In a sport that is predominantly male participated, every once in a while a female racing athlete comes to the scene bearing similar talents, similar goals and their own unique set of challenges. Yorktown, Virginia’s own Macy Causey is no exception as she entered into the NWAAS Late Model Division as a rookie racing out of Langley Speedway in Hampton Virginia.
Hailing from a family rich in racing history which goes back three generations, Macy Causey at the young age of fourteen looks to cut her teeth and earn the respect of her peers in making a name for herself in a sport she loves. After spending her earlier years racing bandoleros, winning her first feature at the age of eight and winning a division title where she scored eleven wins in 2011.
Macy Causey then took to the flat dirt banks at Virginia Motor Speedway where she became the youngest racer to participate in the Sportsman series where she even started on pole, lead laps and collected several top ten finishes to her credit. Earning the respect from her fellow competitors and becoming a crowd favorite, father Rette Causey knew it was time for Macy to make the move to Late Models at the required age of fourteen and make that next big step in the Nascar Whelen All American Series Late Model Division.
Committed to a full racing season at Langley Speedway, the success of strong finishes were absent early on but the progress was right on track. Macy Causey posted several top ten finishes, showing consistency in her runs and avoiding trouble in a highly contested Late Model season filled with previous champions from previous years. She soon became involved in a highly contested battle of her own as she and one other would battle for Rookie of the Year at Langley Speedway.
Little better than halfway through the season, Macy Causey was able to retain the services of local short track favorite and one of Langley Speedway’s fan favorites Matt Waltz. Waltz provided Causey extensive race knowledge, detailed explanation on the mechanical end and assisted in the set ups at their race shop. From that point, a faster, more confident Macy Causey was evident and proof was in the many cars she was passing race after race. So much so that Macy Causey scored her first top five of the year and looking like one of the regulars battling up front every week. She would end her 2015 race season finishing ninth in points and earning Langley Speedways Late Model 2015 Rookie of the Year. Macy also participated in Late Models Super Bowl event held each year at Martinsville Speedway where she narrowly missed the cut, getting caught up in a wreck not of her own.
But she was able to make news by becoming a third generation racer at Martinsville Speedway as her grandmother Diane Teel became the first woman to win a NASCAR sanctioned race back in the 1970’s and competed several times in the series which is known as the Xfinity Series of today. Macy also in her rookie season was selected to participate in NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity Program which promotes racers of minority backgrounds in the sport. Of the twenty-two finalists, Macy unfortunately was not selected where her age was a likely factor but the impression made will prove and become an opportunity later on in future D4D classes.
We spoke with Macy about the success and the bright beginnings of her career as a female racer athlete.
RACE22 – Macy, in just your first season racing Late Models. How would you gauge your progress and how does being named Virginia’s 2015 Rookie of the Year sit with you?
Macy Causey (MC) – “It helped a lot when I first started racing, my confidence level really went up a lot. When we got our first top five and when we were named Virginia Rookie of the Year was when I knew that I can do it”, explained Causey. “ Now with this award that I’ll be receiving it’s really going to help through everything and hopefully push us to a win in the NWAAS Late Model Series soon.”
RACE22 – Though just missing the cut for the Valley Star 300 at Martinsville Speedway, how cool was it to know that you turned laps at the same track as your grandmother Diane Teel did?
MC – “It was really, really cool! My grandmother helped me out a lot, she just guided me and told me about the braking which is so different then back home at Langley Speedway,” expresses Causey. “ She’s had such an influence and not just at Martinsville but with my entire racing career. She’s always been the one to tell me, never quit what you’re doing and she has never missed one of my races,” said the 2015 Virginia Rookie of the Year. “ She just been a really big influence and has helped me through everything”.
RACE22 – Adding to her list of accomplishments in her rookie season, Macy Causey was informed by NASCAR that she will be honored with the, “Young Racer Award”, at Daytona Speedway and deservedly so. We then talked about the award along with the wild and exciting ride this 2015 race season in Late Models’ has been.
MC – “Yeah, in talking about NASCAR’s Young Racer Award, it’s a award for young drivers who have excelled through diversity in our sport and in my case being a young female,” shares Macy Causey. “I’ve worked really hard each and every week to earn my fellow drivers respect and by the end of this past season at Langley Speedway, we were able run competitively and run up against the best there.
RACE22 – Lastly, Macy Causey wanted to share her thanks and appreciation to those who have made it possible in making her Late Model rookie season as successful as it was.
MC – “I’d like to thank US106.1 New Country radio station, OVM Financial, CBX Modular Homes, definitely my mom and my dad, without them none of this is possible,” says Causey. “ My grandmother Diane Teel, like I said before, she’s a big influence in everything, she’s a groundbreaker in the sport and if it wasn’t for her I wouldn’t be here today. One more person to thank is Matt Waltz, he has done so much for me and been such a great mentor in this 2015 race season.”
The 2016 race season for the NWAAS Late Models will soon be upon us and looking to continue to ride this deserving momentum she’s created for herself. Macy Causey has earned her right in setting realistic goals she’s proven that its well within her means to achieve. This year, winning races and giving the big boys fits is two of them. Motivated and challenged, Macy embraces the fact of higher expectations and is well beyond that so-called maturity level for her young age. In my best personal opinion, what Macy Causey represents in our sport and what she has accomplished will become a foundation for other female inspired athletes to come forward, making their names known, and earning the respect of the entire NASCAR racing community.
