I first got into motorsports as a seven-year-old in 1996. Mainly, I followed open-wheel racing (Formula One, CART/Champ Car, IRL/IndyCar), but also some sports car and NASCAR coverage. In 2006, I joined Motorsport.com as a staff reporter and was able to turn my passion for the sport into my first professional journalism opportunity.
RACER Magazine (August 2011-October 2012)
Much Appreciated, Dan
After graduating from Marquette in May, I had a couple freelance assignments over the summer before moving to Orange County to take on the Web Editor role for RACER. Admittedly one of the toughest stories I had to do was a tribute piece to Dan Wheldon, the two-time and 2011 Indianapolis 500 champion who had perished in a fiery 15-car accident at the IndyCar season finale in Las Vegas, Nevada. I had been following his weekend's progress for what would have been a feature in the next month's magazine.
ANALYSIS: Top 10 Mazda Road to Indy Drivers
Throughout the 2012 IndyCar and sports car seasons, I authored weekly analysis pieces allowing for a deeper look at each year's race. At the end of the season, having also followed IndyCar's Mazda Road to Indy ladder system fairly regularly, I summed up my Top 10 drivers in the Firestone Indy Lights, Star Mazda and USF2000 series.
OPINION: Should the new WEC era include an ALMS future?
Written after the 2012 Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring that served as the kickoff to both the American Le Mans Series season and the new-for-2012 FIA World Endurance Championship, this piece looked at the political storm that was about to swirl regarding the sports car futures. Five months later, the ALMS and American rival series GRAND-AM were set to merge for 2014, and the WEC had branched off on its own, leaving Sebring an ALMS-only race for 2013 with the WEC set for its own U.S. date in 2013.
After graduating from Marquette in May, I had a couple freelance assignments over the summer before moving to Orange County to take on the Web Editor role for RACER. Admittedly one of the toughest stories I had to do was a tribute piece to Dan Wheldon, the two-time and 2011 Indianapolis 500 champion who had perished in a fiery 15-car accident at the IndyCar season finale in Las Vegas, Nevada. I had been following his weekend's progress for what would have been a feature in the next month's magazine.
ANALYSIS: Top 10 Mazda Road to Indy Drivers
Throughout the 2012 IndyCar and sports car seasons, I authored weekly analysis pieces allowing for a deeper look at each year's race. At the end of the season, having also followed IndyCar's Mazda Road to Indy ladder system fairly regularly, I summed up my Top 10 drivers in the Firestone Indy Lights, Star Mazda and USF2000 series.
OPINION: Should the new WEC era include an ALMS future?
Written after the 2012 Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring that served as the kickoff to both the American Le Mans Series season and the new-for-2012 FIA World Endurance Championship, this piece looked at the political storm that was about to swirl regarding the sports car futures. Five months later, the ALMS and American rival series GRAND-AM were set to merge for 2014, and the WEC had branched off on its own, leaving Sebring an ALMS-only race for 2013 with the WEC set for its own U.S. date in 2013.
MichelinAlley.com (March 2010-July 2011)
MichelinAlley.com blog
In 2010, I started as the lead blogger for Michelin North America's new trackside blog, MichelinAlley.com, via PR agency EMC Strategic Communications. This is the online extension of The Alley print publication that is produced and goes to race tracks. It covers Michelin's involvement in the American Le Mans Series. Throughout the year, I write blog posts, upload photo galleries and shoot videos, while also updating the @MichelinAlley Twitter feed. Blog posts can include updates from each race and on-track session, features, and multimedia elements.
