Women's Motorsports Network Podcast & Let's Talk Racing LIVE

Beyond the Finish Line: Finding Balance in Speed and Life with Karyl Bell

• Melinda Russell • Season 9 • Episode 384

Share episode

Send us a text

Karyl Bell's motorsports journey is the perfect blend of family legacy, entrepreneurial spirit, and unwavering determination. From her earliest memories at Lebanon Valley Dragway in upstate New York, where her mother serves as assistant track manager and her father races, Karyl has turned a childhood passion into both a competitive career and innovative business ventures.

Beginning in junior dragsters at age eight, Karyl  quickly proved her talent by capturing a track championship in just her second year. Today, she competes at the highest levels of bracket racing, seamlessly switching between Super Pro and Super Comp divisions - sometimes within the same weekend. Her mechanical knowledge runs deep, working alongside her father to maintain their race cars and understand every aspect of vehicle performance.

What truly sets Karyl apart is her response to adversity. After surviving a dramatic barrel-roll crash that destroyed her Nova, she returned to racing with renewed perspective rather than fear. This experience directly influenced her decision to establish KB Performance Center, a trackside business at Lebanon Valley Dragway selling essential safety equipment from helmets to fire jackets. This brilliant innovation means racers who fail technical inspection can purchase required safety gear immediately rather than missing competition.

Perhaps most remarkably, Karyl  balances her racing life with owning a dance studio - two worlds that couldn't seem more different yet complement each other perfectly through their seasonal schedules. This diversity in her professional life reveals a multi-faceted woman who refuses to be limited by conventional expectations.

Throughout her career, Karyl  has encountered gender discrimination but transformed these challenges into motivation. When a professional racer once dismissed her with "girls don't race," she responded by proving him wrong repeatedly on the track. Her racing philosophy combines strategic planning with mental discipline: "Don't overthink" and "Always have plans A, B, and C" for each run down the quarter-mile.

Follow Karyl's continuing journey on Instagram @buckwild198 or Facebook as she pursues her passion for racing while building businesses that support and strengthen the motorsports community. Her story reminds us that with dedication and perseverance, we create our own definitions of success both on and off the track.

Support the show

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/womensmotorsportsnetworkandpodcast

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/womensmotorsportsnetwork/

LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

TIKTOK: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melindarussell/

X: https://x.com/IWMANation

FACEBOOK Personal Page: https://www.facebook.com/melinda.ann.russell

Melinda Russell:

Welcome to the Women's Motorsports Network podcast, the show that puts the spotlight on the incredible women who fuel the world of motorsports, from drivers to crew members, engineers to fans and everyone in between. We're here to celebrate the trailblazers, dreamers and doers shaping the sport we love. Each episode we share inspiring stories of females of all ages from every corner of the motorsports universe past, present and future. It's a journey through the seasons of life filled with heartfelt moments, laughter and a whole lot of horsepower. So, whether you're a lifelong fan, a racer yourself or simply curious about the extraordinary women behind the wheel, settle in, relax and enjoy a fun and uplifting ride with us. This is the Women's Motorsports Network podcast, connecting and celebrating women in motorsports, one story at a time. Let's hit the track. If you're looking to buy, sell or trade the stuff that strokes your engine anything from truck parts to classic and muscle cars, rvs to hot rods and everything in between then check out our official classifieds at RacingJunkcom. Racingjunkcom is the world's number one online racing and performance marketplace. Racingjunkcom is the world's number one online racing and performance marketplace, the ultimate one-stop shop where you'll find what you need to rock your ride. If it belongs in your garage, it's for sale on RacingJunkcom. Log on to RacingJunkcom to find the gear you're looking for. Sell your extra stuff, keep up on racing news and tech tips and more. Again, that's Racingjunkcom.

