NEWS
The Battalion I 4.22.15
4
Q&A: The world of drag racing
Drag racer, Texas A&M grad, first female winner of the Pro
Stock World Championship — Erica Enders-Stevens has
spent time turning dreams into reality. Enders-Stevens, who
was the inspiration behind the Disney Channel original movie
“Right On Track, ” stopped in College Station before her race
in Houston this coming weekend to throw out the first pitch
at the Texas A&M vs. UT-Arlington baseball game. The
Battalion Life & Arts reporter Mary Reyes spoke to Enders-
Stevens about being an Aggie and pursuing a career in drag
racing.
THE BATTALION: What
got you into the world of
racing?
ENDERS-STEVENS: My
dad drove his whole life
and my sister and I grew
up around it. We actually
started racing at the age of
eight in "Junior Dragster,"
which is a class for kids
from eight to 17 — kind
of just a way to get your
feet wet in the sport. So
I drove "Junior Dragster"
for nine years and then
once I turned 16 I moved
up to a class called "Super
Comp" and there's another
class called "Super Gas."
Those are the sportsmen
ranked. I raced those for
five years and then "Pro
Stock." I'm in my 11th year
of Pro Stock now.
THE BATTALION: How
did the world of drag
racing react to you
being the first female
winner of the Pro Stock
Championship?
ENDERS-STEVENS: It's
been really positive for the
most part. There have only
been two other female
world champions in our
entire sport's history. I
was the first one in my
class at Pro Stock. So
it was a pretty positive
reception. It's been pretty
surreal for me because
it's been my dream since
I was a kid to become
a world champ. For the
most part everybody has
been supportive. There is
just a handful of people
out there left with a
chauvinistic mentality so
you have to just take that
with a grain of salt.
THE BATTALION:
What was your Aggie
experience like?
ENDERS-STEVENS: I had
a blast. I wish I could go
back. I was actually just
taking to my PR guy about
it and I can't believe it's
been nine years since
I've been there. I don't
feel that old and it doesn't
feel like it's been that
long. I had a really good
time. I was there for four
years and my sister was
a freshman when I was a
senior so I got to spend
one year there with her
and we had a good time.
We lived over there in a
townhouse by Sorority
Row and we were always
up to something: drag
racing on the weekends
but College Station during
the week.
THE BATTALION: How
has being an Aggie
impacted your career?
ENDERS-STEVENS: It has
actually been awesome.
No matter where I go, it's
still neat to see how the
Aggie network works.
I mean, from being
on airplanes and just
random hotels across the
country, the Aggie Ring
is always a way to start
a conversation. Anybody
that is familiar with me
and drag racing knows
that I was an Aggie so it's
always something that
fans bring up. It's really
neat to talk about. I had
a blast when I was there
and certainly wish that I
could go back.
THE BATTALION: What
was it like having a
movie based on your
life?
ENDERS-STEVENS: That
was pretty surreal. I was
actually at A&M when the
movie was released so
it was a little bit chaotic
and a lot of fun. When I
Drag racer and former student Erica Enders-Stevens was
the inspiration for a Disney Channel original movie.
say surreal, it blows my
mind because I'm just a
normal goofball kid. I'm
31 now and it's crazy. I
have been really blessed
to been able to follow my
dream and have a lot of
really inspirational people
work with me along the
way and it has been super
fun. To have a movie based
about my sister's and my
life story is pretty neat.
We had a huge impact on
our sport and [the movie]
still does to this day since
it still airs on Disney
Channel. Even though it
was released in '03 when
I was at A&M, it's still
playing. The kids who saw
it initially have grown up
with me and then there's
a whole new generation of
kids who are seeing it now
that are getting involved in
drag racing because of it.
It's pretty cool.
THE BATTALION: What is
next for you?
ENDERS-STEVENS: I
just want to keep going.
Everybody else asks if I
plan on moving to Top Fuel
or "Funny Cars" because
those two classes are
faster than Pro Stock, but
I don't see it as upward
movement at all. My
heart's in Pro Stock. So I
plan on racing Pro Stock
as long as I possibly can.
I'm with a really great
team now for the first
time of my life, I've got a
tremendous group of guys
around me.
THE BATTALION: Do
you have any advice for
any A&M graduation
seniors?
ENDERS-STEVENS: Just
follow your dreams. I
mean, it sounds cheesy,
but you know, my dad
told me when I was a kid,
" Love what you do for a
living and never work a day
in your life." It's so true. I
spend 300 days a year on
the road so my race team
is my family. I don't get a
lot of time at home but as
hard as we work it doesn't
feel like work because I
love it.
APOCALYPSE CONTINUED
leading to graphics, videos and potential new story
plot lines that students can invent.
Pourteau said Wonderment has helped create a
website where fans can upload their own work to
be read. If the feedback is positive and Wonder
ment is interested, they may even offer a contract.
“All of us are contributing something — it’s a
community-created bookverse,” Pourteau said.
“So what that means is it’s just a group of writers
and we are all working together. It’s not a ccinpeti-
tion. If my book does well, they do well, so it’s a
collaborative work and that’s a great feeling to be
part of a community that wants to help you.”
Pourteau said he feels overwhelmed at getting
to share his writings with his alma mater, and in
corporated a little something special in honor of his
Aggie family.
“I’m excited because when I was here I was a
member of the MSC sci-fi community and I was
part of the literary arts community at the MSC,”
Pourteau said. “It’s a wonderful feeling to put my
stories out here and hope other Aggies can read
it. As an Aggie I made sure that one of my Easter
eggs was making the evil professor that created the
deadly virus a professor from UT.”
Michael Bunker, an executive producer of
“Apocalypse Weird” and author, said the apocalyp
tic genre is not only for Walking Dead fans or hortor
movie geeks — it can also appeal to anyone interested
in science fiction or fantasy.
“I think that it is something that is new — it is
really just something that can identify with this gen
eration,” Bunker said. “This is really the first type
of publishing company that is doing things through
means of social media, through collaboration, through
open-source work.”
“Apocalypse Weird” has a long-term goal of
publishing two novels each month for the next five
years. For each novel, a launch party is held, where
participants can interact with authors and receive
giveaways.
BASEBALL CONTINUED
three frames of play.
“[Allemand] started it off with a bang with a
home run, then [Melton] started off the other with
a home run,” Banks said. “Those were two big hits
that put momentum our way.”
Logan Nottebrok had arguably the highlight defen
sive play of the season for A&M at third base. With
A&M in a jam and the bases loaded, U FA hit a line
drive right at Nottebrok and he made a diving grab.
While on the ground, he tagged third base for the
double play to end the Maverick attack.
The Mavericks (17-22) shaved two runs off the
Aggie lead to make it a 4-2 game, but A&M and its
pitching staff ended the UTA threats. On the day,
U FA hit l-for-9 with runners in scoring position.
Starter Turner Larkins saw his day end after three
innings of solid work, and behind him a combina
tion of Blake Kopetsky, Corbin Martin, Kyle Si-
monds and Mark Ecker kept the Mavericks mostly
in check. Ecker earned his eighth save of the year
in the win.
“I was just ready to get back on the field, and
ready to get that sour taste out of our mouths,”
Ecker said. “It was kind of rough on Sunday for ev
eryone. We were just ready to get back out here.”
The Aggies have won the last 12 meetings
against the Mavericks. The game concludes a nine-
game home stand for A&M, a stretch in which it
went 7-2. The Aggies now travel for the biggest
SEC series of the season this weekend, as they will
take on No. 1 LSU in Baton Rouge. First pitch is
scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Thursday.
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