Story By: DAN HODGDON / MANDY CHICK RACING – DE SOTO, KS – After a second consecutive summer spent interning at General Motors in Michigan, Mandy Chick is set to return to the ARCA Menards Series in the Reese’s 150 at Kansas Speedway on Friday. She’ll be behind the wheel of her family-owned Chick Engineering No. 74 Chevrolet SS at the 1.5-mile D-shaped oval.
Chick, a native of De Soto, Kansas, has been attending races at the track her entire life. She has also found the most success in her ARCA career at the facility in Kansas City, Kansas, having posted top-15 finishes in all three of her starts there. Since early last year, she and her team have had the input of North Carolina-based Cook Racing Technologies as well, helping Chick achieve continued strong results.
“Kansas Speedway is the type of track I always have loved due to the speed and banking,” Chick said. “I have a ton of people around me investked in my success and I’m so thankful for the support and advice of Cook Racing Technologies as we work to develop a good setup for our team.”
Shortly after finishing 15th at Kansas in early May, Chick graduated from Terre Haute, Indiana’s Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering. She then served as an engineering design intern at GM in the Strategic Vehicle Integration division on the Bumper, Fascia, Grille team.
“During my internship, I engaged in a diverse range of projects and gained valuable insights into how specific regulations influence vehicle designs,” she said. “I particularly enjoyed learning not just what we do, but also understanding why we do certain things, which is crucial for design and innovation. That kept me busy this summer and I loved it.”
The spirit of innovation and the culture at the historic automaker drove her to complete an engineering design internship for a second summer. Plus, she can transfer a variety of lessons learned at GM to her racing endeavors.
This week at Kansas Speedway, Chick will make her third and final ARCA Menards Series start of 2024 (she also raced at Daytona in February). She and her team will then begin preparing for next year with 2025 plans to be announced at a later date.
In the meantime, Chick has a variety of professional and personal milestones on the horizon.
“I am finishing my master’s in engineering management this fall at Rose-Hulman, getting married in December, and starting a full-time position as an engineer in the General Motors TRACK program in January,” she said. “Lots of exciting things are coming up and I’m thankful for the support of the amazing people around me.”
On Friday, fans can support Chick in the ARCA Menards Series Reese’s 150 and also take in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Kubota Tractor 200 for a discounted rate. Tickets for the Kansas doubleheader are available for just $25 per person at https://fevo-enterprise.com/event/Mandychick3. A FanWalk ticket is available for an additional $15. All tickets are digital and ready for race day.
The Reese’s 150 will start at 5:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. CT on Friday, September 27. FOX Sports 1 and the FOX Sports App will provide live television coverage, with the radio broadcast set for the Motor Racing Network (MRN).