Shea Holbrook (born April 10, 1990) is an
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, p ...
professional racing driver, entrepreneur and spokeswoman. Currently, she is in retirement starting a family.
Drafting with
Denise Mueller-Korenek
Denise Mueller-Korenek (born ) is an American cyclist. she holds the world record for paced bicycle land speed and is considered "the fastest cyclist on earth". She set the record on September 16, 2018, at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, by t ...
, Holbrook drove a dragster supporting world record for paced bicycle land speed at the
Bonneville Salt Flats
The Bonneville Salt Flats are a densely packed salt pan in Tooele County in northwestern Utah, United States. A remnant of the Pleistocene Lake Bonneville, it is the largest of many salt flats west of the Great Salt Lake. It is public land ma ...
in 2018. The two traveled an average of . Denise Mueller-Korenek set the world record.
Early life
Holbrook was raised in
Groveland, Florida
Groveland is a city in Lake County, Florida, United States. The population was 18,505 at the 2020 census. It is located at the intersection of State Road 19 and State Road 33/ 50.
Groveland is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee–San ...
. She graduated from the
University of Central Florida
The University of Central Florida (UCF) is a public university, public research university with its main campus in unincorporated area, unincorporated Orange County, Florida, United States. It is part of the State University System of Florida. ...
in 2012, earning a
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years.
The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...
degree in communication with a minor in marketing.
Racing
Holbrook began her professional racing career with the
Sports Car Club of America
The Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) is a non-profit American automobile club and sanctioning body supporting Autocross, Rallycross, HPDE, Time Trial, Road Racing, RoadRally, and Hill Climbs in the United States. Formed in 1944, it runs ...
in 2010. She became the first woman to win the
Grand Prix of Long Beach
The Grand Prix of Long Beach (known as Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach since 2019 for naming rights reasons) is an IndyCar Series race held on a street circuit in downtown Long Beach, California. It was the premier race on the CART/Champ Car Worl ...
in a touring car during the
2011 Pirelli World Challenge season, and is one of only four women to ever win at the track.
Holbrook says that she became interested in racing after attending
Richard Petty’s Driving Experience.
Holbrook received her first taste of international motorsport having qualified for the
2019 W Series
The 2019 W Series was the inaugural motor racing season of the W Series (championship), W Series, an List of female racing drivers, all-female Formula Regional-level racing series.
Calendar
A single championship race was held at six rounds of th ...
, a
Formula 3
Formula Three (F3) is a third-tier class of open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held in Europe, Australia, South America and Asia form an important step for many prospective Formula One drivers.
History
Formula Three (adop ...
championship for women. One of two Americans in a European-based series (alongside
Sabré Cook), she struggled heavily for pace and often found herself at the back of the field with inexperienced Canadian
Megan Gilkes – highlighted by qualifying 8 seconds away from the pole time in the opening round at the
Hockenheimring
The Hockenheimring, officially Hockenheimring Baden-Württemberg () is a motor racing circuit situated in the Rhine valley near the town of Hockenheim in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, located on the Bertha Benz Memorial Route. Amongst other mot ...
. She finished the championship 18th and as the only driver to have contested all races to not score points, with 12th place in
Zolder
The Circuit Zolder, also known as Circuit Terlamen, is an undulating motorsport race track in Heusden-Zolder, Belgium.
History
Built in 1963, Zolder hosted the Formula One Belgian Grand Prix on 10 separate occasions in the 1970s and 1980s, a ...
her best result.
Other
In 2016 Holbrook was the pace vehicle driver when
Denise Mueller-Korenek
Denise Mueller-Korenek (born ) is an American cyclist. she holds the world record for paced bicycle land speed and is considered "the fastest cyclist on earth". She set the record on September 16, 2018, at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, by t ...
set a women's world record for the fastest speed on a paced bicycle with an official speed of 147.75 mph on Utah's Bonneville Salt Flats; no woman had ever attempted the mark before. Mueller-Korenek is the official record holder, with Holbrook only listed in articles a support driver.
Holbrook again paired with Mueller-Korenek in 2018 to break the world record for paced cycling, reaching a speed of .
Business
Holbrook is involved in many aspects of the motorsport and automotive industries including, keynote and panel public speaking, television, automotive experiential and marketing programs, professional driver coaching, hospitality and marketing management.
