A Day In the Life Of: Nick Nelson

February 4, 2014
Story By
Kristin Cline

Continuing our Day In the Life Of series, you'll find that the Nitto Racing team drivers are just average guys doing extraordinary things. None of them simply went out and bought a racing team or had the gig drop into their laps, each and every one puts their entire self into the work of making a successful Ultra4 racing team happen. Nick Nelson is one of these guys...

Growing up in North Carolina, Nick began riding a motorcycle after being given one for his 3rd birthday. The thrill of riding and urge to compete has taken him on an interesting journey, “As soon as I got my first motorcycle, all I wanted to do all day was ride. It progressed from motorcycles to a Jeep, Jeep turned into a buggy, and then we were at King of The Hammers in 2009 watching the race and I decided right then that’s what I wanted to do so I went home and sold it and started building a racecar…the rest is history.” Relocating from North Carolina to Las Vegas to be closer to desert racing action, Nick arranges his life completely around racing. Growing up off-roading, Nick gained mechanical and fabrication skills which he's been able to turn into a living. Doing as much work (or as little depending upon how you look at it) as needed to pay the bills, Nick dedicates the rest of his time to his race team.

Day-to-day life for Nick is always changing. One day he may be fabricating parts for someone else, another he'll be testing out his racecar, and another he'll be running errands picking up necessary equipment to build his car. One constant is always being in communication with his team and sponsors, luckily his pup Dozer keeps him company.

Through the years Nick has built many strong local team relationships along with larger national companies, like Nitto. As Nick prepped for King of The Hammers, he stopped by Gear Works/Kroyer Racing Engines to pick up his transmission and talk shop with co-driver Jeremy Whitt.

One thing on the to-do list was to fix his truck, responsible for hauling his race vehicle to King of The Hammers. Nick had Jason check out the noise and the two problem shoot before Nick headed over to Adam’s Driveshaft to do some wrenching.

In addition to keeping his tow vehicle in health, Adam’s Driveshaft also provides Nick with his racing driveshafts. The two have worked together through a process of R&D to make a driveshaft that is Ultra4 tough. To save time, Nick removed the truck’s driveshaft himself to check its balance and rule out that possibility for his tow vehicle problem. As Nick puts it, “I never make it through a day without getting dirty.”

After another stop by Figspeed, Nick’s headed back home where he does all the work to his race vehicle in the garage. While friends and teammates often meet up there to help, the large majority of work is done by himself.

It seems like Nick Nelson is after one thing…to keep being Champion. After earning the 2012 Ultra4 National Championship title, Nick is currently at King of The Hammers working hard to be "King." This just might be his year... Learn more about Nick at Nitto Racing. Keep up with Nick on his Facebook page as well as NittoRacing.com.

A Day In the Life Of: Nick Nelson

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