NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Driver DAVID RAGAN Teaches Young Adults the Importance of Safe Driving
As a former Nextel Cup driver – and the current director of legends of Georgia – most of Ken Ragan’s life has revolved around racing. So it should be no surprise that Ken’s son David shares the same passion for racing. “It’s like there’s a blood line down here with the Ragans and racing,” said Nextel Cup driver Robert Pressley, who has known the Ragan family for years. “They’re good. And whether you’re in Legends, or Busch, or Nextel Cup, they take everything serious, and that’s exactly right. If you take it serious, you’re going to be successful.”
David began racing in the Bandolero Series at Atlanta Motor Speedway in 1997 when he was 11 years old. He has been winning races and championships ever since. David says, “I guess you could say it’s in the blood.”
With Rudy’s Farm sponsorship, David won National Champion Bandolero Bandits division. He finished 2nd in the Thursday Thunder Series @ Atlanta Motor Speedway and had 12 Bandolero feature wins.
With Rudy’s Farm sponsorship, David again won the National Champion; but in the Bandolero Y-Guns division. He finished 1st in the Wendy’s Summer Shootout @ Lowes Motor Speedway, and had 19 Bandolero wins.
David competed in Legends Cars with Rudy’s Farm sponsorship. He won the Young Lions division for the state of Georgia and the Semi-Pro Championship at Atlanta Motor Speedway. David purchased NASCAR Goodys Dash car to begin testing for the 2002 season. He won 17 Legend Car feature events.
With Rudy’s Farm sponsorship, David competed in the legends Cars Pro Division and in 6-8 Allison Legacy Car national races. David spent all summer in North Carolina working in Cam Strader’s Goodys Dash shop, gaining experience in the shop and at the tracks working on the #6 Nascar Goodys Dash car. He has tested the Dash car at several different tracks. David and Cam’s team prepared two NASCAR Late Models that David used to race during the 2002 season, which was his first in a NASCAR Series division.
David ran seven NASCAR Late Model races on different tracks in N.C. He raced ten Legends events at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, which were televised live on FOX SPORTS NET SOUTH. He continued to help Cam Strader in NASCAR Goodys Dash, Busch and ARCA events and raced out of Barry Owen shop in Lexington N.C.
David continued to race in the NASCAR Late Model Series and competed in 2 ARCA events: The first was at Erie Speedway where he Qualified 2nd, led during the race, and finished 12th with a cut left rear tire. The second was at South Boston Speedway where David qualified in the top 15 and ran in the top five until a cut right front tire took him off the lead lap. David drove for Mark Martin in the Pro-Division televised summer shoot-out races at Lowes Motor Speedway. He finished 4th in series points out of 60 plus drivers. David won the “King of the Oval” Thunder Roadster series championship, along with the national title. He has won 10 feature events this season and continues to help Cam Strader in his ARCA, Goodys Dash, Busch series efforts. He will race out of Barry Owens shop in Lexington, North Carolina.
David became eligible for NASCAR divisions and the ARCA/Remax series. He was the youngest driver in Daytona during Speedweeks and at all subsequent ARCA/Remax series with a best finish of 2nd at Kentucky Motor Speedway. David finished in the top 25 in the Daytona ARCA Discount Auto Parts 200, and continued to race in the Summer Shootout Legends Pro Division at Lowes Motor Speedway with an A-Main feature win and five top 5 finishes in the 10-week series. He gained experience by competing in eight NASCAR Craftsman Truck events during the 2004 season. David continued to work out of the shops of Barry Owens, Bobby Jones and Tom Eldridge with assistance from Robert Yates Racing.
David attended Eagle’s Landing High School and was accepted to the UNC Motorsports Engineering Program. When he wasn’t at the track, he was in the shop working to prepare his ARCA cars. This was one Young-Gun to watch.
David competed in NASCAR Busch Series events at Texas Motor Speedway, Milwaukee Mile, and Gateway Int’l Raceway in the first half of the 2005 season. He continued to race in the ARCA/Remax Series and scored his first ARCA win and pole-qualifying run at Lanier National Speedway in May. He also had a pole-qualifying run and a track record at the Milwaukee Mile in June, as well as a pole and second-place finish at Toledo in September. David had nine top 5 and 12 top 10 finishes in 2005. He also led 126 laps in seven races during the 2005 ARCA season. David is currently participating in the Roush Driver Development “Gong Show” program.
Plans have been finalized for David to compete in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, driving for Roush Racing. Several other events in the ARCA series and NASCAR Busch Series currently make up his 2006 schedule…
For More Information: www.davidragan.com
Source: The Student Operated Press
