Despite coming from a racing family, Hunter Ploski never competed in a race. That is, until this year, at age 29. And, despite the inexperience, he just won his first feature. The triumph came in the rookie sportsman class at New Egypt Speedway.
Ploski’s great-grandfather Stan Ploski; grandfather Stan Ploski Jr.; father, Stan Ploski III; and cousin Ryan Godown all have competed behind the wheel of race cars.
“I grew up watching my dad and grandfather race, although I was into baseball, basketball and golf,” Ploski, of Ringoes, New Jersey, said. “I told my dad, ‘I want to experience racing just one time’ He said, ‘Your time will come.’ Waiting for that time to come, I bought a racing sim and began to practice.”
That time came in 2025. Car owner Marty Resnick gave Ploski a ride in his car.
“My sponsors made my dreams come true,” said Ploski. “Driving a race car is all I wanted to do for such a long time. They took chance on me. My grandfather told me and everyone else that driving was in my genes.”
His father gave him the following advice: “Get out there and keep the car in one piece.”
“I practiced in March at New Egypt — eight laps twice — it wasn’t enough time, so we decided to go to Bridgeport,” Ploski said. “We entered into the rookie race. My grandfather and father said, ‘Please try not to get lapped.’ I started 10th in the consi and finished seventh, but more importantly, I won confidence in my ability to be a racer.”
That confidence continued in his next race at New Egypt Speedway. He won the rookie sportsman feature, which transferred him into the sportsman feature.
“Winning the rookie sportsman feature was probably the coolest day of my life,” said Ploski. “I got a chance to race in the sportsman feature against some drivers who have 20 to 30 years of experience.”
Hunter Ploski started 21st in the 25-car main event and finished 19th.
“I got a chance to see how hard they run in the sportsman division,” Ploski said. “I was in the back where you can only see 10 feet in front of you because of the dust from the cars ahead of you — that’s something I have to get used to. Racing in that feature humbled me quickly.”
New Egypt Speedway has eight more rookie sportsman races on the schedule this year. Then the track holds a graduation — complete with caps and gowns — for the rookie class to move up to the sportsman class.
“Life works in mysterious ways — everything happens in the right moment,” said Ploski. “Sure, I got my start at 29 years old. I’ll take off from here — I want to do this for as long as I can.”
Mike Adaskaveg has written hundreds of stories since the website’s inception. This year marks his 54th year of covering auto racing. Adaskaveg got his start working for track photographer Lloyd Burnham at Connecticut’s Stafford Motor Speedway in 1970. Since then, he’s been a columnist, writer, and photographer, in racing and in mainstream media, for several outlets, including the Journal Inquirer, Boston Herald, Stock Car Racing, and Speedway Illustrated. Among Adaskaveg’s many awards are the 1992 Eastern Motorsport Press Association (EMPA) Ace Lane Photographer of the Year and the 2019 National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) George Cunningham Writer of the Year.
