MONROE – Remember walking down aisle after aisle, trying to figure out what to get your dad on Father’s Day? Should I go with the tools, the book, the shirt? Sean Peters decided to go with the trophy.
Jennifer Buchanan / The Herald
The 16-year-old Peters won his first Extreme Contact Figure 8 race at Evergreen Speedway on Fathers Day, but the story gets a little better. It was Sean’s dad Steve, a three-time Super Figure 8 points champion at Evergreen, who helped his son across the finish line, riding Sean’s bumper to a second-place finish.
It was just another step in the bond the father and son have forged through racing.
”Sean was pretty confident that he had a car that could win it that day,” Steve Peters said. ”We had a late caution and I pulled up beside him and motioned for him to be smart. I did race hard to try to catch him but I knew he had the better car and I didn’t want anybody to get to him and pass him. I did my part and he did his. And I was just elated, almost in tears to see him win his first race. And to have it be on Fathers Day made it even more special.”
One thing is for sure early in Sean Peters’ career: He knows how to do holidays. His first win at Evergreen came earlier this year, in a Hornets race, on Mothers Day, making it a special night for his stepmom, AnnMarie. But it hasn’t all been fun for Sean in his debut season.
Earlier this month, he crashed during a race, severely breaking his forearm. A four-hour surgery resulted in nine screws and a plate being put into his arm. Sean hasn’t raced since, and said that the scariest part was wondering if his season was over.
”I’m trying to get a doctor’s note to let me drive again,” Sean said. ”I’m hoping I can race again. I’m having a pretty good season and I’ve waited a long time for this.”
Like many second- and third-generation drivers, Sean Peters, who lives with his dad in Monroe, practically grew up at the track.
Steve Peters began his driving career in 1988, running in demolition derbies before moving on to Figure 8s. He won Super Figure 8 Rookie of the Year in 1995, then won the points championship in 1999, 2001 and 2002. In 2002, he won the 60 Minutes of FEAR and has won the World Extreme Figure 8 race three times (the same race Sean won this year on Fathers Day). Sean helped out by painting Steve’s cars while running in off-road races. After seven years, Sean took a break from his racing career, as Steve felt that Go-Karts and Motocross racing was too dangerous. Besides, Sean says all he wanted to do was race Figure 8s anyway.
”I’ve seen too many careers broken by racing motorcycles or Go-Karts,” Steve said. ”There were too many safety concerns so we decided he would take some time off and when he turned 15, we would start working on his own Figure 8 car. I have enough experience with those cars that I felt I could make it as safe as possible.”
”It was tough because it was such a long time to go without racing,” Sean said. ”It was fun helping out my dad and learning about the cars. But especially the last few months before I turned 16 and could start racing, it felt like a year.”
Getting Sean back into racing also presented Steve a chance to help give Sean some direction in his life, and strengthen their bond that was sometimes strained. Steve split with Sean’s mother when Sean was six months old, and Steve admits he didn’t always make the best decisions for his son.
Racing provided the chance to help make up for that.
”Sean and I have something that I think a lot of fathers would love to have with their son, and that’s an open relationship where we talk about everything,” Steve said. ”I’ve made some mistakes and it hasn’t always been easy. I saw racing as an opportunity to get him to excel at something. And he’s really responded well. Having a car of his own has motivated him. It’s really changed him.”
Steve made a deal with Sean that if he maintained his grades, Steve would build him a car that he could begin racing when he turned 16. Though there was a bump, Steve stayed tough and showed he was serious. It worked. Teachers started sending home positive feedback, and Sean took on more responsibility around the house.
And when Sean turned 16 in April, he got his car and joined the Figure 8 division at Evergreen, where he would finally get to compete against his dad.
”Knowing I have something to look forward to has helped me focus more,” Sean said. ”It’s been good motivation. And having racing has made me and my dad really close.”
Sean admits he was nervous the first time he was on the track with his dad, but says he doesn’t feel pressure to live up to Steve’s reputation. He understands that he’s a rookie, and Steve said that has gone a long way in earning Sean respect at the track.
”He’s showing a lot of class and a lot of respect to the older guys,” Steve said. ”That’s huge. He’s not stepping on toes and that’s going to help him. That’s something that has made me really proud.”
But while Sean has shown respect for his elders, that doesn’t mean he steps aside and lets them go by. And that includes his dad. Both say they try to approach each race with the fact that the other is just another driver. That can be tough to do with a relationship that is so tight.
Steve said there have been some instances when they are racing near each other and have had to do what was needed to gain position.
”A few weeks ago he chased me down and caught me and went into first,” Steve said. ”I came back and bumped him off and took back over. He was discouraged and brought some emotions into the pit. But I told him in racing you win a few but you lose a lot. It’s a good lesson. When it comes to racing, he’s just another number. I will move him for position just like I’d move anyone. We are both really competitive and we aren’t going to give up a race for anyone.”
”If he didn’t, then he doesn’t know much about racing,” Sean said. ”I’d do the same to him. It’s just fun being out there with him, getting to bump each other, seeing who is the best. It’s been great.”
But there are times when the racing mentality gets pushed to the side and being a father takes over. That was the case when Sean had his accident. He spun out but held his grip on the steering wheel, which snapped his forearm.
”It was scary,” Steve said. ”Mostly because you don’t know how he is and you see him and he had fear in his eyes and he was in pain. But those kinds of things do happen in racing and you have to be prepared to deal with them. I just want him to take it slow so when he does come back, he’s really ready and not rushing things.”
Sean stands in seventh place in the Extreme Contact division, almost 100 points behind fifth-place Steve. Steve is second in the Super Figure 8 division, just 21 points behind leader John Carlson.
The pair may not be racing each other for too much longer. Sean has his sights set on moving on to Bombers or Super Stocks soon, with an eye on one day moving into a NASCAR circuit. But for now, the father and son are enjoying the ride they are on.
”Ever since I was old enough to know what racing was, I’ve wanted to do this,” Sean said. ”And to be doing it with my dad makes it even better. He’s taught me everything I know and even though we race against each other, I know he’s always there to help me.”
”It’s just been awesome,” Steve added. ”What an experience for us. It’s something I looked forward to for years. As a father, it’s so gratifying seeing him succeed in something he loves to do and earn the respect of people around him, people I’ve known for years. I’m going to enjoy it for as long as it lasts.”
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