Drag racing ignites internal fire for group of siblings
The young drag racing phenoms sponsored by Infinity Coach Inc. and K&D Autowerks in Sumner hit the road a little differently.
It’s not that motorsports are strange, it’s just these young drag racers are not the typical racers seen in the papers. Especially when many of them haven’t even received their Washington state driver’s license.
“I’m always asked what my favorite sports are,” Kaden Bean said. “I always start out with drag racing … they always stop me and ask what drag racing is.”
Kaden, along with his sister Jaslyn, brothers Devin and Korban Lewis and Jordan Calhoun represent the local athletes on the junior drag racing circuit.
Motorsports is a passion for these five kids. Any given weekend, it’s a haul out to tracks either in state or Oregon — or even major races like the Western Conference Finals in Lake City, Utah — where these five have discovered a piece of themselves on the track.
It’s love for a sport.
“I love being out there because it’s different than what kids normally do for sports in high school,” Devin Lewis said.
“I got into this because my grandfather and brother raced,” Calhoun said. “I love being out on the track or in the garage whenever I can.”
Devin Lewis, a student at Bonney Lake High, Calhoun (Kentlake High) and Kaden Bean (Sumner High) all have bragging rights other kids can only dream about getting to throw in the faces of their friends. It’s that dream to speed down the track come to life.
“It’s fun to be able to do what kids (legally) can’t do,” Devin said. “But it’s just like any other sport in wanting to win.”
And like any other sport, that passion to be at the top trickles down to family. Younger siblings often see a potential future of theirs.
A potential for them to beat or surpass their older siblings — such is the case for Korban Lewis and Jaslyn Bean.
“I liked watching my brother (Devin) race and wanted to do it, too,” Korban Lewis said. “It’s fun to be out there.”
Sports, and many passions people have in this world, is meant to be shared — enjoyed with others as it allows for experiencing life together.
“My brother (Kaden) has a lot of trophies from all his wins,” Jaslyn Bean said. “I have a few of my own … I want to get more than him, but he has a lot more than me.”
For the time being, at least.
This story was originally published July 29, 2015 at 3:28 PM with the headline "Drag racing ignites internal fire for group of siblings."