The noise is deafening, and the hype is almost as loud: the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg is an intimidating spectacle whether you’re racing, watching or just living within earshot (or earplug). But imagine what it feels like if you’re 18 or 19 and the track is a set of streets you’ve traveled all your life, only this time you’re driving them at speeds of 130 mph and up with all your friends and family watching.
That’s the fantasy now being realized by two local teenagers: Hayden Duerson (top right), 18, a senior at Shorecrest Prep, and Nick Andries (bottom right), 19, a Pinellas Park H.S. grad and St. Petersburg College freshman. They’re competing in the Star Mazda series, a support race that serves as a proving ground for young drivers on their way up the ladder to the big IndyCar events. In today’s qualifying round, Hayden and Nick placed 16th and 11th, respectively, out of a field of 18, and will race in the StarMazda Championship tomorrow at 11:50 a.m.
Pretty heady stuff, but neither of these guys is a novice. Hayden began racing go-carts (Karting) when he was 8 years old and open-wheel racing when he was 12 four years before he got his regular driver’s license. Nick started Karting when he was 5, and though he only graduated to the Skip Barber open-wheel series two years ago, he was named Rookie of the Year in 2009 and, in the words of his lead mechanic, Steve Fried, “never puts a wheel wrong.”
Watch an interview with Hayden Duerson after the jump. And coming up in later posts: An interview with Nick Andries and…. Meet the Parents.
This article appears in Mar 24-30, 2010.
