Land O' Lakes Native Picked For Prestigious Diversity Racing Team

LAND O’ LAKES, FL – Her achievements aren’t limited to winning on the race track. Land O’ Lakes resident Brooke Storer, 20, is also breaking gender barriers in the racing profession.

Storer is one of two women selected to compete for Rev Racing next season in the six-person NASCAR Drive for Diversity Driver Development Program, the top driver development program for motorsports.

She joins team members Gracie Trotter, 17, of North Carolina, and four male drivers after participating in the two-day program at the New Smyrna Speedway and Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach in October.

The diversity program partners top ethnically diverse and female drivers with a team of executives, athletic directors, crew chiefs and mentors for an entire racing season.

"This year's class features six highly talented drivers who each possess an impressive blend of skill and experience," said Jusan Hamilton, NASCAR senior manager of racing operations and event.

Participants were not only evaluated on their driving skills but also on their work ethics on and off the track.

And since image is everything in the world of racing, participants also honed their marketing and media skills through mock press conferences and one-on-one interviews.

Additionally, each driver took part in a physical fitness assessment at Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach.

“It was such an honor to make the team,” said Storer. “It’s a much more challenging and competitive circuit, and it's such a great opportunity for development.”

Storer and her fellow Rev Racing team members will compete in NASCAR's Whelen All-American Series, U.S. Legend Cars International and the K&N Pro Series East throughout the Southeast.

Previous Drive for Diversity program graduates have gone on to successful racing careers including Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers Kyle Larson, Daniel Suárez and Bubba Wallace.

A graduate of Zephyrhills High School, Storer said she caught the racing bug when she was 7 years old and began competing in go-kart races.

Her father, former race car driver Robbie Storer, was both her inspiration and her motivation, she said.

With his encouragement, she graduated to the real thing at the age of 12 – racing super late models, stock cars outfitted with 358-cubic-inch V8 engines packing more than 550 horsepower. The super late models are one of the fastest cars raced on the short track, a circular asphalt track.

“I fell in love with it from Day 1,” she said, whose home away from home became the Desoto Speedway. “I love the competitiveness and the speed of the course.”

With her father serving as her crew chief, Storer won six races her first season. At age 14, she was the youngest female to qualify for and start a super late model series 100-lap race.

When Storer was 16, she assembled her own race team, Brooke Storer Motorsports, and moved to the sportsman division, where she promptly won two track championships.

She’s since added nine more championships to her resume. She was named the 2016 Desoto Speedway Sportsman Champion and claimed the Auburndale Speedway Sportsman title in 2018.

“It’s still male-dominated, but you’re seeing more and more women get into racing, which I think is great,” she said.

When she isn’t racing herself, she serves as a mentor for other females getting into the sport.

“I love helping other females chase their dreams,” she said.

As a member of the Rev Racing team, she said she’s looking forward to not only competing throughout the Southeast but working with some of the profession’s top experts.

The goal of the program is to improve the drivers’ chances of being identified as a prospect by NASCAR’s national series teams, sponsors and manufacturers.

“As we embark upon our 11th year managing the Drive for Diversity program in partnership with NASCAR, we couldn’t be more excited about the evolution of our driver development program,” said Max Siegel, CEO of Rev Racing. “Through the selection process and training program, we look forward developing some of NASCAR’s brightest stars.”

Images via Rev Racing and Brooke Storer

In addition to being a skilled race car driver, Brooke Storer makes repairs, changes tires and signs autographs. And every once in awhile, she takes time to catch up with her fans on Facebook.

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