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Dave started his motorsports career in 1990 with the Skip Barber Racing School at Sears Point Raceway in Sonoma, California. It was there where he began to learn the craft of high performance driving and racing, executing high speed car control in BMW M3’s, as well as racing in the school’s Formula Ford series. Dave advanced up through the Skip Barber ladder system which allowed him the opportunity to obtain seat time racing and testing in the Barber-Saab Pro Series, Indy Lights, ARCA, Toyota Atlantic, Ferrari World Challenge, Southwest tour, Formula D, Legend cars and shifter karts. Eager to develop further skills in racing, Dave moved on to become a full time professional race car mechanic in the C.A.R.T. (Championship Auto Racing Teams), Indy Lights Series and I.R.L. (Indy Racing League) This career move brought Dave a deeper understanding of all aspects of the racing business. Over the course of five years, he was fortunate to learn from some of the best in the business. Under the guidance of former Indy 500, NASCAR, and Trans-Am driver, John Martin, and his son, John Martin, Jr., Dave excelled to become a Chief Mechanic in the series. In 1999 the Dorricott–Mears team and his C.A.R.T. community peers voted Dave as the Snap-On Tools All Star Chief Mechanic of the Year. |
That same season, Dave and the Dorricott Racing team finished the year winning the championship and sweeping the series with drivers Oriol Sevia, Casey Mears and Phillip Peter finishing 1 2 3. Dave also worked with IRL Team Scandia owners Dick Simon and Andy Evans, as a lead mechanic and front left tire changer at the Indy 500 and at Las Vegas Speedway. In 2010, Dave made his NASCAR and American Le Mans Series debuts at Infineon Raceway and Laguna Seca respectively. In June 2011, Dave returned to NASCAR racing in the Thunder Valley Casino 200 at Infineon Raceway, driving the No. 48 March of Dimes Chevrolet for SNT Motorsports. He followed up with a strong fifth place finish in the Bi-Mart 125 in Portland. In December of 2011, Dave will compete in the 25 Hour of Thunderhill in the SNT Motorsports Ford GT. When he isn’t racing or testing, Dave can be found maintaining his skills instructing at the Jim Russell Racing School and Audi Sportscar Driving Experience. He established Hyperfocus Motorsports where training and preparing the physiological mindset of a driver has become essential in a new era of driver development training. With the use of a state of the art race car simulator, Dave has become Director of Simulation Training with Pabst Racing Professional Racing Simulators, where he has coached Greg Pickett, Scott Pruett, JJ Yeley, Chris Cook, and Boris Said. In addition, Dave performs as a stunt driver for commercials and film, and works as a Lead Professional Driver for AMCI & The Driving Connection, testing and executing driving event programs for the world’s top automotive manufactures. "Dave Smith is not only a great friend, but is also an incredibly talented driver coach and racer! He has coached for me multiple times in the past, and his natural ability on and off the track make him simply one of the best driver coaches I have ever worked with."...Chris Cook |
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