Biology Major Wins America’s Top Amateur Racing Prize: the Mazda MX-5 Cup Shootout
Nick Evans leads two lives. During the school year, he is a biology major with his eye on medical school. Every summer, he lays down his book bag, grabs helmet and racing gear and heads to the racetrack, several racetracks in fact, all around the country and Canada. Evans, from Columbus, has been racing since he was nine years old.

When asked, he said he’s not sure how he got hooked on racing--no one else in the family ever had the slightest interest, but it’s the only sport that ever appealed to him. There is the coolness factor, of course, and once he started, there was no going back. His parents, particularly his father (who often travels with him) encouraged and supported him every step of the way.

Last November, after a long apprenticeship, starting with go-karts, graduating to Formula cars (close relatives to Formula One cars) Evans won the biggest prize in American amateur road racing: the Mazda MX-5 Cup Shootout.

Attached to the prize is a $75,000 award, which will cover his racing costs for the next year. This win is a huge professional boost, moving him up the sports-racing ladder; it guarantees him a place in the 2010 Sports Car Club of America Pro Racing Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup, where he will be competing against professional drivers.

Winning the shootout was not just outdriving his competitors, it was out thinking them as well. In the beginning, the field is thick with racers, some 9,000, salivating to get a chance to win this coveted prize. After several racing events, 13 National Champions are selected. This is where it gets even more interesting, or “where we come to the hard part,” Evans said.

Clearly, the finalists had demonstrated their driving ability. “But, there is more to becoming a champion than driving real fast," Evans said. “We needed to show the judges that we understood technical and mechanical areas, could analyze data, and evaluate and improve vehicle handling. Finally, and this was the real killer, we had to prove we understood the business of motorsports. It really comes down to who has the greatest potential to move on and support themselves, not just who is really fast and good at driving.”

This is where the bar is raised. Finalists had to submit business proposals to market a fictional company and present them to a team of judges. Evans, who submitted a 20-page marketing analysis of a mythical energy drink, was now one of five.

After a full day of driving and classroom activities, the judges gave the thumbs up to Evans. The win is exhilarating and challenging; the pressure is on and the level of competition ramped up several notches. Virtually everyone in the world of sports racing agrees that Evans is the racer to watch in 2010. So how does he feel and what does he do next?

He picked up his bookbag and returned to school. He believes he has to keep both sides of his amazing life in balance, but he confessed that winning was"The defining moment of my life; it puts me higher on the professional ladder and closer to where I want to go. I love competition; I love to win, to do well. There are a lot of high-highs and low-lows, but you just have to continually push yourself. There are no limits.

“Racing has been character-building. People I’ve met, drivers and engineers, have taught me a lot about the mechanics and dynamics of cars. I really like the technology behind it; it never stops.”

Given his love of racing, why study biology? “For one thing, I’d like to go to med school. But I love learning things. I love being creative. I’m interested in music, art and science, in evolution and ecology, in observing animals; I just like seeing how things work.”

Evans’ nimble mind and unquenchable curiosity help him keep his options open. Although he said he would like to learn and do everything, two drastically different lives may be more than enough.