ADDISON-LEE Darby may only be seven years old but he’s already living his life in the fast lane.
The youngster from Thurnscoe has hit the headlines in the Chronicle before for his fundraising exploits as a three-year-old which culminated in him being nominated for a Proud of Barnsley award.
But since then he’s been behind the wheel of stock cars - racing on tracks up and down the country.
He’s following in the footsteps of his dad, 33-year-old Adam, who got the youngster into the sport after his own dad - and Addison-Lee’s grandad - was the first to bring the adrenaline-fuelled love into the family decades ago.
Adam told the Chronicle: “I bought him his first stock car and he’s just completely loving it.
“He’s only seven but he’s competing on tracks up and down the country.
“There’s three generations of us in the family who race because it was my dad who got me into it.
“I’ve just stopped so I can help him out but I’m hoping to get back into it soon.”
UK stock car racing, primarily BriSCA Formula One and Formula Two, is a form of full-contact oval racing on custom-built cars with strong chassis and V8 engines.
Unlike other motorsports, contact is expected and encouraged, with drivers using their bumpers to move competitors aside to advance their position.
It’s an exciting watch and although Addison-Lee’s not yet in full contact due to his age, it won’t be long until he’s going full speed on the track.
But it’s fair to say he’s no slow coach.
“At the minute he’s going up to about 25mph,” Adam added.
“He’s in the bottom age category at the minute which runs from when you’re seven until 11 so he’s one of the youngest.
“Then you have Mini Stocks which is full contact from ages 11 to 16.
“That’s when it becomes adult racing.
“You can either go into Formula One or Formula Two, whatever he decides to do.
“He’s from a full racing background - it’s up to him.”
And there’s hopes that the youngster will be travelling abroad at some point over the next few years - particularly to the Netherlands where the support is huge.
Adam added: “We've been to Scotland, Skegness, Buxton - loads of places.
“We’re hoping that at some point next year we’ll be able to travel to the Netherlands.
“We’re all really proud of him for what he’s doing.
“He’s wanting to put Barnsley on the map.”
You can follow Addison-Lee’s journey on his Facebook page ‘Addison-Lee Darby Motorsport’.
