Aaron Schutt, one of Decatur County’s few sprint car racers, wants to go fast.
Schutt, 17 and a senior at North Decatur, has resided in the same house in Decatur County for about 14 years. He lives with his parents, Darin and Kathy, and his sister Meagan, who is an eighth grader at North Decatur. Racing is in Schutt’s blood with a great-grandfather who was the state horseracing champion.
When Schutt was around the age of 11, he spectated at races in Indianapolis with his uncle and father.
“I wouldn’t mind racing these one day,” Schutt said as he looked up at his dad.
“We will see,” Schutt’s dad replied with a smirk.
Schutt has been racing now for four years. His first racecar was a 3/4 midget, which can go up to 120 miles per hour. After three years with the 3/4 midget, Schutt’s dad and crew decided he could advance to a sprint car. A sprint car is twice the size of a 3/4 midget with tougher competitors and a much faster capability, reaching speeds of 155 miles per hour. Schutt personally has reached 140 so far.
Schutt practices in a very unique way. He claims video games actually help him enhance his sprint car driving. There is a sprint car simulation game for the Playstation 2 that comes in handy when Schutt is feeling the need for speed without a nearby track. When Schutt wants to get behind the real wheel, he can count on Kyle Lux, a friend in Rushville who has a track in his field.
Racing season for Schutt lasts from mid-April to early October. He tries to compete in about 24 of the 30 races each season. Almost every weekend has a race that lasts from leaving the house at 1 p.m. to returning at 1 a.m. This year, as a rookie to sprint car racing, Schutt attended seven races due to starting halfway through the season.
Most sprint car racers are in their 20s, 30s or 40s. Being significantly younger than the competition did not hinder Schutt, as he was tenth out of roughly 30 people in his first sprint car race. In all the races to follow, he finished in the top 15.
Beside racing, he spends his time practicing a dramatic duo for Speech Team, placing in the top ten in the state for Academic Team Fine Arts, being in key club and working toward an academic honors diploma.
He hopes to attend Butler University next year for finance, possibly going into a job as a banker or financial advisor, unless NASCAR is interested in him. He is currently employed at WTRE Tree Country 1330 and will hit the one year mark next month.
Schutt would like to give a shout out to his friends Ethan Rich, Chris Murray, Ashlie Settles, and all his WTRE listeners.
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Schutt, Sprint Racing at Seventeen
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