Colbi Bradley: Driven to Win! Track Chic Women Behind the Wheels

They just don’t make them any better than this!
Like the classic vintage sports cars she races, Colbi Bradley is one of a kind.

Originally from Denton, Texas, Colbi grew up watching her Dad, Jay, drag racing motorboats and managing a Sportscar Vintage Racing Association (SVRA) and Historic Sportscar Racing (HSR) team. As a baby, Dad always kept Colbi close by both in the garage and on the tracks with her special revved-up bouncy chair. It’s no surprise that by five years old, Colbi had begun her racing career.

Working her way up through the classes, Colbi had two 1st place finishes in WKA races in 2006. In 2007, she turned the third fastest lap at the Road Racing World Championship in Daytona. Colbi placed 1st in a WKA National Road Race Series event in 2007 and has tested in an SCCA-style Formula Mazda.

Now 19 and living in Georgia, Colbi was selected to participate in the Lyn St. James Driver Development Program. She was recently invited by MAZDA Speed to race in the Miata MX-5 Cup for Hale Motorsport at the HSR Walter Mitty at Road Atlanta. She also competes in the SVRA and Legends Racing Series.

And in between all this, Colbi is currently studying Management at Georgia Tech with a minor in Sports Marketing!

Track Chic caught up with Colbi at the prestigious road course, Road Atlanta, home of the Petit Le Mans, for the season finale of the Sportscar Vintage Racing Association’s 2008 season.

It’s a beautiful October Sunday, a perfect setting to compliment the exquisite collection of Porsches, Ferraris, Bugattis and other classics competing today.

The Sportscar Vintage Racing Association was founded over 20 years ago with the vision of keeping vintage race cars on race tracks where they belong... and that vision has become a huge success! There is something pure about watching these fabulous machines spanning five decades compete head-to-head as they did in their heyday, and the fans love it.

Colbi is completely at home here on this track; everyone is family ... “Uncle Juan” Gonzalez Car Amigo Racing and Mission Foods, the entire Simpson Racing Crew Team, SASCO Sports, and Jerry and Mary Richards, owners of the MGB GT V8 she will be driving today.

We talked with Colbi about today’s challenge as she enthusiastically takes on a test drive on the track:

“The MGB GT is so much fun to drive. It is a very rare car here in the States because the V8s were not shipped here. SVRA cars are raced to the specifications by which they were originally built. For instance, this car was originally equipped with drum brakes, so we will be competing with drum brakes today. It’s an entirely different experience from anything else I have competed in. Because the car has authentic right-hand drive, I had to learn to shift with my left hand. I convinced my friends with manual shifts to let me practice by shifting gears from the passenger side.”

Colbi proved she was a quick learner by winning the Optima Battery Award finishing 2nd in her 8AP Class and 4th overall with an official time of 01:43.356.

After this impressive achievement, she immediately jumps into the second car she is competing in today, a 1600CC Lola T200, a completely different animal. Colbi finished third in Class 2FF and 11th overall in the race with a 01:41.824 finish.

Congratulating Colbi on her performance, she says simply,

“It’s a blast! But it’s also a responsibility. It’s all about balance and respect. It’s about achieving balance between the car’s capabilities and your driving abilities, and I love it! Trying to balance the demands of school with the discipline of racing is tough sometimes, but I told myself “ I CAN do it, and more importantly, I WANT to do it, so it’s very rewarding when it all comes together as it did today.”

Her fun is over for today. It’s back to the books as Colbi prepares for her test tomorrow.
But she’ll be back – and Track Chic will be there to watch and cheer her on.