Some first dates lead to a second. Cheryl’s led to nearly 20 years of lively memories at the racetrack. In 2007, Cheryl’s fiancé, now husband, asked to take her out. A pickup line with a proven track record: he arrived with an enthusiastic, “Come on, I’m gonna take you racing.” The very next week, Friday nights had a new purpose!
It didn’t take long for his love of racing to become hers, too. What hooked Cheryl wasn’t only what happened on the oval. It was watching fans jump to their feet for their favorite drivers, seeing teams celebrate big wins and personal milestones, and feeling the buzzing electricity of excitement that brought everyone together.
Today, Cheryl has become a very familiar and extra loved face in the dirt racing community. Her home is filled with racing collectibles, her closet is packed with driver shirts, and if there’s a race on DIRTVision, chances are she’s watching. She keeps up with upcoming races, results, driver news and just about everything happening across the sport. In fact, we sometimes wonder if the drivers call her with news before they call us! 😂
But ask Cheryl what makes her home track, Maquoketa Speedway, so special, and her answer has nothing to do with any of that.
“It’s the people.”
A Family That Shows Up
For Cheryl, the annual World of Outlaws Hawkeye 100 at Maquoketa means reconnecting with people she may not have seen all year. Not everyone gets to travel for every race, so big weekends at the track become reunions with friends whose lives have grown intertwined through the shared love of the sport.
Over the years, Cheryl has learned just how far those relationships extend beyond the racetrack. When she underwent brain surgery last year, the Hoker family, who are promoters of Maquoketa Speedway, were there for her throughout the process. Penny Hoker donated items for an auction to help raise money for her surgery, and others throughout the racing community stepped forward to help in her recovery.
The surgery left Cheryl with some challenges remembering everything, but there’s one thing that seems to stick: racing. The drivers, numbers, stories and memories remain deeply rooted.
“Race car drivers sure do got a lot of heart,” Cheryl says.
She saw that heart again when her granddaughter, Lizzie, was in a coma. Racers sent T-shirts, cards and messages telling her, “We want you back at the track, Lizzie. Get better soon.”
Lizzie continues to face medical complications that sometimes make it difficult for her to attend races, but the drivers haven’t forgotten her. They ask Cheryl how she’s doing and send things home with Grandma so she can still feel connected even when she can’t be there. Jason Feger (DIRTcar Summer Nationals Champion – No. 25) and Angie Pierce (Mother of World of Outlaws Late Model driver Bobby Pierce – No. 32) are among those who regularly ask about her.
Those moments are why, for Cheryl, the friendships formed through racing have become about much more than what happens on the track. She has shared life’s biggest moments with these people—the good, the bad and everything in between. At the end of the day, as Cheryl sees it, we’re all doing life for the first time. Racing simply gave her a family to do it alongside.
The Legendary Racing Cane
If there’s one thing that captures Cheryl’s place in the racing community, it might be her racing cane.
When walking became a little more difficult, Cheryl needed a cane to continue getting around at the races. An ordinary one wasn’t going to cut it, so she decorated hers with the numbers and stickers of her favorite drivers, turning something she needed into part of her race-day identity.
Unfortunately, that first cane was stolen. But Jason Feger’s mom wasn’t going to let that keep Cheryl away from the track. She got her another one, decorated it beautifully, and made sure it was delivered with a fitting message: nothing can stop “Miss Cheryl” from coming to the races!
That relationship goes well beyond the cane. Cheryl has grown especially close with Feger and his family, and she and her husband have traveled to their beginning-of-the-season party nearly every year for the past decade, missing only two.
It’s just one example of something Cheryl has experienced again and again: when racing brings people together, they tend to stay together.
Making Everyone Feel Welcome
Cheryl is a Late Model fan at heart, but her passion and curiosity naturally led her into exploring the Sprint Car world as well. Earlier this year, she attended her first event. The racing was fantastic, but as could be expected, it was the drivers that truly made the experience stand out!
After meeting our race fan, a driver gifted Cheryl her very first Sprint Car T-shirt. But the team decided that to really make it official, she needed a few autographs too. The tee made its way through the pits, collecting signatures along the way, and became much more than a stylish piece of race-day gear—it’s now a conversation starter filled with many fond memories.
It may have started as a small gesture, but to Cheryl, it represented something much bigger. No matter the racing discipline, the community has a way of making everyone feel welcome—legend or new fan alike.
Today, Cheryl certainly isn’t a stranger at the racetrack. “The racers know me too,” she says. She’s built countless friendships throughout the racing community, where teams and fans like expect to see her, look out for her and notice when she’s missing.
She’s been Fan of the Night multiple times, and her racing shirts follow a weekend rotation—with Thursday, Friday and Saturday each getting their own theme. Her list of other favorite drivers includes Tim McCreadie (No. 9), Tanner English (No. 96), Ryan Gustin (No. 19R), and Zack Mitchell (No. 22*).
Pictured (Top to Bottom): Cheryl winning Fan of the Night, Cheryl with World Racing Group Fan Experience Coordinator Jordyn Steele
Her love of racing even found its way into her wedding plans. When she and her husband got married, Cheryl insisted they wait until race season was over. If you run into them in October, make sure to wish the wonderful couple a 🔔 “Happy Anniversary!” 🔔
Another Generation of Race Fans
Recently, Cheryl shared another milestone with us: the arrival of her first great-granddaughter.
Her announcement came with a fitting caption: “Another generation to teach about racing.”
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It’s hard to imagine a better summary of the life Cheryl has built since that first time experiencing the power of dirt in 2007. What began with her future husband excitedly taking her to share his hobby became driver shirts, Victory Lane photos, a legendary presence, and friendships stretching across seasons and state lines.
Pictured (Top to Bottom): Cheryl with Giovanni Scelzi, Kyle Larson, Justin Peck
More importantly, it became a community that celebrates the biggest wins in racing and the biggest moments in life with the same kind of heart.
That’s what keeps Cheryl coming back to Maquoketa Speedway year after year.
The racing may have brought her there.
The people made sure she’d always have a reason to come back.
Cheryl’s Advice for a First-Time Fan
“Go and keep an open mind and have a good time.”
And be warned: “Once you go, you get hooked. It really doesn’t take much!”
Cheryl’s Hot Take
“Drivers need to learn they can’t park their cars on top of other cars.”
And in true “racing grandma” form - she has a reminder for our drivers…
“If you run the car like you run your mouth, you’d win a lot more races.”
Thanks for being such a fantastic fan, Cheryl! We adore you!
