| Ricky Carlton: A Man On A Mission | by Nadia Drury
 Opening the 2001 season as SpeedFest Champion at US International Raceway in Lakeland and finishing last year as the 2000 Florida Pro Series Champion are credits belonging to only one driver. When you consider that driver is only beginning his fourth full season and didn't enter a car until the age of 27, you start getting a picture of a very focused racer who knows what he wants and how to get it. That racer is Ricky Carlton, driver of the #34 Super Late Model.
With all of the young guns entering racing as teenagers, Ricky, is showing that determination and perseverance can pay off and take you to the top. I met Ricky at DeSoto Speedway during test practice for the running of the Icebreaker 125. I also met his wife, Maria, and parents, Joel and Diane McNatt, when they graciously invited me and my daughter, Heather, into their "home on wheels" for my newest KARNAC assignment of interviewing top drivers in Florida racing.
Originally from Tampa, the Carltons and McNatts make their home in Homosassa Springs, where they own and operate McNatt Plumbing Co. Rick and Maria have two children, Brittany and Richard. His dad, Joel, loves to watch racing. So, Ricky and Joel started going to the races at Citrus County Speedway, near their home. Ricky's mom, Diane, had seen too many racing accidents and incidents in her youth, and was against Ricky becoming a driver when he was young. And, now for the rest of the story
My first questions to Ricky were how old was he when he started racing and what did he drive first before going into the Super Lates.
"See what it is, I'm 31, and we never had it when I was younger growing up. The plumbing company was good to us and my dad loves racing, so we started racing. My dad talked her into getting a couple of them little racing go-karts. We got in them and won two races - then went out and bought two late models. It's an addiction."
His primary sponsor and strongest supporter, Joel, comments with a tinge of regret, "Boy, I wished we got an earlier start than we did. But, it hasn't hurt him any. He's done very well; everywhere we go, he's competitive."
On the other hand, being a mom myself, I could see Diane's love, support, and pride of her son's accomplishments even through the very real fear for her son's safety. According to Ricky, "She won't even watch me race. She listens on the radio and that's it." Diane adds, "I don't stay at home; I'd rather be at the track and close."
Ricky Carlton not only has racing in his blood, but he has the bloodline of a champion. Many of you are familiar with Diane's dad and Ricky's grandfather, Dick Pratt. You may remember him from running Golden Gate Speedway or seeing him race with the likes of AJ Foyt up in Indiana and Ohio in the early 60's. Ricky's 1st cousin is Rich Pratt, who is also currently on the Florida Pro circuit. Last year, Rich finished 3rd in points and was Rookie of the Year in the Florida Pro Series.
When I asked Ricky about hobbies, he's emphatic, "RACING!" Now, that Ricky has turned a hobby of watching races to running races, there's not much time for anything else. "I don't get to do much anymore but racing; we don't have much hobbies anymore. Since Jan. 31, we haven't hardly been out of a racecar at all. We had Speedweeks where we ran a couple nights; then we ran at Lakeland then I had to test that ASA car; then we went and raced the ASA car; then back to DeSoto." And mind you, all of this in less than a month!
Ricky offered these insights about racing the Florida Super Late Model circuit. "It's funny in this racing; there's a bunch of good guys in the Florida Pro Series and the Sunbelt series. The more you race with them, you know, everything goes pretty smoothly. A lot of times you do have problems with guys, and people have hot heads. It always usually blows over by the next week. It's like a big family, basically. Everybody gets along with everybody, and that's what's good about it."
The secret of his achievements is smooth running teamwork. According to Ricky, "It helps having the same crew, usually we aren't arguing and fighting with each other like you see a lot of these other crews. They argue and fight about which stuff to use and that really kills a lot of people's programs." Along with his dad, mom and wife providing support, Rick Knecht is his crew chief with Floyd "Fluff" Lambright helping out. Several part-time crew help out when Ricky runs ASA.
This year, the team plans to run all of the Sunbelt and Florida Pro series races. "If we decide to run ASA, then we'd pick that over the Sunbelt or Florida Pro." With running up to eight ASA races, Ricky will gain valuable seat time, and still be eligible as a rookie for the 2002 season. In his first ASA race this year, Ricky qualified 6th but finished a disappointing 16th. Talking about his first ASA race, Ricky comments, "The ASA series is real, real nice the way everything was handled. Real professional, you know the whole deal was - meetings all day long. It was pretty neat. You've got your helicopters flying around, cameramen all around; it was pretty neat, but they didn't do any interview with me. He chuckles, remembering "When I first did my rookie season, nobody wanted to interview me then, either." Perhaps we'll see Ricky in front of those cameras this year before the ASA season is over.
When asked about his goals for the next three years, "It's kind of hard to set goals because of sponsorship money. We're basically needing sponsors, because all of the money comes out of our pocket, and it's getting kind of expensive to do this, because it's not too cheap. But our goal really is to run ASA series probably next year full time if we get a good sponsor to come on board. And then from that, basically I gotta wait from that series to see how I get going before I set any goals any higher, because I would really like to do well in the ASA series before I set a goal to go anywhere else.
Rick's final thoughts sum up his ultimate dream, "Everybody wants to be in Busch and NASCAR. I want to get the experience to get up there with them guys; that's what I want to do." With the strength and support of his family and crew, and throw in some good luck, I'm guessing we'll see Ricky behind one of those cars in the not too distant future.
by Nadia Drury
Related Link: CARLTON STARTS IN 24th SPOT FOR ASA FLORIDA 200
Note: Nadia Drury is the copy editor and consultant for KARNAC.com, and co-owner of RedDawg. RedDawg is a multimedia company specializing in the racing industry.
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