You're Never too Young, Even to Drive

Sometimes it's best to get rid of all of your preconceived notions.

Personally, I never imagined I would see a 13-year-old girl racing cars against grown men.

But, this week changed all that.

Lizzy Smith actually started racing at Wake County Speedway when she was 12. She's 13 now, but think about that .. What were you doing when you were 12 or 13 years old? Personally, I couldn't even have fathomed racing cars against grown men at 80 miles per hour.

But Lizzy's not fazed at all by that.  It helps that her father, Steve Smith, is a short-track veteran. He actually orchestrated Lizzy's move from go-karts to late model cars because the cars are safer.

She's holding her own against the older guys too, currently ranking third out of 18 drivers in the 4-cylinder stock car division.

Did I mention she's only 13?

For now, she's only able to race at Wake County Speedway, which is not sanctioned by any racing association. She'll have to wait until she turns 16 to race anywhere else.

Her goal is to one day race on the Nextel Cup circuit. Don't put it past her!