15-Year-Old Gaudreau Follows In Father's Racing Career

A passion for dirt racing runs deep in Landon Gaudreau. The son of Terry and Lindsay Gaudreau, Williston, Landon has been racing since he was 11, in the Coca-Cola Junior Slingshot series at the Williston Basin Speedway. At 14, after winning two season championships, he timed out in the slingshot division (8-14 years old) and now at 15 has decided to advance his racing career by moving into sprint cars.

Landon and his father have done their homework. Terry having watched the career of Donny Schatz from its beginning in go-carts to his status as one of the most successful sprint car drivers in the world. Donny is also a North Dakota native, hailing from Minot, ND. He races with the World of Outlaws dirt racing series, which brings high stakes dirt track racing to locations all over the United States and beyond. Donny currently calls Fargo home.

Terry Gaudreau owns TNT Fireworks, and originally built and ran the Williston Basin Speedway that is in existence today. He enjoys it more from the pits these days, watching his son's race. Landon and his younger brother, Sawyer, 11, have been racing fans from a young age. They have had the privilege of meeting Donny Schatz and other top drivers throughout their lives, and these powerful influences have fueled the fire to the top. Despite the challenges of changing to sprint cars, learning an entirely new vehicle and traveling farther to competitions, Landon is excited to get to work. They were able to acquire two sprint cars, IMCA 305 Race Savers, and a trailer for hauling them. Both came together through connections and friends in the business, which has been encouraging for a smooth transition. The new-to-them trailer was originally owned by the current World of Outlaws point leader, David Gravel.

Landon said the most important part of any driving passion is seat time, and he's enthusiastic about getting in his new ride. Whether he must haul to a track, or build one, he'll be finding as much time in them as possible to prepare for his first season. He likes to know how to make his cars tick as well, keeping up on maintenance and looking for a mechanical edge whenever possible. His competitive nature has served him well in racing, and on the track, that means looking for ways to outdrive or outmaneuver his competitors. Driving truly is a sport that requires its competitors to be both savvy with their cars, on and off the track and under the hood.

Drivers must be physically fit and mentally sharp. Tactics, planning, environmental factors, and surface variables must be accounted for. Then there is the learning curve of changing vehicles. With sprint cars, the power to weight ratio is the best of all vehicles in all motorsports, but it will take some getting used to. Due to their wings and aerodynamics, drivers accelerate through curves instead of braking or slowing for them. There are currently three divisions; 305, 360, and 410.

There's no doubt Landon wants this as much as his family wants to support his dream. Terry says after races, you wouldn't find him slacking off but cleaning his car and getting ready for the next race. Recently, they have been shadowing Mark Dobmeier's Buffalo Wild Wings race team from the Grand Forks area to prepare and are grateful for all the friends and connections that are currently helping them. They recently attended the world's largest dirt racing event for sprint cars, the Knoxville Nationals, Knoxville, IA, and were blown away by the size of the event. With over a week of racing, the town of 7000 expands to over 45,000, where everything revolves around the track right in the center of town. This, and the races that lead to it, are where Landon hopes to be racing in the near future.

While Williston Basin Speedway does not currently host sprint car racing, it has in the past and they were known to fill the grandstands. Even if Landon is not there, Sawyer will still be racing in the Coca-Cola Junior Slingshot series, and it will remain where Landon got his start racing and his first championships. With racing season coming to a close, some drivers will travel south for competitions. Only two nights of racing remain at the Speedway, The Fall Roundup Sept. 14-15, so make sure to get in your adrenaline fix.