Information: hometracks.nascar.com/diversity.
Jorden Paige and Joshua Tate aren’t your typical NASCAR pit crew members — and that’s the point. The men, both former standout football players who attended Clark Atlanta University, are among nine student-athletes participating in the NASCAR Drive for Diversity (D4D) Crew Member Development Program. They were invited after exceling in a national pit crew combine. The AJC caught up with Paige and Tate in Concord, North Carolina, where they are putting in long days learning how to jack up cars and change tires, very, very quickly. If all goes well, they can land jobs with a race team. That’s an exciting prospect or Paige, a long-time racing fan, and Tate, a newcomer to the sport but already a huge enthusiast.
Q: What do you think about the program?
Paige: We know we don't look like everyone else but NASCAR wants to diversify the sport and they want it to grow. The longer I am here, the more into it I am.
Tate: It is an honor to be recruited by Coach Phil Horton (director of human performance). To see more minorities come together, and to come together with everyone else, is great.
Q: Did you know much about racing before trying out for the program?
Paige: My dad is a big fan of NASCAR and Fomula One racing and taught me all about guys like Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jeff Gordon. We lived about an hour from the Daytona 500 and that's where I got the experince of seeing racing in person.
Tate: I never watched NASCAR and didn't really know anything about it. I actually had tried out for the Chicago Bears this summer but they let me go. I thought I might as well take advantage of this opportunity. It has been nothing but fun ever since day one.
Q: Why does being an athlete help with doing a job in a pit crew.
Paige: It helps to be fit and light on your feet. You have to have good hand-eye coordination. There is a lot of training and weightlifting to keep us in shape.
Tate: Racing is a competiton and we like competition. The way I see it, being part of a pit crew is basic teamwork.
Q: Were you assigned jobs?
Tate: They have figured out that your height, weight and strength affect your performance. I am 5-foot-10 and 180 pounds and I am a tire changer. Jorden is 6-foot-5 and 220 pounds. He is a jackman and gets to lift the cars up.
Q: Do you ever see yourself racing?
Paige: Now that we are working on cars, I do want to see how it feels to drive one. But since I'm 6-foot-5, I don't even fit in in one.
Tate: I asked coach yesterday about driving and he laughed. He explained that most drivers have been driving since seven years old, that when you are younger you don't have any fear. Right now, I'll stick to changing tires.
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