GT - Corvette Captures Last Lap Win, Michelin Sweeps Podium
At each American Le Mans Series event in 2010, I live blogged during the race and then provided wrap-ups for both the prototype and GT classes. Corvette Racing, a team that had won a majority of the races from 2000 through 2009, had gone winless in 2010, until the final round of the season at Petit Le Mans, when the team captured the win on the last lap. Published October 2, 2010
Fans Can Experience Virtual Green Racing
The American Le Mans Series advertises itself as the "global leader of green racing" and it took the next step in giving back to the fan base with the premiere of a racing simulator. It mirrors how the MICHELIN GREEN X Challenge is calculated, as it stores energy through a hybrid system and projects a "green score." Published July 11, 2010
In 2010, I started as the lead blogger for Michelin North America's new trackside blog, MichelinAlley.com, via PR agency EMC Strategic Communications. This is the online extension of The Alley print publication that is produced and goes to race tracks. It covers Michelin's involvement in the American Le Mans Series. Throughout the year, I write blog posts, upload photo galleries and shoot videos, while also updating the @MichelinAlley Twitter feed. Blog posts can include updates from each race and on-track session, features, and multimedia elements.
GT - Corvette Captures Last Lap Win, Michelin Sweeps Podium
At each American Le Mans Series event in 2010, I live blogged during the race and then provided wrap-ups for both the prototype and GT classes. Corvette Racing, a team that had won a majority of the races from 2000 through 2009, had gone winless in 2010, until the final round of the season at Petit Le Mans, when the team captured the win on the last lap. Published October 2, 2010
Fans Can Experience Virtual Green Racing
The American Le Mans Series advertises itself as the "global leader of green racing" and it took the next step in giving back to the fan base with the premiere of a racing simulator. It mirrors how the MICHELIN GREEN X Challenge is calculated, as it stores energy through a hybrid system and projects a "green score." Published July 11, 2010
Motorsport.com (Feb. 2006-Feb. 2010, May-June 2011)
On the grid at the 2009 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Ten years on: Greg Moore remembered
Young Canadian open-wheel driver Greg Moore struck an emotional chord with rivals and fans in an all-too-brief four-year stint in the CART series, before he perished in an accident Halloween afternoon 1999. In 2009, it marked ten years since the accident. Published October 29, 2009
Corvette, Risi earn historic GT wins at Le Mans
The highlight of my time at Motorsport.com was traveling to Le Mans, France, to cover the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June 2009. I primarily focused on the GT classes and did nearly 20 articles over the course of the week. Here was the final GT review of the race. Published June 14, 2009
Briscoe earns historic first win at Milwaukee
Ryan Briscoe, new driver for Roger Penske's IndyCar Series team, secured his first win and Penske's 300th in more than 30 years of motorsports team ownership across various racing disciplines at the 2008 running of the 225-lap race at The Milwaukee Mile. This article won 3rd place in online news writing in the 2008 American Auto Racing Writers & Broadcasters Association contest. Published June 1, 2008
Hamilton wins his first in off-the-wall Canadian GP
The one Formula One race I covered, the 2007 Canadian Grand Prix, was an erratic event where rookie driver Lewis Hamilton won his first Grand Prix and Robert Kubica suffered a savage-looking accident, but escaped with minor injuries. Published June 10, 2007
Young Canadian open-wheel driver Greg Moore struck an emotional chord with rivals and fans in an all-too-brief four-year stint in the CART series, before he perished in an accident Halloween afternoon 1999. In 2009, it marked ten years since the accident. Published October 29, 2009
Corvette, Risi earn historic GT wins at Le Mans
The highlight of my time at Motorsport.com was traveling to Le Mans, France, to cover the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June 2009. I primarily focused on the GT classes and did nearly 20 articles over the course of the week. Here was the final GT review of the race. Published June 14, 2009
Briscoe earns historic first win at Milwaukee
Ryan Briscoe, new driver for Roger Penske's IndyCar Series team, secured his first win and Penske's 300th in more than 30 years of motorsports team ownership across various racing disciplines at the 2008 running of the 225-lap race at The Milwaukee Mile. This article won 3rd place in online news writing in the 2008 American Auto Racing Writers & Broadcasters Association contest. Published June 1, 2008
Hamilton wins his first in off-the-wall Canadian GP
The one Formula One race I covered, the 2007 Canadian Grand Prix, was an erratic event where rookie driver Lewis Hamilton won his first Grand Prix and Robert Kubica suffered a savage-looking accident, but escaped with minor injuries. Published June 10, 2007