Running down his racing dream

April 12, 2008 Daytona Beach News-Journal
By BILL LUMPKIN, Correspondent

SAMSULA -- Race fans are going to see less and less of Chad Akins' smiling face around New Smyrna Speedway these days.

The 15-year-old has cut his racing teeth on the half-mile asphalt track and now he's ready to branch out, so to speak.

Akins was in Victory Lane here just last week as he piloted his No. 60 Late Model car to the checkered flag.

"We've decided it's in his best interest not to run for points championships but rather to event race this year," said Tim Akins, Chad's dad. "We'd like to travel to some places and let some people get to know Chad and get to see him race. We feel like that's the best for his career right now."

Akins' 2008 schedule includes at least three more races at New Smyrna Speedway, including the Bright House 50 on April 19 and a pair of Goodyear Challenge Races on July 19 and Sept. 13.

The schedule also puts him in the inaugural ASA Late Model Southeast Asphalt Tour at tracks in Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina.

"There's also a new motorsports park in south Georgia and there's six races there," said Tim Akins. "We might run for the championship there. We just want to continue to get Chad as much seat time as possible right now."

He's referring to South Georgia Motorsports Park off I-75 in Cecil, Ga. If he decides to run for the six-race championship in the Late Model division, the first race was scheduled for either Saturday or or April 26. The points races are 100-lap events that run once a month from April through August, with the final race scheduled for November.

Last year as a rookie in the Late Model series at New Smyrna Speedway, Akins produced 10 wins and 10 seconds in 27 races -- with zero wrecks.

Because he's only 15, Akins is pretty much locked in to driving the Late Models for at least another year.

Once he turns 16, the plan is for him to try the Busch East World Camping Tour -- the same series former AMA Motocross champion Ricky Carmichael just latched onto.

Akins can also try a few Hooter's Cup and ARCA races while he's 16 and 17. He has to wait until he's 18 to tackle any Nationwide or Craftsman Truck events.

"There's not a whole lot more Chad can do until he's 16," Tim Akins said. "Do you realize when Chad turns 18, he will already have seven years of experience under his belt? David Smith Motorsports already has Chad with two stars by his name."

David Smith Motorsports.com is the Motorsports Scouting Network and ranks the young and upcoming drivers.

"I've watched all the 15-year-old kids around the country and Chad has as much or more talent than other 15-year-olds out there that I've seen," Tim Akins said.

Chad Akins has been racing since he was 11, so he doesn't mind waiting his turn.

"I'm a very patient person for as young as I am," he said. "I can't afford to be impatient. There's a lot of other young guys out here that they just don't have the experience that I have. "It's a lot like now. I've been racing in Florida my whole life. This is going to give me a chance to branch out a little. I can see how I stack up against some of the other competition. I've heard about these other tracks in Concord and Hickory all my life. It's going to be neat."

Akins also knows this is a way to get his name out there.

He and his dad are personal friends of Sprint Cup veteran Mark Martin and still lean on him regularly for career advice.

"I know I've been very lucky,"Chad Akins said. "You have to work hard, but it's not just me. It takes a lot of money and a lot of help. Plus, you have to be very lucky, too. You have to have tons of sponsors and help from a lot of others. I'm thankful that a lot of people have helped me along the way."

A lot of those people might one day look back and say, "Hey, I knew Chad Akins way back when he was just a 15-year-old at New Smyrna Speedway."

"Yeah, I think about that a lot," he said. "It's good to dream. I know where I want to be in 10 or 20 years. I want to be driving in NASCAR with a top 10 car every week."

Where in the world is Chad Akins?

A regular at New Smyrna Speedway, the 15-year-old from Port Orange is adding to his racing resume by running ASA Southeast Asphalt Tour Late Model races in Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina:

May 3 -- USA International Speedway, Lakeland
July 26 -- Concord Motorsports Park, Concord, N.C.
Sept. 20 -- Hickory Motor Speedway, Hickory, N.C.
Oct. 4 -- Concord Motorsports Park, Concord, N.C.
Oct. 20 -- Myrtle Beach Speedway, Myrtle Beach, S.C