DAYTONA BEACH, FL :: A teenage NASCAR racing rookie is off to a fast start this year.

Kate Dallenbach stands third in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Pro Late Model track point standings at New Smyrna Speedway in Samsula, Fla. She’s just four tallies behind Larry Blount and Zachary Jarrell who are tied for the point lead. Her best finish so far is second place to Blount on April 27.

Dallenbach, 16, of Port Orange, Fla., is part of a substantial racing family. Grandfather Wally Dallenbach Sr. was a five-time IndyCar winner in 180 starts from 1965 to 1979. He had a best finish of fourth, twice, in the Indianapolis 500. Her father, Wally Dallenbach Jr. has a racing résumé that covers the spectrum of motorsports competition. He still makes occasional starts. He’s also an analyst for NASCAR On TNT and NBC Sports Network telecasts. Her mother, Robin McCall Dallenbach, was the second woman to compete in the modern era of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with two starts in 1982. The Dallenbach’s sons Jake, 23, and Wyatt, 21, have also competed in a variety of car types.

“I’ve always known racing is what I wanted to do,” Kate Dallenbach said.

Pro Late Models are NASCAR Finalist Division II at New Smyrna Speedway and Orlando (Fla.) Speedworld. Dallenbach is wheeling a driver development car fielded by Tim Russell of Lake Mary, Fla. As a driver Russell has multiple Florida Late Model championships.

The NASCAR Finalist Division program recognizes drivers who compete in support divisions at NASCAR Whelen All-American Series tracks. With “Division I” being each track’s top division, the NASCAR Finalist Division line-up at each track highlights drivers competing in their second, third, fourth and fifth tier divisions. Through Sept. 15 a NASCAR-licensed driver’s best 14 finishes are counted toward their final point total for the year. Points are kept separately for dirt and asphalt tracks.

ASPHALT STANDINGS | DIRT STANDINGS

Orlando (Fla.) Speedworld and New Smyrna Pro Late Model driver Brandon Johnson leads the NASCAR Finalist Division II asphalt standings this week. Other leaders include: Division III John Ketron, Kingsport (Tenn.) Speedway; Division IV Jeremy Menninger, Columbus (Ohio) Motor Speedway; and Division V Buck Simmons, Greenville (S.C.) Pickens Speedway.

Dirt track NASCAR Finalist Division leaders this week include Division II Mike Kellner, Grandview Speedway in Bechtelsville, Pa.; Division III Craig Whitmoyer, Grandview; Division IV Cody Clark, Adams County Speedway in Corning, Iowa and I-80 Speedway in Greenwood, Neb.; and Division V Art Reed, Salina (Okla.) Highbanks Speedway.

Dallenbach has a wide range of experience. Last year she participated in the Rev Racing’s NASCAR Drive for Diversity Combine at Langley Speedway in Hampton, Va. While she didn’t make the team on her first attempt, she said the Combine was a valuable learning experience. She also made four starts in a Legend Modified dirt car last year for Ray Evernham at Everham’s East Lincoln (N.C.) Speedway, a .3-mile dirt oval. She’s tested several times in dirt late models owned by Richard Childress.

“I learned a lot in a short time about car control and handling by driving on dirt,” Dallenbach said.

She tested extensively with the Russell team on New Smyrna’s big half-mile banked paved oval to prepare for this season.

“We worked hard to get ready for this season,” Dallenbach said. “Tim and the team have helped me a lot. We were prepared when the season began. Driving in competition brought a new learning curve and made it more fun. I just keep trying to hit my marks perfectly every lap.”

Although she’s a sophomore at Father Lopez High School in Daytona Beach, she manages to get to the race shop to help work on the car about twice a week.

“I want learn how everything works with the car,” Dallenbach said. “It will help me be a better driver.”

Dallenbach began her racing career in Quarter Midgets at age eight and won nine championships in her first three seasons. In 2011 she won an Allison Legacy Series track championship at the NASCAR-sanctioned Thunderhill Raceway (now known as Central Texas Speedway) in Kyle, Texas.

Wally and Robin Dallenbach support all their kids’ racing endeavors.

“We want them to get every opportunity to follow their dreams,” Wally Dallenbach said. “Kate’s been racing for almost 10 years, but this is her first year in a full-size stock car. She’s doing well so far. It’s important to us that she becomes a good driver. We’re not going to rush her.”

Robin Dallenbach’s racing career was heavily influenced by her father and car owner Bob McCall. Even as pre-teen when she won her first Quarter-Midget championship, she was sometimes getting more notoriety for being a girl racer than for her success.

“I had a great time racing as a kid,” Robin Dallenbach said.

She knew she was a real racer and not a female racing novelty.

“Dad always told me I was just a driver like everyone else. I never looked at myself as being any different from any other driver out there,” she stated. “Dad told me if I could hold my own against all the other drivers, that’s all that mattered.”

From 1981-83 she entered selected NASCAR All Pro Series Late Model events. She posted a best finish of fourth twice in 1981, one of them at New Smyrna.

Now in its 32nd season, the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series is NASCAR’s national championship program for weekly short track auto racing. There are 55 sanctioned tracks throughout the United States and Canada that participate.

A NASCAR Division I driver’s best 18 results through the Sept. 15 closing date count toward their state and national point totals and the champions are decided on overall point total. Once a driver reaches 18 starts, their point total increases incrementally as they replace some poorer runs with better results.

Under the point structure for the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series, a race winner receives two points for every car in the event up to 20 cars. Second place receives two fewer points and so on through the field. Race winners receive an additional five points. For example, if 20 cars are in the field, the winner receives 45 points, second place 38 and third 36. If there are 15 cars, the winner receives 35 points, second 28 and third, 26.

Track operators also designate support classes as NASCAR Divisions II-V and drivers in those divisions compete for points in the NASCAR Finalist program. The program brings added recognition to support division drivers. Points are kept separately for asphalt and dirt tracks.

Story written by: Paul Schaefer for NASCAR Home Tracks (www.nascarhometracks.com).