War wounds, visible and more often invisible. A lack of structure, a lack of mission. Seemingly endless government bureaucracy. These issues often take center stage among the many problems veterans face–and rightfully so. However, there’s one more issue that often flies under the radar. It’s what Battle Scarred Motorsports seeks to address.
“I can’t tell you how many veterans I talked with who are just lonely,” says Charlie Adams, Raceday Coordinator for the organization. “The people they talk with can’t really relate to what their experiences were. When you get lonely and bored, typically good things don’t happen. We’re trying to bring them out of that. We give them an opportunity to reestablish a network of likeminded people who have had similar experiences and who care.”
Charlie served in the Navy for six years. The founders of Battle Scarred Motorsports, Brian Czech and Brian Fennel, were in the United States Marine Corps. The organization consists of many veterans and first responders who know what it’s like to put their lives at stake to serve others.
Charlie Adams.
The non-profit organization has chapters in five states–Georgia, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas–and a fleet of 12 cars. Its 2024 schedule consists of 16 events across the U.S. among three sanctions: 24 Hours of Lemons, ChampCar and Lucky Dog.
Veterans, first responders and civilians alike are welcome to participate, from cleaning the car to getting behind the wheel. To race, civilians pay about $1650 per race, veterans and first responders $1000. With more donations, the organizations aims to significantly reduce that fee for vets and first responders.
“With civilian racers, we’re up front,” Charlie explains. “We say, ‘Your seat fee essentially subsidizes a seat fee for a veteran or first responder, to bring down their cost and fulfill our mission.’ [Civilians] often bring more to the table, because they are experienced racers, too. They bring racecraft and knowledge of the tracks and they coach the [less experienced veterans and first responders].”
If you’re a vet or a first responder with no experience, but want to race, that’s no problem. However, the team will want to work with you first. “For the guys who have never wheel-to-wheel raced or we have never met them, we encourage them to come out, crew for us … hang out and meet everybody,” says Charlie. “We’ve had folks strapped into…
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