Companies she's developed programs and have worked alongside include,
Cadillac
Cadillac Motor Car Division, or simply Cadillac (), is the luxury vehicle division (business), division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM). Its major markets are the United States, Canada and China; Cadillac models are ...
,
Jaguar
The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large felidae, cat species and the only extant taxon, living member of the genus ''Panthera'' that is native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the biggest cat spe ...
,
Mercedes AMG
Mercedes-AMG GmbH, commonly known as AMG (Aufrecht, Melcher, Großaspach), is the high-performance subsidiary of Mercedes-Benz AG. AMG independently hires engineers and contracts with manufacturers to customize Mercedes-Benz AMG vehicles. The c ...
,
Performance Racing Industry {{primarysources, date=May 2010
Performance Racing Industry was started in 1986 by Steve Lewis, owner of Laguna Coast Publishing, based in Laguna Beach, California. Now based in Aliso Viejo, California, the company operates PRI magazine, a monthl ...
,
SEMA
Sama (; ) is a Sufi ceremony performed as part of the meditation and prayer practice dhikr. Sama means "listening", while dhikr means "remembrance".During, J., and R. Sellheim. "Sama" Encyclopedia of Islam, Second Edition. Ed. P. Bearman, T. B ...
, Women in Automotive,
Sports Car Club of America
The Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) is a non-profit American automobile club and sanctioning body supporting Autocross, Rallycross, HPDE, Time Trial, Road Racing, RoadRally, and Hill Climbs in the United States. Formed in 1944, it runs ...
’s Track Night in America,
CBS Sports Network
CBS Sports Network (a.k.a. CBSSN) is an American digital cable and satellite television network owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global. When it launched in 2002 as the National College Sports Network (later College Sports ...
, and the
Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...
among others.
Achievements
* 2017 – Two Top Five's in the North American Lamborghini Super Trofeo Series
* 2017 – Top Ten in Pirelli World Challenge Touring Car Championship
* 2016 – Top Five in Pirelli World Challenge Touring Car Championship
* 2015 – Top Three in
IHRA Jet Dragster Championship
* 2014 – 2nd Place in the Pirelli World Challenge Touring Car A Championship
* 2014 – Recipient of the Women’s Sports Foundations Project Podium Grant
* 2013 – 7th place in the Pirelli World Challenge Touring Car B Championships
* 2012 – 4th place in the Pirelli World Challenge Touring Car Championships
* 2012 – Shea received the “Living Legend Honoree Award” for her on and off track efforts, and was honored in the “Women in Motorsports”, SuperCars Super Show Exhibit and was featured in Teen Vogue and Jalopnik
* 2012 – Shea became a member of the all-female TRUECar Racing Women Empowered Initiative
* 2011 – Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach Pirelli World Challenge Touring Car 1st Place – first female driver to win a Touring Car race
* 2010 – First professional year of racing taking 6th place in the SCCA Pro Racing World Challenge Touring Car Championships
* 2009 – Central Florida Region SCCA Champion for H1
* 2009 – Track Record 1:30.027 at West Palm International Raceway class P2
* 2008 – Women in the Winners Circle (Lyn St. James Foundation) received Cooper Tire & Rubber Company Scholarship
* 2008 – 25 Hours Of ThunderHill 2008, team DivaSpeed, 6th in class, 31st overall of 68
* 2008 – First female alternate for the 2008 VW Jetta TDI Cup
* 2007 – Sobre Rodas Talent of the Year award (another winner
Helio Castroneves
Helio may refer to:
* Helio AU-24 Stallion
* Helio (wireless carrier), a defunct American wireless communications provider (2005–2010); originally a joint venture between SK Telecom and EarthLink, purchased by Virgin Mobile USA in 2008
* H ...
)
Racing record
Complete W Series results
(
key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)
References
External links
*
Denise on Bicycling and the Law
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holbrook, Shea
1990 births
Living people
University of Central Florida alumni
American female racing drivers
Women's Sports Foundation
W Series drivers
Lamborghini Super Trofeo drivers
Formula Regional Americas Championship drivers
Racing drivers from Jacksonville, Florida
21st-century American sportswomen