Melinda Russell:

Promoting a track takes heart, and now showing appreciation can be just as easy With send-out cards. You can thank sponsors, volunteers, drivers and fans with personalized digital cards sent right from your phone or laptop. Add a photo, write a message and hit send. It's that simple Unlimited sends for just $10 a month. Go to sendoutcardscom forward slash 53240. That's sendoutcardscom. Forward slash 53240. Because gratitude builds great tracks. Hello everyone, this is Melinda Russell with the Women's Motorsports Network podcast, and my guest today is Karyl Bell. Karyl, I want to welcome you to the show and, first of all, what I always ask my guests is to tell us a little bit about yourself so we can get to know you better. So tell me about your family, your past, whatever you want to share pass whatever you want to share.

Karyl Bell:

Well, first off, thank you for having me. It is a great honor to be able to share the stories, share backgrounds and just get whatever information out there, especially about women in motorsports. So my name is Karyl. I live in upstate New York. My home track is Lebanon Valley Dragway. I've been there basically since I was born. My mother is the assistant track manager there, my father races and works there, my sister used to race and now has two little kids of her own who will eventually grow up to be junior racers, and my boyfriend also races along with us. So it's just like a really, and so does his family actually. So it's just like a really big family community that I've been really happy to get involved with and my two cats, keiko and Grapes. Keiko is a small one, she's six pounds, and Grapes is 14 pounds. He's oh yeah, he's massive. Yeah, and I was gonna say they're crawling around my feet currently.

Melinda Russell:

Oh yeah of course I have a. I have about a 15 pound Shih Tzu dog, so my dog and your cat are about the same size oh, absolutely.

Karyl Bell:

And he's like super long, like when I adopted him. We're like ah, he's just like a really big cat. No, we swear. He like kept coming out and just kept stretching. We're like are you ever going to end?

Melinda Russell:

That's. That's cool. I've seen some big cats that that could take on my dog for sure, so no surprise, yeah. So, Karyl, thank you for sharing that. Now tell me. You said you know everybody's involved at the track, so you started going to the track when you were born, when you were little. Tell me your story.

Karyl Bell:

Yeah, I started to go. I was only a few months old. I was born in the winter, so I was a few months when my parents started to bring me and my dad was racing and my mom was helping him at the time and also racing because or also working there, because that's how they met. They met at the track. She was at the top end and my dad comes through balls of-bleezing. Something happened and that's how they met.

Melinda Russell:

Okay.

Karyl Bell:

And my grandparents used to race as well. So it's been a few generations. Started with my grandparents, my cousin raced juniors until he just decided he no longer wanted to. My dad, and then me and my sister.

Melinda Russell:

Okay.

Karyl Bell:

And currently it's me and my dad left so far, but we have I have two nieces that one of them is definitely going to do it Like. That is, without a doubt, the other one who knows?

Melinda Russell:

Yeah, there's usually one in the family that kind of you know, it seems like it's one that carries it on, and then the other one does something completely different, like dance or softball or something else.

Karyl Bell:

Well, the funny part is, is I actually just purchased a dance studio.

Melinda Russell:

Oh, okay.

Karyl Bell:

That's a whole other life of mine is dance Awesome. So they're both currently in dance and one's like whatever I do, she's going to do. And then the older one is more, she's just going to dance or do artsy stuff. She's not really into racing and that's okay, Sure it is. That's the crafty one Exactly. She'll be doing all of my flyers later on in life.

Melinda Russell:

She'll do your hero cards and the graphics on your car, and that's all important too. So there you go. You got everything covered.

Karyl Bell:

Exactly so. I can't wait to see what they come up with as they grow up. But I started at the track really young and I started in junior dragsters at the age of eight, my second year. I was track champion in the junior division and then it kind of went downhill from there. But that's OK, we live and we learn. Yeah, I've won a couple, uh, local races. I was actually the runner up in the inaugural 1.1 million sfg race in the women's race. Um, that was like one of my bigger accomplishments recently.

Melinda Russell:

um, that I'm really proud of yeah, so where did you win the track championship when you were young?

Karyl Bell:

Lebanon Valley Dragway.

