For fans in the stands in may look easy at times as drivers pilot dirt late models around the track.  Late models often just slide through a corner with what looks like little or no effort from the driver.  A casual fan may miss out on just how talented a dirt late model driver has to be to put their machine around a race track and win against the best drivers in the country.  This great in-car video shows just how much a driver has to do behind the wheel of a 800+ horsepower 2,300lb late model. 

The Moweaqua, Illinois native Shannon Babb never gets a chance to rest as he is always steering. He never gets the wheel straight because even in the straight-away he is setting the car up to enter the next corner.  Babb has earned some big wins over his career as he won the $50,000 Dirt Track World Championship in 2002 and 2006, $40,000 Topless 100 in 2003, $40,000 Diamond Nationals in 2008, and is a 3-time UMP Summer Nationals Champion. 

Shannon Babb at Brownstown Speedway in His #18 Dirt Late Model (Photo Source: Mark Schaefer Photo)

His many years of experience and resume of victories make the “Moweaqua Missile” quite the artist behind the wheel of a dirt late model.  Next time you are at a late model race just try to watch the front tires and see how much the driver really is working.  This video shows Babb in the office for another day’s work and we are lucky enough to ride along with him.  For more information on Shannon Babb fans can visit www.shannonbabb.net.