Brandon Kidd is in for a fast ride this semester. But that’s nothing new to him.

Kidd, a freshman mechanical engineering major, races in ARCA, the Automobile Racing Club of America, which races stock cars identical to those in NASCAR. He is quickly becoming a racing sensation, due to his youth and unusual expertise.

The two series have a historically close relationship, as many drivers begin in ARCA with aspirations to one day compete in the NASCAR circuit. Competing against racers more than twice his age, Kidd has held his own against the most battle-tested professionals.

Only a few weeks into the semester, Kidd is going full speed ahead. He participates in the Syracuse University formula racing club, in which Kidd and other club members build and race cars against other universities, such as Clarkson University.

Intimidation has not been a factor for Kidd. At his ARCA National Series debut in March, Kidd and his pit crew finished 12th out of 35 teams, an unheard of success for a rookie — let alone a high school senior. While his credentials extend far past his age group, his youth has caught the majority of attention from local and national media. As the youngest winner at the Adirondack International Speedway — three times, no less — he has found his way to the top since the beginning of his career.

For the past five years, he has been racking up wins: Junior Sportsman Champion at Oswego Speedway in 2005, first-place finishes at Can-Am Speedway in 2009 and 2010, and a second-place finish at his Fulton Speedway debut. These victories are driven by a passion for speed and the sport, he said. ‘You have to want to make a career out of this,’ said Kidd. ‘Otherwise, you won’t be successful.’

Kidd’s passion for racing has extended his whole life. ‘Something about being a little kid and driving a car was always intriguing to me,’ Kidd said. When other kids were donning uniforms for Little League or cleats for the soccer field, Kidd was gearing up for high-speed laps around Oswego Speedway at age eleven.

Kidd said racing is not like a sport people can practice. Without any formal track on which to practice, he can only improve his craft on race days.

‘You have it or you don’t,’ Kidd said. ‘You don’t have time to perfect your skills.’

While races at tracks scattered around the country are difficult to get to, Kidd has always had his friends behind him. Chris Ruggeri, a friend from Kidd’s hometown of Manlius, N.Y., and a University at Albany State University of New York undergraduate student, said Kidd’s racing was intense. At Fayetteville-Manlius High School, Ruggeri said all of Kidd’s classmates supported him, even going as far as making Kidd-themed T-shirts to wear on racing days.

Kidd’s family is just as encouraging, though they have had their share of challenges. Auto racing was not an inherited business.

‘It was brand new to me,’ said Gregg Kidd, Brandon’s father. Gregg said while many sports are passed on like legacies in most families, the Kidds did not know anything about racing when Brandon first became interested.

For Kidd, racing wasn’t an activity he was always dying to try. He said he just fell into it. After his first win at Oswego Speedway when he was 11 years old, he said he was hooked.

As a financial advisor, Gregg said he has been hands-off with Brandon’s racing career. Nonetheless, Gregg has always been Brandon’s biggest idol.

‘He’s got a kid involved in something he never thought he’d be involved in,’ Brandon said.

Membership in SU’s formula racing club, a full course load and preparation for future competitions leave Kidd wishing for more hours in the day, he said. One out-of-state race can take up to three days between travel time and the race day, itself. Not to mention constantly trying to line up new sponsors. Competing in one ARCA race costs approximately $50,000, and in the coming year, he hopes to participate in five or six of them.

This semester, it’s a long road ahead for Kidd, and it’s only speeding up.

‘(I’m) just trying to maintain my grades,’ Kidd said. ‘I’m going to be busy.’

knbaug@syr.edu

Published on September 15, 2010 at 12:00 pm