North Carolina State University Athletics
TIM PEELER: The Racing Wrestler
5/6/2005 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
May 6, 2005
BY TIM PEELER
RALEIGH - It's a good thing that Cameron Reeves likes going fast.
The sophomore Wolfpack wrestler will need the ability to get places quickly this week as he makes his debut as a moonlighting racecar driver, sandwiched between his last two final exams of the academic year. Then, he'll be off to Cancun to celebrate spring break, a few months later than most college kids.
"It's going to be a pretty exciting week," Reeves said. "I can't wait for it to get here."
Reeves loves to wrestle, and he made a couple of starts for the Wolfpack this season after transferring in to Coach Carter Jordan's program from Chattanooga, going 1-2 in the 165-pound weight class. That was following a prep career that included two appearances in the Georgia wrestling tournament while at North Gwinnett High School.
But Reeves' family background down in Suwanee, Ga., is in racing. His father, Russell, has driven at Road Atlanta and in the United States Speedway Series for nearly two decades, zooming around tracks in one of the two 750-horsepower Lola turbo-charged race cars he owns, when not attending to his primary business, an archery supply store in Lilburn, Ga.
Cameron and his brother Peyton spent much of their childhood going to race tracks in Charlotte, Daytona and Atlanta, watching their father race - and sometimes crash - from the time they could walk. And it's been their father's dream to one day race against his sons.
"Cameron and his brother have watched me race since they were babies," Russell Reeves said. "Everybody would like to climb in an Indy car, and Cameron really loved it when he got a few chances. I have always wanted to race with my boys, but it is hard to find the right opportunity and time to do it. This weekend, however, the USSS travels to Pikes Peak International Raceway in Fountain, Colo., and the elder Reeves thought it would be the perfect time for one of them to make his racing debut on the 1.315-mile road course. It's not the most challenging track in the series. Heck, the cars will probably only top out at 160 miles per hour. So it is really a good training opportunity.
However, the youngest son, 18-year-old Peyton, is going to the prom this weekend at North Gwinnett High School and was unavailable to make the trip, even though the family admits he has more interest, knowledge and experience around the racetrack.
And it is exam week at NC State, which might have eliminated 20-year-old Cameron. He is, after all, an extremely bright student, who was a member of the ACC Academic Honor Roll and a political science major who has ambitions of going to law school.
But he did have three days off between Thursday's chemistry exam and Monday's statistics exam.
"Perfect!" his father said.
So Cameron left Raleigh Friday morning at 6 a.m., flew to Atlanta to meet his dad, then flew to Denver. They made the 100-mile drive down to Pikes Peak - rather quickly, one suspects - for a 2 p.m. open practice session, where Cameron got behind the wheel of his father's blue Lola for a couple hours of practice.
To be able to compete in the race on Sunday afternoon, Cameron Reeves will have to complete a driving school and a certification process. If he passes, he will get a slot behind all the other cars in the field.
"The only thing that I haven't done a lot of is racing with a lot of other cars on the track," Reeves said. "That's something I will have to get used to. I plan to get a lot of seat time in the car on Friday and Saturday to get prepared.
"But this is something I have always dreamed of doing. And one day, maybe my brother, my dad and I can all race at the same time."
As soon as the hour-long race is over Sunday, Cameron will fly back to Raleigh - the tentative arrival time is about 1 a.m. Monday morning - put in a few hours of final cramming, then take his last exam of the semester later in the day.
Wednesday, he flies to Cancun for a much-needed vacation.
"I plan to sit back and relax for a while," Reeves said.
To be honest, Jordan is a little put off that one of his wrestlers is taking a weekend away from studying for final exams to drive in a race - because he wants to go too.
"I am very, very jealous," said Jordan, a gear-head from way back. "I am a big-time Formula One racing fan. Matter of fact, there is a big race this weekend in Spain and I'll be up at 7 in the morning to watch it on Sunday. So I was really excited to hear that Cameron's dad raced Indy cars.
"I was put in a trance by it. I love hearing those stories."
Reeves does plan to give one little tribute to his other athletic life when he's on the track. His dad's car isn't overloaded with sponsorship stickers, so he thinks he can find a little clear space.
"I am going to find someplace to write `Wolfpack wrestling,' " he said.
You may contact Tim Peeler at tim_peeler@ncsu.edu.
