It is our great pleasure to present you you fine readers, a rising star on the dirt sprint car racing scene, Mark Ruel, Jr. Don’t let his skinny build fool you, Mark has a heavy right foot and always stands on the gas. He also kind of has a Kyle Petty build going on, but that’s neither here nor there.

Ladies and gentleman, the driver that coined the 2010 version of the FSCA as Otto’s Sprint Car Association…Mark Ruel, Jr.

That’s a fun name you’ve got there. Have you ever considered painting “Mark Ruelz, Bitches” or “Mark Ruelz with an Iron Fist” or something similar on the side of your sprint car? I got a lot of that kind of stuff back in school, but I never really considered putting any of it on my sprint car to be honest with you. But I will tell you what, if you guys make me a sticker, I will put it on there just for you guys at FSCF.com.

You’ve been seen at Top Gun Sprint Series and Otto’s Sprint Car Association races so far this year. Do you have a preference and why? We are going to be racing anywhere and everywhere we can this year. Whether it is FSCA, Top Gun, or East Bay regular races, it doesn’t really matter. But as far as my personal preference, it has to be with the FSCA. I’ve got nothing against the other clubs or competitors, I just like running points with FSCA.

Do you have the longest hair of any male sprint car driver in the state of Florida? I do believe I do have the longest hair, thank you very much. I really can’t think of anyone who has longer hair than me, but Gene Lasker is kind of close though.

How did you get your start in sprint car racing? I got my start in sprint cars from Danny and Larry Pickett. My dad has been friends with them for over 20 years. Larry and my dad went to the old Ascot track in Califonia many, many years ago and saw sprint cars for the first time and Larry fell in love with them. When he moved to Florida and found that sprints were being run down here, he had to give it a try. About five or six years later me and my dad went and watched he and Danny race and at the time we were racing go-carts and wanted to move up to something different and we heard of a sprint car for sale and I’ve been racing them ever since

Who are some of the sprint car drivers you admire here in Florida, next to Ryan Partin of course. Haha, Ryan is a good driver, but the one I admire most would have to be Mr. Otto Scrape. He’s been doing it since the 60′s or so and I’ve seen some pictures of those old cars that he used to run, and man what a handful they use to be. But it is amazing how long he’s been doing it, but what I admire most of all is how much he’s done for sprint cars in the state of Florida. If it wasn’t for Otto, I wouldn’t be driving a sprint car.

What do you like to do for fun when you’re not racing sprint cars? I’m up for pretty much anything. I love baseball, so I watch a lot of it. I also love to swim. I work on cars a lot and hang out with friends, pretty much what any other 20 year old male likes to do.

I heard that you don’t like to read for fun, is that because you got beat with books a lot when you were a kid? You’re a funny guy, but it’s not that at all. It’s just that if it doesn’t have four tires and a motor in, I’m not all that interested.

Do you miss Putnam County Speedway? You whooped everybody pretty good there last year. Yes and no. I like how well we did out there last year and the fans that were there really seemed to enjoy watching sprint cars, but that track is kind of crazy. It’s a fun little track, but over the course of the season the track got worse and worse and just ended up being a sand pit the last couple races. It’s definitely a fun track to drive. If they would put some new dirt down, it would be a great place

What’s your favorite track to race at and why? I’m not picky. Wherever my next race is on my schedule is my favorite track. I really enjoy racing no matter the track.

You’re a pretty skinny fellow. Is it true you were working on your car at East Bay recently when a stiff wind caught a hold of you and you were found five miles from the track, still with a titanium rotor in your hand? I gots to stay thin, man. I can’t afford titanium stuff, so I have to keep the weight down on the car somehow!