Chasing the dream: Cameron Carraway’s journey to NASCAR

Cameron “Cam” Carraway dreams of being a NASCAR driver. 

“Ever since I was born, I’ve always loved it. I’ve always wanted to make it a career and we ended up finding that pathway through quarter midgets and ever since then, it’s always been my passion to try and make racing my career.”

Carraway, now 13, has been driving since he was 6 years old. In that time he has become a two-time national champion in quarter midgets, a type of racing car designed for younger drivers, and broken numerous track records.

“A favorite memory of mine was the state championship because it made me feel really accomplished, especially knowing that I was the first African American to ever win. Not even just one state championship, but two,” Carraway said. 

Carraway acknowledges that at the track, there is something to be desired in terms of diversity.

“At a local racetrack, you will most likely see me as the only person of color. There are a few girls but other than that, there is not much diversity at all.”

via GIPHY (David Gonzalez) Cam Carraway passes a competitor at a stock car race at Madera Speedway on July 22.

Being one of the first Black drivers to accomplish so much in racing at such a young age is a point of pride for Carraway, but it’s not what he focuses on.

“No matter what your race or gender is, we do the same thing. We’re going around on a racetrack that has straights and corners. So I typically just set that aside because I’m going to race like everyone else and I deserve to be here,” Carraway said. 

His parents also attempt to protect Cam from any racism or negativity.

“With him racing, or anything he will be doing in life, it is a component of the experience of being a male person of color that is successful on some level. Yes, it does occur, but we just try to shield and delete as quickly as possible and move away from it,” said Ray Carraway, Cam’s father.

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David Gonzalez

Cam Carraway, second from the right, with his family, including his parents and younger sister who are to the left of him. Cam has always been obsessed with racing, and his family have supported him the entire way. “We just say God made him this way. We tried all of the ball sports, and he didn't like any of them, but he would watch racing and cars. Then April found this quarter midget pathway. From there we got involved and the racing community — the other dads and folks there — they taught me everything that I'm doing,” Ray Carraway said.

Carraway is managed by his parents, April and Ray Carraway. There is much more to racing than just driving the car, so Cam’s mother runs his social media, while his dad acts as his mechanic and spotter, the person whom he communicates with on the radio.

“We both work full-time and then managing Cam is our second full-time job. It is a lot of work in the background. Nearly every weekend we’re involved in some sort of racing activity or promotional event and it’s been this way since he was 6. It’s been a lot of work over the last few years but he’s excelling so much that that becomes the motivator: to see him continue to succeed.” Ray Carraway said.

Sacrifices come with the territory though. Missing school for races means that Cam must spend time completing make-up work and may need to be homeschooled to race at higher and higher levels through high school.

“We’ll have to make a decision by the end of this year on his homeschooling because he’ll be going into high school and they’re not as lenient—his middle school understands what he’s doing, but the high school isn’t gonna care,” April Carraway said.

For Cam though, almost anything is worth it to race or even to just be surrounded by the cars.

“Even if some crazy, catastrophic incident happens and I can’t make it into NASCAR, I’m still gonna try to be involved in the sport—commentator work or something else. I love seeing those cars go around the track. I just love it so much,” Cam Carraway said. 

Listen to the full answer through the clip.