Jacobs grad races to head of class

Laura Siarkiewicz's friends are a bit hesitant to ride in the car with her.

"They don't like to drive with me in my normal car because I think it's my race car," said Siarkiewicz, who normally drives a Dodge Charger. "I obey the traffic laws, but they still don't like to ride with me."

That's probably because Siarkiewicz recently finished her second season as a stock car racer at Rockford Speedway in Loves Park.

"My friends think it's cool what I do," said Siarkiewicz. "A lot of them think I'm crazy."

Siarkiewicz, a 2007 graduate of Jacobs High School in Algonquin, enjoyed some crazy success on the track this past season at Rockford.

Racing an Acura Integra, Siarkiewicz won the championship in the Winged Women on Wheels Division.

"This year was my most successful season," said Siarkiewicz. "I won six races and ended up wining the championship by 3 points. It was exciting. I went through 3 engines."

There was, however, plenty of drama for Siarkiewicz in the final race of the season-one that would determine if she would win the overall championship.

"Someone hit me in the heat race (race before the feature or final race of the night)," said Siarkiewicz. "I didn't think I'd be able to race in the feature. I ended up getting it fixed and won the feature. It was the last race of the year. The championship came down to who won that feature race."

Siarkiewicz, 19, was turned on to the sport through a friend.

"One of my best friend's brothers liked races," said Siarkiewicz. "I would watch bits and pieces. I'd watch part of race on TV and then I'd watch the whole race. I'd go watch races at Sycamore and Chicagoland (speedways). I've watched races for a long time. But it took awhile to convince my mom to let me do it."

This was Siarkiewicz's second Acura Integra car. Her first one she bought two years ago came race-ready from someone who had raced it previously.

"I hit the wall and totaled it at Rockford," said Siarkiewicz.

Thus it was time to get another Integra.

"This year I bought it like a street car and stocked it out," said Siarkiewicz. "It just needed a little work. Somebody professionally put in the roll cage and we put in the engine."

Siarkiewicz enjoys the sport for a number of easy to understand reasons.

"I like the speed and the thrill of it," said Siarkiewicz. "I love the thrill of going side-by-side in a race. This sport is an adrenaline rush."

The hardest part, though, comes in the financial department.

"It's tough trying to get sponsors and get money for the car," said Siarkiewicz. "My first year I had one sponsor for four races. They came in halfway through. This past year, I had about nine sponsors. I had just enough to afford the division. The more you go up, the more expensive it gets. That's the hard part right now."

Siarkiewicz, who is working on an associate degree at Elgin Community College and works in retail, plans on moving into the American Short Trackers Division next season (a bump up several divisions where a lot of 80s and early 90s cars like Mustangs and Pintos are raced by drivers who tend to have more experience).

That move means going from races with typically three to six cars in them to races with 20 cars in the field. Siarkiewicz also plans on investigating the possibility of racing at Grundy County Speedway in Morris.

With the move up in divisions, Siarkiewicz will also be changing cars from the Acura to a Ford Mustang (1980s model). She is currently working on the Mustang to make it race-ready.

"I'm really excited and I'm nervous," said Siarkiewicz. "It's a completely different car. But I can't wait."

Siarkiewicz certainly isn't racing for the prize money. She said the highest purse she took home in the Winged Women's on Wheels races was $25.

"I paid more for gas," said Siarkiewicz. "I love doing this. It can be stressful at times, but I wouldn't give up anything for this."