FANTASY NASCAR Racin

As soon as she was old enough to drive, Shawna Robinson was racing. To begin with it was snowmobiles, then she moved on to trucks at the age of 19. From 1983 to 1988, she competed in the Great American Truck Racing Tour, winning a few major events, including the 1984 Milwaukee race, and the 1987 Big Rig 100. She won rookie of the year honors in 1984 as well as a race at Flemington Speedway in 1987. She graduated to stock car competition in 1988, and she was named Rookie of the Year in the now-defunct Dash Series, and won Most Popular Driver in 1988 and 1989. She instantly made an impression, coming third in her first Goody's Dash race at Daytona. Later in the year, she captured her first win at New Ashville. In 1989 she completed another full season in the Goody's Dash Series. Her biggest achievement this year was winning a pole position at South Carolina, the first woman to do so. Her second pole was at Myrtle Beach, where she converted it into a win. After three wins and 21 top-tens in the Dash series,

Shawna was intent on progressing further up the NASCAR ladder. At the end of her Dash Series career, she had three wins and twenty-one top-tens. Robinson made her Busch Series debut at Orange County Speedway in 1991, in the #77 Sparky's Famous Hot Dogs Buick, starting 26th and finishing 15th. She drove the #25 Polaroid Oldsmobile, posting two eleventh-place finishes. Despite her abbreviated schedule, she finished runner-up to Ricky Craven for Rookie of the Year honors. Her 1992 schedule expanded to fourteen races, and her overall placings were getting better. Her best finishes were a pair of eleventh places. She was second in the Rookie standings and learning fast. Robinson came back to run 24 races in the

#35 for Mike Laughlin in 1993 driving for the Polaroid team, after a couple of races with them in 1992. She was 23rd overall, and now a professional driver. Her best finish was twelfth, at Indianapolis. Her best finish came at Indianapolis Raceway Park, where she finished 12th.1994 was the year that her Xfinity career really took off. She earned her first outright Xfinity pole position at Atlanta, which was also a new track record of 174.33 mph.; and she managed her first top-ten in the category at Watkins Glen; but was released after the next race at the Milwaukee Mile. A switch of teams in 1995 meant limited finances, and she returned to make an aborted attempt at the 1995 Daytona 500; so 1995 was another part-season for Shawna. So she took time off to have her two children. Five years later, Shawna, now 36, returned to the track after giving birth of her son and daughter and moved to the #8 Kmart Ford Taurus for Michael Kranefuss. She

opted out of the NASCAR family this time, preferring to race in the ARCA stock-car championship. She also became the first woman in ARCA history to lead a race when she led several laps at Toledo Speedway. Having reacquainted herself with the inside of a racing car, it was back to NASCAR in 2001. Robinson ran three races for Michael Waltrip Racing in 2001, her best finish being 19th at Talladega Super speedway, with her other two races ending in wrecks. She and Kranefuss attempted four Winston Cup races in 2001 in the #84 with sponsorship from Aaron's and Tropicana. After Tropicana pulled out, Robinson signed to drive 24 races for Beth Ann Morganthau and BAM Racing in 2002. BAM Racing was a small Winston Cup team run by Beth Ann Morgenthau. Shawna was scheduled to take part in 24 Winston Cup races, and

finished her first race, at Daytona, in 24th. However, things went downhill from there, and the Iowa driver often found herself being substituted for her team-mate, or running on experimental and unsuitable car setups. She lasted seven races with the team, during which she scored no notable points, before being released. Shawna put the BAM debacle behind her and tried her hand at the Craftsman Truck series, supported by Mike Starr. In a newsworthy move, her team hired an all-female pit crew for her first race at Texas. It was a move that almost paid finished her first race, at Daytona, in 24th. However, things went downhill from there, and the Iowa driver often found herself being substituted for her team-mate, or running on experimental and unsuitable car setups. She lasted seven races with the team, during which she scored no notable points, before being released. Shawna put the BAM debacle behind her and tried her hand at the

Craftsman Truck series, supported by Mike Starr. In a newsworthy move, her team hired an all-female pit crew for her first race at Texas. It was a move that almost paid off; Shawna was 18th overall at the end of the race, after a mistimed pitstop put her down the field. She had been running much higher than that previously. After her funds dried up, she went back to running her own interior design business during 2004. In 2003, she ran three races for Team Texas in the #49 Aaron's Chevrolet Silverado with an all-female pit crew. Her best finish was 18th at Texas Motor Speedway. F or her career, she ran in eight CUP events with a best qualifying effort of 16th at Texas. In her Xfinity career she ran in 61 races with one pole, and a best finish of 10th at Watkins Glen in 1994. Robinson was the thirteenth woman to have competed in NASCAR's top

Fantasy NASCAR Racing

SHAWNA ROBINSON - 11/30/1964