HAWKESBURY sprintcar driver Michael ‘Mick’ Saller will spend the next two years of his life preparing to have a crack at his dream of racing cars for a living.
The 18-year-old from Windsor Downs finished 15th in his first season in the Sprintcar Association of New South Wales Track Championship.
His sterling effort behind the wheel for Saller Motorsports, owned by his mum and dad, saw him earn Rookie of the Year honours.
Monika and Mark Saller, along with Andrew Johnson and Cameron Burnham, form the support crew for Saller Motorsports.
With his first season under his belt, Saller is determined to work towards racing in America for six months of the year, and Australia for the other six months.
‘‘The two seasons don’t cross over and in America a lot of the big NASCAR teams own sprintcar teams too, so there is always that pathway available,’’ he said.
‘‘You always aspire to go high. You have to dream big to live big.’’
While Saller is full of confidence about where his future lies, he also demonstrates maturity above his age.
When not racing, he studies accounting at the University of Western Sydney.
Saller said he would not pursue his dream of racing overseas until he had finished his degree.
‘‘I’m chasing the dream, but you have to live in hope but not rely on it,’’ he said.
Saller said he realised things did not always go to plan, and his degree was his fallback option.
Aside from the challenge of finding a race seat in America, there is also the very real chance of having an accident when racing at high speeds.
Saller said accidents could happen in any sport, and his team took every precaution possible to avoid them.
‘‘You have to race maturely. If you don’t understand the risks, a few bad things can happen,’’ he said.
‘‘I know it plays on mum’s mind. It is her biggest fear, but when I put the helmet on the fear goes away.’’
Later this year Saller will race in the 20-round Ultimate Sprintcar Championship, which starts in October and runs into 2016.
Saller said that over the next two years, as he works towards earning his degree and finding a seat in America, his team would be looking for sponsorship.
He said the sponsorship would be both for Saller Motorsports, and for driver sponsorship to boost his chances of being picked up by a team in America.
