Profile: Chelsea “Chels” Smith

Sport:        Drag Racing | Activity:    Driver

Chelsea was born to be a drag racer, after all, she was at the track cheering on her dad when she was only a few weeks old. By the age of 4, Chelsea already had plans to be “just like dad”, although now she has the ultimate dream of following in Kelly Bettes footsteps by racing in Top Fuel.

How amazing it is that women are rising up in motorsports and how many people support women in motorsports.

Currently racing in Junior Dragster, Chelsea proudly proclaims the fastest she has gone so far is 7.86@133km/h (which is, unfortunately, faster than her bracket allows). The junior drag racers are restricted to racing only a half track and have a top speed restriction based on their age and experience.

Live in the moment. Do what you love and what makes you happy.

Drag racing is always challenging whether you’re racing your own PB, the clock or another racer. Just like most motorsports, you need to get your vehicle right but you also have to make sure everything with the track is ok too. But even after all the checks have been done, simple things can still go wrong, and hopefully, when they do, it’s more of an embarrassment than a disaster.

For example, Chelsea recalls when she first licensed in her junior dragster that she missed the half-track gate (where the juniors are supposed to exit) and continued right down to the end of the track. This meant that her dad had to jump back in the tow car and head off down the end of the track to collect her. Thankfully it’s just something they can laugh about now.

Thanks to the great support from her mum and dad, Chelsea is able to participate in drag racing at least once a month, sharing her time and traveling between Sydney Dragway, Willowbank Raceway and Sunset Strip, racing friends and meeting amazing people.

And at each of these events, she’s sure to have quite the fan base up in the stands, many of those being school friends who all think it’s absolutely cool what she does for a hobby. But let’s not forget her number one fan – her little sister – who is always there to make sure Chelsea is race ready.

If you’d like to support Chelsea, then drop by the “JM Auto Racing” Facebook and Instagram page. Please don’t forget to also support the sponsors who support her all the way, Jm Auto Repairs, Powercruise, Speedy’s diffs, APM, Js Customs, Liquid Clothing, Tony’s Smash Repairs.