Melinda Russell:

Okay, all right, is that? That's your home track?

Karyl Bell:

Yeah, I bounced between there and Naperville uh and Canada.

Melinda Russell:

Oh, okay, is it hard to go across the border?

Karyl Bell:

No, they're honestly more, at least when we go through. Okay, is it hard to go across the border with your car? They're honestly more, at least when we go through. They're more curious to see what is in there than, like, what we actually have.

Karyl Bell:

Like yeah, they're like the one time we had brought my dad's dragster, my dragster. So they were both in there and they're like how do you do that? So can we see it. So they're both in there and they're like how do you do that? So can we see it? There was more interest in the engineering of putting things in there than actually like a list of items.

Melinda Russell:

Yeah, that's interesting because, you know, nascar just went to Mexico a couple weekends ago and, from the people I know and things I've heard, the logistics of all of that was a nightmare yeah, that I can understand, yeah so interesting. Okay, so that's junior dragsters. You moved up to. What are you driving? What class do you drive now?

Karyl Bell:

So now I'm in our super pro bracket program. I also used to have a Nova and I wrecked that two years ago on Father's Day. My mom had actually just gotten out of the hospital two days prior from a really big, traumatic incident. She came to the track. They were watching, they left and went to go home and I was later on in the rounds and something let go and I don't even know how many times I barrel rolled. All I know is people saw white and then they saw green in the air and they knew it was just like over from there um wow but I was fine.

Karyl Bell:

I had no concussion, no broken bones, just really sore and a couple of um bruises. But I was like really thankful like that all the safety equipment had worked Um. So that car is somewhere, who knows, in a scrap yard somewhere.

Melinda Russell:

Yeah.

Karyl Bell:

Um, so we're building a 71 Pontiac LeMans Okay, no 68. I lied 68 LeMans. Um, currently, and that's a process, it it's been two years and that will be in Super Street. Okay, so, and my current dragster is, like I said, bracket and Super Comp.

Melinda Russell:

Okay, all right. So what do you like the best?

Karyl Bell:

I like it all. I just like seat time. Um, it's, it never seems to fail, like at one point I'll be like yes, I'm all into this bracket racing, I'm doing great, and then it goes downhill. But then when it starts going downhill, it's about the divisional time, and then I do really well. And then when that starts to go downhill, it goes back to bracket. Yeah, um, so like I did really well. And then when that starts to go downhill, it goes back to bracket. Yeah, um, so like I did really well this weekend in our bracket program.

Karyl Bell:

I got to the quarterfinals on sunday, this past sunday, and now this weekend I race tomorrow night at our night of fire, which is a bracket program. Saturday, I'll put it in super comp trim and do some testing. Sunday, I'll go back to brackets, and then next week thursday, friday, saturday, sunday, I'll be in super comp wow, so you got to be good at both to go back and forth like that yeah for sure and, like I usually, except for the past couple years, have run two vehicles at like the divisional, so jumping back and forth for me like honestly helps my brain.

Karyl Bell:

I feel like sometimes, when I'm stuck doing one thing, yeah, you get a little lackadaisical about it, yeah, and I feel like I forget something when I know I'm not forgetting something.

Melinda Russell:

Right Right, that's very cool, and is this something you want to keep doing for a long time? Do you love it?

Karyl Bell:

I do, I definitely love it, and I can like in the winter it's harder. You kind of I get like depressed, but at least, like right now with the project car, I can go out and be like, okay, I can see what we're doing, I can continue to do it and like, when it comes to you know, the summer stuff, it's like I look forward to getting back in the car and taking my brain away from the business aspect of the dance studio and just being like, okay, need to focus on this.

Melinda Russell:

It's and it's like an outlet and I feel like I'd be lost without it well in your dance studio, isn't that busier, like through the school year, fall to may, you have your recital and then you know you may do some summer stuff. But they kind of blend well together, I, I would think.

