Ken Schrader is a jack of all trades.
Whether it is a Sprint Cup race, a trucks race, or an open wheel modified cars race, Ken Schrader can do it all. And after 40 years driving, Schrader isn’t about to wind things down.
“It is still very much fun,” Schrader said earlier this week as he prepared to compete in the K&N Filters United Sprint Car Series Modified Touring Series event at Magnolia Motor Speedway. “It is very much a job, but it is one I enjoy going to work every day.”
Schrader started racing in 1971, and competed in his first Sprint Cup race in 1984. He said it is easier for a driver to work their way up from grass roots racing to NASCAR’s prime-time events, but he said it costs a lot more money to do it. He didn’t say if that was good or bad, but he said any driver needs to have a certain amount of money to get started. From there, the driver needs to have sponsorships to maintain and to compete.
“I started out at the local track,” Schrader said. “It was a hobby and then someone asked me to drive their car. We ran a little better and then someone else asked me to drive their car, and we ran a little better.”
Schrader said that process helped him move out of the area for several races and then out of town on a permanent basis.
These days, Schrader splits time on a variety of circuits. Last year, he ran a part-time Cup schedule for FAS Lane Racing. In seven starts, Schrader had a season-best finish of 21st at Martinsville. This year, he said he is conformed for 11 races for the team in the Sprint Cup series.
All told, Schrader, 56, competed in more than 70 races last year. It would have been a lot more, but he said rain washed out a good share of potential starts. He said he plans to run in close to 90 races this season
“I don’t know where I am,” Schrader said. “We’re not done yet. I am not building a career, but I just have a tremendous amount of fun with the dirt car and I am enjoying what I am doing.”
Racing isn’t the only thing that keeps Schrader, who was born in Fenton, Mo., busy. He has a shop in the St. Louis area and another in Charlotte and has 15 full-time employees working to keep the team moving forward. He said there is no difference between the amount of work that goes into preparing for a Sprint Cup race or a race at a track like Magnolia Motor Speedway. He also enjoys working between circuits even after earning four victories and more than $36 million in 740 Sprint Cup races.
“No matter what car or what surface, we put the same preparation into everything,” Schrader said. “Whatever we have done Friday, we have to start all over again when we go to another place. There are more people when we go to (the bigger races), but it still involves the same effort.”
Schrader said there also are similarities between the drivers on each circuit. He said a driver who competes in Daytona Beach, Fla., would be in trouble at Columbus, and vice versa, but that each drive would figure out how to manage at that venue.
“All of us are just trying to go around in circles faster than everybody else,” Schrader said. “It is not rocket science. The level of competition is tough no matter where you are going. I always refer to it as the bigger races you go to everything is the same but there are a lot more zeroes and it costs a lot more and you win a lot more.”
Schrader won 14 races last season combined. Regardless whether he races at the Sprint Cup level or in a modified event, he said the goal is the same: to win.
Even though there is less pressure when he competes at venues like Columbus, he said the competitive spirit still drives him to do the very best, even if it mean he has to travel to travel to 20 states to get his fix.
“It is like a guy who loves golf. It is his hobby and he just loves to do it,” Schrader said. “It turned into my profession, and now that I am doing it full time for a living and for my livelihood I still want to play with my hobby.”
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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