Amber Balcaen (born March 7, 1992) is a Canadian professional

stock car racing Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses measuring approximately . It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It ori ...

driver. She competes part-time in the ARCA Menards Series, driving the No. 15 Toyota Camry for Venturini Motorsports. She is most known for being the first Canadian woman to win in a NASCAR-sanctioned race in the United States.

Racing career

Early career

Balcaen began racing at ten years old, driving go-karts in several dirt tracks around North Dakota. At sixteen years old, she bought her first lightning sprint car and became the first female driver to win in a dirt track racing championship in Manitoba. Amber made her Northern Outlaw Sprint Association debut in 2014, for a full-time schedule. She won Rookie of the Year that season and became the highest finishing female in Northern Outlaw Sprint Association History.

Chili Bowl Nationals

Balcaen competed in the 2015 Chili Bowl Nationals.

NASCAR Whelen All-American Series

Balcaen got the attention of the NASCAR Drive for Diversity program and drove in the 2016

NASCAR Whelen All-American Series The NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series (formerly the Whelen All-American Series, Winston Racing Series and the Dodge Weekly Series) is a points championship for NASCAR sanctioned local short track motor racing around the United States and Ca ...

(now NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series). That year, she made history as she became the first female Canadian driver to win a NASCAR-sanctioned race in the United States, winning at Motor Mile Speedway. She earned eleven top fives in her first season, giving her Rookie of the Year honors. She went on to win at the same track a year later, getting her second overall series win.

NASCAR K&N Pro Series East

Balcaen made her NASCAR K&N Pro Series East debut in 2017, driving at New Smyrna Speedway for Martin-McClure Racing. She started 21st and finished 20th, after getting involved in a late race wreck. She had a spark plug wire come off her car, which resulted in a penalty, putting her six laps down.

CARS Super Late Model Tour

Balcaen made her first start in the

CARS Super Late Model Tour The CARS Solid Rock Carriers Tour (formerly known as the USARacing Pro Cup Series, USAR Hooters Pro Cup Series, CARS Pro Cup Series, Rev-Oil Pro Cup Series, CARS X1-R Pro Cup Series) is a stock car auto racing series in the United States. It is s ...

in 2018, driving the No. 4 for Kyle Busch Motorsports at Hickory Motor Speedway. Balcaen started 26th and finished 28th, after being involved in an early race wreck. On March 21, Kyle Busch Motorsports announced that Balcaen will drive two late model races in 2019, the Pro All Star Series race at Hickory Motor Speedway, and the

race at Motor Mile Speedway. Balcaen started 22nd finished 14th at Motor Mile.

POWRi Midget Racing

In 2020, she competed in the POWRi Midget Racing Series, failing to qualify for most of the races. She was only able to qualify for two races, finishing 22nd and 12th respectably. On July 11, 2020, Balcaen was involved in a serious wreck at the Valley Speedway, after she got loose in turn 4, causing her sprint car to go off course, and flip multiple times into a fence. Balcaen suffered collapsed lungs, a severe

concussion A concussion, also known as a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), is a head injury that temporarily affects brain functioning. Symptoms may include loss of consciousness (LOC); memory loss; headaches; difficulty with thinking, concentration, ...

, and several burns to her arms. She was immediately taken to a local hospital for further evaluation. She wasn't released for three days, and had her racing career put on hold for about three months.

ARCA Menards Series West

Balcaen made her first ARCA Menards Series West start for Bill McAnally Racing at Irwindale Speedway in 2021, finishing 15th. She made two more starts that season, finishing 11th and 22nd at Irwindale and Las Vegas respectively.

ARCA Menards Series

On January 3, 2022,

Rette Jones Racing Rette Jones Racing is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the ARCA Menards Series. The team is owned by Terry Jones and friend Mark Rette and currently fields the No. 30 Ford for Frankie Muniz in the ARCA M ...

announced Balcaen would run the full upcoming ARCA Menards Series season. She would earn six top tens throughout the season, and finish 7th in the final point standings. On January 12, 2023, it was announced that Balcaen will join Venturini Motorsports for the

2023 season 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...

, running the races at Daytona and Talladega.

Personal life

Balcaen was the co-host of the TV series "Car's of Rock" with

AC/DC AC/DC (stylised as ACϟDC) are an Australian Rock music, rock band formed in Sydney in 1973 by Scottish-born brothers Malcolm Young, Malcolm and Angus Young. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock, and Heavy metal ...

band member,

Brian Johnson Brian Johnson (born 5 October 1947) is an English singer and songwriter. In 1980, after the death of Bon Scott, he became the third lead singer of the Australian rock band AC/DC. He and the rest of the band were inducted into the Rock and Rol ...

. She is also a

motivational speaker A motivational speaker is a speaker who makes speeches intended to motivate or inspire an audience. Such speakers may attempt to challenge or transform their audiences. The speech itself is popularly known as a pep talk. Motivational speakers ca ...

, who is currently helping other people from around the world achieve their goals in life. In 2019, she was a main cast member of the NASCAR

reality show Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

, ''Racing Wives'', on CMT. She was a spokesperson for Canada's biggest automotive company,

Kal Tire Kal Tire is a wholly owned Canadian company based in Vernon, British Columbia, where it was founded in 1953 by Thomas J. Foord and Jim Lochhead. Its business comprises retail tire sales for passenger and light truck vehicles, mechanical service ...

, during a winter campaign.

Filmography

Television

Motorsports career results

ARCA Menards Series

( key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

ARCA Menards Series East

( key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

ARCA Menards Series West

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Balcaen, Amber 1992 births Living people ARCA Menards Series drivers Canadian racing drivers NASCAR drivers Racing drivers from Manitoba Sportspeople from Winnipeg Canadian female racing drivers