Karyl Bell:

Yeah, no, they definitely do, because they're on opposite schedules and then, I actually own another business for racing. It's called KB Performance Center and we sell. We're actually a Zamp dealer.

Melinda Russell:

Okay.

Karyl Bell:

And we do also Lucas Oil products. All right so, and we've gotten into selling some spark plugs, some safety um, other safety stuff. We have basically anything. You would need to have your nine second license. Okay, we it's at the track, um, at lebanon valley dragway, ready to sell and for you to literally, the business is at the track.

Karyl Bell:

Yeah, so it's in a, in a building there yeah, it's right in the office area with the merchandise wow so you come in, you can look at the merchandise and if you need something um a quart of oil or oh, I need a jacket, I went a little too fast. Um helmets we sell a lot of helmets really um neck collars.

Melinda Russell:

We even do the zamp head and neck restraints for sale um okay yeah well, and because it's there, they don't worry about having to go somewhere to get something you know, they just know.

Karyl Bell:

Oh, I can get that at the track when I go to the race exactly, and, like a lot of people, it used to be oh well, you didn't have this. Through tech, you can't race. Yeah, oh, you don't have this. Go to the office, they have it for sale, yeah, so we're actually keeping a lot more racers daily, yeah, Having, daily, yeah, having all these products there in at their disposal yeah, you know what a smart idea, because more tracks should do that.

Melinda Russell:

I mean, I realize they gotta have the manpower of somebody to run it. But, um, you know you're. You're selling to the choir, as they say, right.

Karyl Bell:

Absolutely yeah. And like the cool thing about like where we have it it's you get your merchandise right there, you get your payouts right there, and now you have all of your safety equipment at there as well. And I'm very thankful that, like my mom is the office and she does the payouts and everything else. She has office staff that help her. And then, of course, when I'm not there and I'm out racing my dad's in there, yeah, or like in between rounds, like I'll come in and I'll do it. So it's like all in one area.

Melinda Russell:

Yeah.

Karyl Bell:

Okay, well, here's the merchandise. Oh, you have to go over there for payout, and Wayne, literally, has recreated this office area to be a multi-purpose.

Melinda Russell:

That's great. Other tracks should go. Look, you know, even if they sub it out to somebody else to run, you know like they do concessions or whatever, that's still a great idea to have. You know the especially the basic necessities gloves and things that are easy to forget to take to the track. You know and you don't, you're, you know, three hours from home, or whatever.

Karyl Bell:

So how cool is that? Yeah, this year has been. We've been selling stuff that, like hasn't been a big item either. A lot of people are looking for open face helmets cool, really, we've got them. A lot of people either have holes in their gloves, forget their gloves in another vehicle, so we've been selling gloves like crazy, like um last night. One guy doesn't need a fire jacket. He wanted, wanted one, so we bought it. Yeah, and it's there. They can try it on. Yeah, see the size. If we don't have the size and they want it, we order it and it comes the next week.

Melinda Russell:

Yeah, wow, Karyl, you're quite the business woman, for sure.

Karyl Bell:

Trying to be Trying to keep myself pretty busy.

Melinda Russell:

There you go, so let to keep myself pretty busy. There you go, so let's let's go back.

Karyl Bell:

Do you work on your car or or does somebody else help you with it? Uh, my dad and I do all of the maintenance on um all of our vehicles yeah, and that's better.

Melinda Russell:

And because then if something goes wrong, you know, or you're driving it, you're like, yeah, this doesn't feel right. Then you, you're involved and you kind of know, you know what it is that you need to do. Do to it for sure oh absolutely. This is a great question for you, because you're super busy. Um, how do you, how do you find balance? How do you take care of Karyl?

Karyl Bell:

I make sure to set a specific amount, or I try still working on it, uh, during the day, like where I go work out, um, or I just do something for me, like I'll go get my nails done. Right now that is not happening.

Melinda Russell:

That's more of a winter thing yeah, yeah, because working on the race car and nails don't always go together no, so I save that like for a winter thing.

