Rogers hoping for NASCAR future, 8-year-old brother just starting

In his six years racing Bandoleros, Blake Rogers has won plenty of titles.

The 14-year-old racer added another feat to his impressive resume — a course record.

Rogers ran the quarter-mile asphalt track at Lake Havasu in 16.904 seconds, setting the track record.

“That was pretty awesome,” Rogers said. “To get a record means everything. There's only a slim chance of people to get records. You have to be pretty good.”

Rogers said the win helps pad his resume as he continues on his quest to be a NASCAR driver.

Of course, there's still a long way to go. He still doesn't have a driver's license and isn't racing-full-size cards yet. After this season ends in May, he's eyeing a move to a Legend car, a 5/8 scale replica of classic cars from the 1930s and 1940s.

“Right now we want him to finish off the season in May, then hopefully he'll go into a Legend car,” Blake's dad, Jimmy Rogers, said. “It's a bigger car. Faster and a lot more horsepower. If everything pans out, that is, with sponsorships and everything.”

Currently, Blake Rogers has about a dozen sponsors.

And in actually, those sponsors support the Rogers “team,” which includes Brock. He's just started this year and has been improving every race.

“It takes a good year under their belt before they get really fast,” Jimmy Rogers said. “Besides, you don't want an 8-year-old going 65 miles per hour anyway.”

Each racer has a website — blazinblake.org and rocketbrock.org — with information that includes how to sponsor the duo.

When asked what got him into racing, the 8-year-old answered that he didn't know. When prompted by his mother Sharlee Rogers — “your brother, because it' looked fun?” — Brock provides an answer.

“It was fun,” Brock Rogers said.

His older brother — who also plays football and was on the Gila Ridge freshman team this year — knows what fuels his quest for the pros.

“I love the thrill. I love going fast,” Blake Rogers said. “It's just a blast to race.”

Racing runs in the family — Jimmy Rogers' brother Duane Rogers won the Modified Division at Cocopah Speedway last year, while Jimmy Rogers' dad, Richard, raced as well. Jimmy Rogers said he raced for a little bit as well.

“They want to do something, and we've raced before with my dad and my brother,” Jimmy Rogers said. “It's a lot of travelling, but it's what the kids want to do.”