Most race car drivers come from rich parents or grandparents who have millions of dollars of backing behind them, or both, while prospects and sometimes even once they make it big time in professional racing. Before this, however, many drivers have to “pay their dues”, especially those who don’t come from big money. Brian Gissendaner Jr. is a firefighter who got into racing through iRacing, the ever-popular racing simulator. His hobby of racing has quickly become a passion, in which he intends on making a long-term career.
“I’ve been a fireman for five years, but growing up in Miami, Florida, I grew up riding dirt bikes, so I’ve always had a passion for motorsports. Back when COVID-19 first hit, I was home on social media and saw Rajah Caruth with a race suit on. Once I looked at his page, I saw he was a NASCAR driver, looked at how he got into the sport and saw that he utilized a simulator. I got on the sim after investing into one, racing as a hobby, and after three months, and I was getting pretty good at it.” Gissendaner recalls, “I ended up meeting someone online and he asked if I raced in real life. I told him ‘nah, I’ve never thought about it and I’m not even sure how to get started or get into it if I wanted to start racing’. He told me ‘you should think about it’ and told me he knows a guy who’s always looking for drivers. He then connected me to a guy named Max. My first time testing a real race car was at Mobile Speedway and I was already two seconds faster than he thought I’d be after my first few laps. After that, he saw the potential and he said he’d be in touch with me and four days later, he offered me a ride.”
Most drivers are well-into their driving career by their 20’s. However, auto racing is versatile and there is no “right” or “wrong” age to begin competing at. All you need is talent behind the wheel and a lifestyle to fund it, with support from sponsors, fans and family. Fellow retired African-American driver, Bill Lester, began his driving career in his late-20’s and ended up having a respectable career in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, with a few NASCAR Cup Series races sprinkled in.
“I’m 30-years-old right now, I feel like I got in the game late. At the end of the day, it’s all God’s divine timing and to him, I’m probably getting in the sport right on time.” Gissendaner exclaimed, letting it be known that he’s determined, regardless of his age and that he’s here to compete. “It started as a hobby, but now, I’m pursuing it as a career and hopefully in God’s willing, I’ll be competing in one of the big leagues, like the ARCA Menards Series full-time or even the NASCAR Truck Series full-time and I love the Truck Series. I feel like the Truck Series will be a pretty good experience and I can get pretty good exposure. Depending on how I run there, hopefully the this can line me up to get in a Xfinity Series car or Cup Series car.”
A lot of drivers without the heavy backing to start out work careers that fund their racing endeavors. Gissendaner is a firefighter and uses a lot of his salary to propel his racing dream to advance his career.
“Don’t get me wrong, firefighting is a career job, but I want to make racing my number one. I don’t have a lot of sponsors, only one to be exact and I pay out of pocket. My fire department career is my cash cow while I’m trying to make it, and majority of my income comes from the fire department. If I gotta go broke to do something I love, then that’s fine with me and I don’t mind doing that.”
Brian Gissendaner Jr. is about to launch T-Shirts for his brand and is currently looking for sponsorship to pursue his dream of racing in the higher rankings of NASCAR. You can support him by following him on Instagram and keeping up with his journey there and contact him via email at bgissendanerjrracing@gmail.com.
Every Man on Every Crew, LLC. 
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