Tim Norris gets set for the races at Careers Unlimited 2007

Tim Norris, apprenticesearch.com #88 racecar driver looks on as students from White Oaks Secondary School check out his wheels at Careers Unlimited 2007. Click for bigger.

Tim Norris had two roles to play at this year's Careers Unlimited. He was there representing the skilled trades, alongside many other tradespeople from a variety of different sectors, and he was there as a racecar driver, standing alongside the apprenticesearch.com #88 racecar, drawing all sorts of attention from the close to 1,000 attendees at the Halton-based career fair that ran April 3 at White Oaks Secondary School in Oakville.

"It's my third time out," he says, in between helping Halton you in and out of the driver's seat. "It's great to meet all the young kids and give them insight. About the car and about the trades."

For Tim, Careers Unlimited represented a night off from the tireless preparation of getting his car ready for the races. Now entering his third year as part of the Ontario Pro Challenge Series -- the races kick off May 12 at Sunset Speedway --, Tim is poised to have his best season ever. But he can't get there without a lot of hard work.

"We've changed almost the entire setup this year," he explains. "From the shocks to the springs, to the paint job and logos -- it's all new."

All the work is being done in the hopes that this season might bring Tim a little closer to a first place overall finish. Last season, Tim and his team placed 2nd -- his best finish ever -- in a season marred by far too many on-the-track collisions.

"It's a part of racing, sure, but we had some rotten luck last year. One of my biggest goals this time out is to do everything I can to avoid getting caught up in other wrecks. Getting taken out by other cars equals bad."

A White Oaks student takes the wheel. Click for bigger.

Given all the on-track mishaps, Tim credits his team's ability to repair the car last season as the biggest factor in their second-place finish. He still maintains a core crew of family and friends who work in the skilled trades -- including Dave Buchanan, Machinist, and Morgan Illsley, bricklayer, amongst others -- who he can call on when he needs help with repairs and maintenance.

Even with his continued success on the track, Tim still manages a full-time schedule out on the job site. Recently he's been "working like a crazy man." His work has taken him all over the province doing brickwork. The travelling is something he enjoys.

"It's a lot of different kinds of jobs with a lot of different types of people, which means it never really gets boring," he says.

Between that and the racetrack, there's not a lot of room for any boredom in Tim's life. But that's exactly the way he likes it.

Tim's first race will be Saturday, May 12 at Sunset Speedway in Stroud, Ontario. Visit the Ontario Pro Challenge Series website for more information and to follow Tim's results!

-Matt Elliott

Back to Race Page