(3-18-10) - Shayne Summerfield is a third year student at UNOH and will graduate in just a few short days.
Attaining a degree in High Performance Motorsports and internships within the ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and Menards through the UNOH program led Summerfield to a full-time position with a high-caliber race team in the ARCA Racing Series. Currently interning with Andy Belmont Racing, Summerfield was offered a job as a mechanic for the team and starts full-time on April 1. As a third year traveling student in the UNOH/ARCA internship program, Summerfield believes he received the best education in motorsports. "I would absolutely recommend the motorsports program at UHOH," said Summerfield. "If you want the best high performance motorsports education in the country, it's at UNOH. The school, paired with the ARCA Racing Series, has given me the education and skills I need to be successful in this industry. Being 20-years-old and having a veteran status in the series is the best opportunity and resume anyone could ask for." In 2009, Summerfield worked with Brad Smith Motorsports as a mechanic. As he got closer to graduation, Summerfield began looking for a permanent position, but Brad Smith Motorsports did not have the capacity to hire him full-time upon his upcoming graduation. After some heavy networking, Summerfield landed the position with Andy Belmont Racing as a mechanic and began interning with Andy Belmont Racing at the ARCA open test session in December 2009 at Daytona
Name: Shayne Summerfield
Hometown: Johnstown, NY
ARCA Team: Andy Belmont Racing
"I really appreciate Andy Belmont giving me the opportunity to work with his team," said the new employee. "I was the most competitive person I knew until I met Andy and the team's driver Nick Igdalsky. There is nobody that wants to win more than those guys and that makes this team a really good fit for me."
Summerfield really enjoys the "family feel" of the ARCA Racing Series and attributes his passion for a career in motorsports to working on racecars throughout his adolescence. Growing up, Summerfield never thought he could make a career being an ARCA team's mechanic, but, as fate would have it, he found a flyer in his high school gym locker room advertising UNOH and the High Performance Motorsports Program offered. Summerfield did some research, visited a few campuses, and made the decision to attend UNOH when he realized that if motorsports was the career he wanted to pursue, UNOH was the best place to attend. He really enjoys the automotive field and can see himself traveling the ARCA circuit for many years. He hopes to eventually move to a shop job with a prominent NASCAR team.
"The ARCA Series is such a close-knit group in the garage," said Summerfield. "Although the traveling is hectic with school, soon I will just be working and not have class and tests to worry about when I travel. The competition is great in this series, so I hope to stay here and be successful. Eventually, I would love to work in the Roush-Yates engine department."
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