RALEIGH, N.C. — Becoming a NASCAR racing legend can be a difficult journey. Being a girl in what is predominantly a man's sport makes that mission even harder.
That's why Raven and Phoenyx Kimball consider themselves so lucky to have each other in their lives as they both pursue careers in racing.
One of Raleigh's best kept secrets is the Wake County Speedway, where racers of different ages and types of cars come together to compete in high levels of racing.
Whether it's traditional late-car models or tiny machines known as Legends cars, there's something for everyone to enjoy on a Friday night at the "Bulls Ring."
Successful NASCAR drivers like Ryan Blaney and Randy Renfrow are just two of many different professional drivers who have raced at Wake County Speedway.
Raven and Phoenyx Kimball are hoping they can follow in their lanes and also eventually take that jump from a small track in Wake County to the historic pavement of Daytona International Speedway, inspiring a few girls along the way.
"We know and understand that so many other female and little girls look up to us on the track," Raven Kimball said. "So I feel like it's really important for us to act our best, do our best, and be our best anytime we are out on the track. Doing it together, just makes girls think anything is possible because it is for us."
While they try to inspire the next generation of racers, they're also trying to win as much as possible. That includes winning the battles off the track as well, when they run into forms of cyber-bullying simply because they're girls.
"Guys do not like girls racing," Phoenyx Kimball said. "There are some supportive ones, but most guys do not like me and my sister racing. They just think we're worse than them, and then they get mad when we beat them. When we do good, they think we're cheating. They post all over social media, we do get cyber-bullied a lot for it, but hey, it doesn't affect us, because haters gonna hate."
The sisters are two of the best drivers at Wake County Speedway year after year.
Phoenyx Kimball has a long resume listing her accomplishments in just the last few years. She was the 2022 Goodyear All American Speedway Champion, 2022 Wake County Speedway Runner-Up Champion, 2022 All Pro Limited Late Model Series Champion, 2022 Winter Heat Series Champion and the 2021 Goodyear All American Speedway Most Popular Driver.
She wants to pursue a career in racing for as long as possible and hopes to one day get picked up by a racing team at the NASCAR level.
Fans come from all over North Carolina just to see the sisters race in the Legends division.
"I mean, I have so many fans here," Phoenyx Kimball said. "I have people asking me to sign their shirts all the time any week that I'm here. So this is just basically home and family to me. You have hundreds of people out here every Friday night. They're all going crazy no matter who wins, who loses, and who wrecks. I mean, this place gets a lot of people and brings a lot of awareness."
The normal racing season at Wake County Speedway runs from around April to September, but the sisters still race in other competitions all year long. One of their upcoming races is the Thanksgiving Classic at Southern National Motorsports Park in Lucama, North Carolina.
Raven Kimball says at a certain point, you just have to focus on you and forget about the hate coming your way.
"All that sorts of stuff, it's how you feel in your heart," Raven Kimball said. "You can do anything, as long as you set your mind to it. It doesn't matter what anyone else says at the end of the day. All that matters is your opinion and how you feel about it. And you should always do what you love and follow your dreams."