Most race car drivers' stories begin the same...
"Just the sounds, sights, smells... everything about the race track."
All it takes is one kid's first race experience to thrill and excite them! Jason Rabe was no different.
"These guys were like superheroes to me in their race suits. After the race, I would go walk through the pit paddock with my aunt and uncle and get their autographs," said Rabe.
It was then Jason decided this is what he wanted to do and would do anything to be a race car driver. After graduating from the Bertil Roos Racing School near Pocono Raceway, he worked his way from the bottom. As a flagger to network at tracks; a mechanic to barter for seat time, doing whatever he needed to fulfill his boyhood dream. After many struggles, he would get there! In the Pro Mazda Series, just below the Indy Lights Series, Jason notched his first win in the expert division of the Grand Prix of Indy in May.
"The last lap was pretty emotional getting the checkered flag and then being up on the podium with my dad. That was really awesome. It was cool because I was sleeping in my car months prior to that so it felt pretty special but at the same time I knew I could get there."
Jason has come a long way from the driving the back roads of Wayne County to where he is today, but when he's behind the wheel of his race car, he still has fond memories of days past."
"I'm actually thankful for the back country roads because I honestly learned a lot in some of my tuned street cars. I would just go and fly around on the back roads at nighttime as well as the snowy conditions."
Whenever Jason isn't racing for the checkers, he's coaching drivers at Monticello Motor Club, just over the state line from Matamoras. He credits both Bertil Roos and Monticello for his opportunities to have so much time behind the wheel to improve as a driver.
Jason's next event is this weekend at Mid Ohio in the F2000 Championship Series. If you'd like to hear how he finished, follow the link here to his website.