Page 29 - March 2019 IWMA News Interactive

Kelsey LeFebvre Loves Racing With Her Friends
Kelsey LeFebvre from Quesnel, British Columbia, is 18 years old and just graduated from high school. Kelsey has been around racing all her life and is very passionate about it. Her dad has been racing since he was her age, so growing up she was always exposed to racing and the activities at the track, and he inspired her. She drove on a track for the first time when she was 13. Driv- ing her mini stock car on the oval track was when she realized racing was in her blood. She soon switched to drag racing two years later and hasn’t looked back.
Kelsey’s most memorable mo- ment was winning her first Wally at the ET finals, a prestigious drag racing tro- phy that some race for years without re- ceiving.
“I’ve been blessed to have met so many great people throughout my few years in racing and the people tht
help with my car are amazing; my dad, Andy Closkey, my uncle Mike, and Greg Dawson.”
Her best finish so far is winning her class in the E.T. Finals in 2016. She races on drag strips across British Columbia and some race tracks in the USA. She drives a 1988 Iroc, Camaro. It has a Chevy 350 under the hood that she rebuilt last win- ter in her grade 12 shop class. She runs in the Sportsman class.
There are many women that race at the track where Kelsey races. ‘One of them is my best friend Shelby Dawson, another is her little sister, and my little sister. There are three other la- dies that race with me that I look up to, Silvia, Veronica, and Amber. They are all incredible women and racers.”
Kelsey races mostly for fun but she does have a drag racing bucket list; race in Vegas, drive a dragster, take her Grandpas Beaumont on the strip, and beat her dad in a bracket race. Her fa- vorite part of racing is getting to meet all of her racing heros.
Kelsey thinks to be a successful
racecar driver, means having younger racers look up to you; means you’re do- ing it right.
Kelsey’s car number is 6551. She chose it because 65 was her dad’s race car number when he was younger and 55 was her uncle’s.
On race day she always polishes her car in the morning, then she takes it for a drive around the pits to warm it up. “Every time I line up in the lanes togoforaracemydadgivesmeafist bump and says good luck.” she said.
Shelby Dawson and Kelsey have been racing together for a few years now and both of their little sis- ters race with them. Their race team is called “Teenage Dirtbag Racing”
Kelsey said drag racing is her passion. She loves every aspect of it, the cars, the traveling, the adrenaline, and most of all she loves racing because she gets to do it with her best friend and their families.
Kelsey played with both dolls and cars as a little girl. Her favorite holi- day is Christmas. Kelsey is a pretty open person so most of her friends and fam- ily know her very well, although some
may not know that she raced oval track for a few years.
Kelsey has two jobs, the first is serving at a local restaurant called Wings. The second is running an after school program for elemen- tary school kids. “As soon as I told them about my race car they never stopped ask- ing about it.” she said.
Kelsey is attending uni- versity to get her diploma to be an Education Assistant. When she is not racing she likes to go skiing. Brittney Force is her favorite race car driver.
Follow Kelsey on social media at: Instagram is @ kelsey_lefebvre
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