Ashley Anne Sanders     Back

written by Amy B. Taylor

Ashley-Anne Sanders, high school senior from Renton, Washington spends her Saturday nights at a dirt track as a crew member for a Modified.

For as long as this young woman can remember, she has always liked cars and has always followed NASCAR. Her favorite driver is Dale Earnhardt Jr., and her daily driver has the vinyl letters in the rear window to prove it!

Some family friends that race a stock car had asked her if she’d like to come to the track since they knew she loved racing. She was the trophy girl several times, and did so without ever wearing a dress! She enjoyed being the trophy girl for several reasons, first being that it got her to the track to watch the races. This also provided another way to meet the drivers and congratulate them in person, and thank them for doing what they do.

The family friends introduced her to Steve Meyer, the driver of the Modified she currently crews for. “He was needing help at the track and I was thrilled he asked me. I’ve learned so much.”

Ashley-Anne can be counted on to load and unload the car from the trailer, check tire temps, spark plugs, oil pressure, change tires, etc. Whatever needs to be done, she’s there to do it, and claims there isn’t one aspect of her duties she doesn’t like.

Eventually she’d like to race a stock car herself. She feels the pit crew duties will help her in achieving that goal in the future, and plans on continuing to learn all that she can.

Ashley-Anne is the only one of her group of friends that is into racing, although they support her love and commitment to the sport, whether it be her crew duties at the track, watching a Winston Cup race, or wanting to race at the track herself.

Her best advice to up and coming young woman interested in the sport? “Don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t do it (pit crew duties) cuz you’re a girl and can’t get dirty. Who cares about breakin’ a nail? I wear my make-up to the track! And don’t let the male dominance make you think you can’t do it. You might not be fast at first, but you can learn to do it and really enjoy it.”