Meet Whitney Gonzalez, a drag racer’s daughter

BY Whitney Gonzalez | Guest contributor, @whitneygonzalez

Some families gather to watch baseball or football; mine gathers to watch the races. I have spent my weekends perched upon racetrack bleachers for as long as I can remember. Watching my father drag race remains inspiring. Looking on as he tinkered, experimented and repaired race cars sparked my love for them.

My dad’s current race car – a 1993 Camaro | Photo provided by Whitney Gonzalez

Life with Dad, the auto mechanic drag racer

My dad is Manuel Gonzalez, but many of his friends call him “Mero” so he races under the tagline “Mero Racing.” Living with an automotive mechanic while growing up also meant exposure to all different types of cars, pulling up to my dad’s shop for repair. That was my world, and I became familiar with repair tools, car parts, common diagnostics and even learned how to fix some of them.

I’ve owned seven cars in the approximately nine years I’ve been able to drive – including VW Beetles, an Audi TT, and my first love, a Mitsubishi Eclipse. Non-repairable issues weren’t necessarily the reason I switched cars so frequently; I’d say I just enjoy different driving experiences.

In college, I worked as a valet parking attendant and got to ‘test drive’ an array of cars, ranging from soccer mom vans to exotic Lamborghinis and Ferraris. Overall, I’ve grown fond of European cars – I’m currently sporting a BMW 3-series after being “Team VW” for years. I’ve also come to the realization that I may be growing up as my current car has an automatic transmission while the majority of cars I’ve had have been stick shift.

Did I mention I’m also dating an automotive technician? Figures.