By the time it was “legal” for him to drive a car, Quintin Crye had been speeding up and down the coast of California for over a decade.

That he’d been behind the wheel in a car without doors, running on dirt or asphalt rather than the highway, was of no consequence. For Quintin, it was all about driving and driving fast.

“My dad was a drag racer and I always wanted to get into it,” Quintin says. “At first I wanted to race motorcycles, but that didn’t fly at home. So, they put me in a car and let me go.”

Since 1994, Quintin has been one of the hottest drivers in Northern California. He’s earned top-ten finishes in NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Western Late Model races, been named the USAC Western Midget Rookie of the Year in 2007 and been a Cycleland Open International Champion.

These days Quintin, the only Native American driver in NASCAR, is bouncing between his handmade late model and a stock car, aiming to get on the track anyway he can. “The only thing I want to do is race,” Quintin admits. “Any where, any time. Strap me in, fire it up and let’s go.”