A couple weeks ago I attended an event known at the "Battle at the Barn", a go-kart indoor event that also provided four-wheeler, three-wheeler, and dirt bike races. While I don't know much about this form of racing, I did notice that there was a young woman racing a go-kart among the "guys." On that night this particular young woman had her struggles. A couple days later I contacted her, asking her if her kart survived all the hits and collisions. She was surprisingly very upbeat and very polite in her response. I asked her what her plans were for the upcoming race season, and when I read her answer, I decided to ask her if she would mind being interviewed for this blog.
At the tender age of sixteen, Kendall Higday already has her sights set on a career. That career is hopefully one day sitting behind the wheel of a World of Outlaws sprint car ride. The Southeast Polk student has had limited racing experience up to this point in her life, but that appears to be changing in 2010 as she will pilot two completely different types of race cars.
The female youngster was born into a racing family, with her mom having experience behind the wheel of an IMCA modified and her father currently has a sprint car himself. Kendall got her start at the age of three when she climbed on a 50cc four-wheeler and raced in the field across the road from her house. With her father teaching her the basics she was able to race the following year at the Iowa State Fairgrounds along with a couple other indoor tracks. After a few years of that, her father got her a go-kart. She wasn't able to race it much due to her father racing his sprint car at Knoxville. When Kendall turned thirteen, she moved up to the Jr. 1 class and won in her debut race at Newton. Since then she has moved to the adult classes in the karting ranks where she competes on a limited schedule.
While the 2009 season didn't produce much experience for Kendall, she enjoyed meeting lots of nice people that supported her. She learned a little bit more every time she got behind the wheel. Keeping an upbeat attitude kept Kendall striving to get better, and now she looks forward to her new challenges that await in 2010!
This year looks to be plenty busy for Kendall. She will get behind the wheel of a 305 sprint car owned by Marty and Jackie Stephenson and run at select tracks, including the Knoxville Raceway and 34 Raceway near Burlington. Another endeavor she is looking forward to is getting behind the wheel of a hobby stock. A family friend, Justin Maschke, plans to put Kendall in the seat at a few races at Boone, Marshalltown, and perhaps her "home track", the Iowa State Fair Speedway in Des Moines. She is also open to the thought of running a 360 sprint car at Knoxville every week if someone has one available. Sounds like this teenager has a busy summer ahead of her this year!
I'd like to thank Kendall Higday for her cooperation in filling out a survey form for me. I'd also like to wish her the best of luck in 2010 and beyond. Be sure to keep a lookout for Kendall at the local tracks this year!!
- Racing may be a hobby, but it's DEFINITELY addictive!!
