

?This year, we?re looking to be able to go out and get a championship and hopefully set some track records,? he said.

In the meantime, Wolf keeps busy at Tabor, where he is majoring in sports management.

?I actually came (to Tabor) on a track scholarship,? he said. ?I had knee problems, (and) I had a couple surgeries, so I?m no longer doing track, but I?m still helping out with the athletic department, announcing baseball games, announcing soccer, doing scoreboard.?

He is thankful his path brought him to Hillsboro.

?Before I came to Tabor, I never thought I would go to a small town,? he said. ?The people here are just amazing, and I can?t imagine going to any other town, any other school. God had a reason why I?m here. It?s been a great experience.?

Accomplishments

Wolf is most proud of winning a national championship in 2001, he said. He has accrued over 200 wins.

Wolf credits his family for helping build his career as a race-car driver.

?I don?t even like saying it, but (my dad?s) the one that?s taught me everything I know,? he said. ?Between him, my grandpa and my uncle, they?ve taught me a lot of what I know.?

When asked what he enjoys most about the sport, Wolf said:

?A lot of people just go out to race for fun. I go out to win. I want to win by as much as possible. That feeling you get when you win, you can?t beat that?and the competition. There?s nothing like that feeling when I?m behind the wheel. It?s like everything else disappears. Nothing else matters. All I focus on is the race and the track.?

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