SOUTHAMPTON COUNTY, Va. — Denny Hamlin, Ricky Rudd, and the Sadlers are among the most successful race car drivers to call Virginia home. Kart racer Sherod Charity is someone who may soon join that list of drivers.
Charity discovered kart racing at age 11 at a Go Kart track while on family vacation in Orlando.
"It was fun, quick. Fastest carts I had ever been in until I got in these. Fast as I don't know what. I might have run into my sister," he remember.
He dad remembered other details.
"I remember him getting beat by his sister. And he didn't like it. So we raced again and he got a little better. His time improved as we kept racing," Alfred Charity said.
Whether it was the thrill of going fast or the sting of losing to a sibling, Sherod Charity kept asking to keep driving.
The more he drove, the faster he got.
It got to the point where he was quick enough to join an adults-only league.
"He rarely asks for anything. When he asked to do this, that was enough for me. He's kept his interest going. He's respectful. When we got into the karting community, they welcome you with open arms. It doesn't matter what you look like, what color you are. When you put a helmet on, you race," his father said.
And Sherod can race.
The soon-to-be sophomore at Southampton High has already won four different karting championships.
He's won races in seven states.
He was also part of a three-driver team that won the Rookie Class Championship at Endurance Karting.
Sherod has also raced at Daytona International Speedway where he finished fourth in his class.
At a World Karting Association event in South Carolina, he finished first in his class while reaching top speeds of over 90 miles per hour.
Not bad for a kid who doesn't even want to back the family car out of the driveway.
"He's been to one race at Langley. He won't watch it on TV, won't watch Formula 1, won't watch NASCAR. but if you take him to the race, he doesn't want to be bothered. He's going to watch the race," his father said.
Sherod Charity's success has not always come easily. There have been lessons learned the hard way and plenty of equipment bent in the process.
"Ran into a barrier. Couldn't slow down in time and ran into a barrier. Bent my tie rod right here and some other stuff," he said.
But any opponent that mistakes his softspoken demeanor for a laid back attitude on the track does so at their own risk.
"He doesn't talk much as you can tell. However, when he puts the racing helmet on, it's business," his father said. "He's said some things that I didn't think would come out of his mouth when he's on the track or in the heat of battle. No, nothing I can repeat."
Even at his relatively young age, Sherod Charity has learned from past mistakes, both his own and others.
He is aware of how expensive this sport can be if you do not take care of your equipment and he can show a patience that belies his age.
"Just don't wreck it" he said. "If you wreck it, you have to get new parts."
"He's lost races or lost places because he's going to be respectful, because he knows we don't want anybody to tear our stuff up and I don't want him to tear anybody else's stuff up," his father said. "He knows when to back out of situations that get kind of hairy. I've seen him let off the gas or mash the brake and just let other people go when they're fighting. They end up crashing out, going off the course and he'll just sweep right on by."
Where this can take him depends on a number of factors, not the least of which is sponsorship and support.
Sherod Charity hopes to work with professional coaches and maybe move up to bigger cars and tougher competition.
His family and maybe even his sister will be along for the ride.
"As long as he wants to do it and his grades are good and he minds his mother and myself, we'll do what we can for him," his father said.
Sherod Charity recently earned three more wins in his karting classes.
The next move up would be to try late model racing which would get him into bigger vehicles.
And if he gets some of the coaching his father mentioned, it may not be too long before we see him in one of Nascar's national series.
Watch for Lane Casadonte's features on CBS 6 News and WTVR.com. If you know someone Lane should profile, email him beyondtheroster@wtvr.com.
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