EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (WEAU) – One of the Chippewa Valley’s hottest young racers is racking up wins.
50 total wins across go-karting, B-Mod and A-Mod dirt track racing, but the catch? The track is the only place he’s been allowed to drive.
“I complain about it quite a bit because it’s like, you know, I I should be able to go get my driver’s test done when I’m 12, you know, I’ve been racing my whole life,” said A-Mod dirt track driver Kaden Blaeser. “It kind of sucks in a way, being able to go 90-to-100 miles an hour on a racetrack, and then you can’t even drive a residential car, you know?”
That is Blaeser’s story, a newly 16-year-old A-Modified dirt track racer, who already has over a decade of racing on his resume.
“I started off when I was probably 2 years old, you know, going to the racetrack with my sister,” Blaeser said.
“She used to race, and I just kind of played in the sandbox, but I was there watching and just getting used to it. Then when I was four years old, I got into go-karting myself, and bringing home a plaque that said national champion, I think that kind of made me realize that maybe we got a little something going here, and as long as I don’t get too ahead of myself, and just keep working harder and harder every day that, you know, maybe one day we’ll get lucky, and get to do it for a living.”
With 35 wins at the go-kart level, Kaden made the bold jump to modified dirt track racing at age 12, joining a circuit of adult racers.
“Going from go karts where I’m racing with kids my age, and then stepping into the B-Mods when I’m 12, racing against guys anywhere from 20, 30, 40, 50, you know, it’s definitely just a different level of respect,” Blaeser said.
Once he hit the track, however, Kaden found the camaraderie continued despite the age difference.
“They’re actually pretty welcoming,” Blaeser noted. “It’s super easy to go and ask all the veterans questions, and as long as you respect them on the track, they’re going to respect you. It’s just one big family in racing as we like to call it.”
Alongside his family on the track, Kaden is joined by his immediate family as well, continuing a racing legacy that spans generations.
“I think we’re up to four or five generations of racing, so I just hope we can keep passing it down and make this a recognizable name in the motorsports industry,” Blaeser said.
