In seconds, you feel the adrenaline rush, hear the engine’s growl, and smell the scent of burning rubber.

That’s the feeling Zayden Hempstead (10) has when he is about to race. Hempstead has been racing for two and a half years.

Hempstead does oval dirt racing, which runs from May to August. He competes against 30 to 40 competitors per race, every weekend. The race consists of 25 laps for a spot in the top three.

His father first introduced him to the sport when he was little. “He used to take me to the races, down into the pits, and I fell in love down there,” Hempstead said. “I was fascinated by the cars, how they ran, and how much you have to pay for them. It’s been a passion ever since.” 

Hempstead loves “the feeling of the adrenaline rush from speeding into a turn, going 60-70 mph, and having split-second decisions to straighten the car out and hopefully not ruin anybody else’s night.”  

Hempstead normally races at Independence, Dubuque, Maquoketa, Boone, and sometimes out of the state. He races Street Stock but recently became interested in a different division with a sports mod car. 

“It’s just a little bit faster with a sport mod, and it’s a little bit easier to control, and what’s wrong with the bigger car?” Hempstead said.

Hempstead has won many trophies and prizes. “I have won 13 trophies,”

Hempstead even intends to pursue a future in professional racing, exploring new types of racing, such as road course racing.