Karyl Bell:

Um, you know, but I take some time. I'll go hang out with my nieces, um, just do something that I normally wouldn't. I don't want to say wouldn't do, but like that I don't need somebody else to do with me. Yes, um, like I'm not gonna lie, going to get my oil changed today was my 45 minutes to me, yeah, you know. And like tonight I'll probably go drop my rig off at the track, get ready for a night of fire. Depending on what time we do that, I'll probably go to the studio and paint some more but, like I, there's always something to do and if I didn't need to sleep I probably wouldn't.

Karyl Bell:

There's like that much to do, yeah, and I've created, or I'm trying to create, where it's like 9, 9, 30 at night and I stopped responding to emails, I stopped doing stuff for the dance studio or anything besides for myself and taking the night to enjoy watching TV, watching a show, going to bed early, like yeah, absolutely.

Melinda Russell:

And you, you have to always remember that. You know you do have to take time for yourself, you do have to get your rest and, yeah, I don't sleep well, and so you know there's times that I'm wide awake at two o'clock in the morning and sometimes I think, well, I should just get up and do whatever because I'm not sleeping. But I normally put a podcast on and put my earphones in and you know they kind of can lull me to sleep. But you have to be conscious of your health and taking care of yourself when you're so busy.

Karyl Bell:

Oh, absolutely, and especially in my past, like I was really sick. I had allergic reaction in 2009. So my body had to like learn how to do things again and I can get. I can have a day where I'm perfectly great, nothing hurts, everything's fine. The next day, I probably walk like I'm 90 years old. Oh, I get it, and it's every day and I don't know what type of day I'm going to wake up to. And I'm still working on and trying my best to figure out what can I do to help prevent or tone back those days.

Melinda Russell:

Yeah.

Karyl Bell:

Where I'm not overdoing it enough, to where I'm debilitating myself for a few days.

Melinda Russell:

I, I have the same issues and I'm a lot older than you, but I have a bad back. I had a knee replacement, I'm gonna have to have back surgery again and and so you know, I still think I'm 40 and not almost 70, because there's times that I just pick up the tub, pick up this, do that, and then I'm like, oh, I shouldn't have done that. So I totally get that. And you know, the weather has a lot to do with it. I live in Michigan, so there's humidity and um, and you know, this week we've had 95 degree temperatures. It makes a difference. And you, you, you have very similar weather to what we have here in Michigan. You live in New York, so, um, yeah, that's, that's all part of it for sure oh yeah, and that's what happened, like this weekend.

Karyl Bell:

Sunday it rained in the morning, a storm came through and, wayne, by all mighty god, we got racing in. We started at noon instead of 9 30, but we got it in but, it was so humid we were all like if the sun was out we would be dead yeah and oh it's been miserable here, for sure and moving into monday and tuesday.

Melinda Russell:

It was just we keep sending all that your way, you know. Yeah we really do. It goes right across the country. So, um so, Karyl, every day is not a good day at the racetrack, unfortunately. When something bad happens, how do you handle that? What do you do? Um, do you ever think, okay, I'm done, I'm not going to do this anymore? You know, you had that wreck. How do you handle bad days?

Karyl Bell:

The funny part is is after my wreck I handled that better than a race I was at last year where I just I literally couldn't do anything right, couldn't find the fricking finish line, I couldn't hit the tree, I, whatever I did, it didn't matter. And at that point I was like I'm done, like I was so frustrated with myself at that point that I was like I'm done. And then, of course, my dad's like no, you ain't. He's like go in the motor home, go relax, go for a walk. In 10 minutes, minutes, you're going to change your mind.

Karyl Bell:

Yeah, of course guess what I did 10 minutes later, after I had my little meltdown. I was fine, but I had and I remind myself, not every day is a good day period and the fact that I'm still here to to live to talk about my story, to talk about racing to race, because I almost wasn't able to yeah is a blessing.

Karyl Bell:

And I remind myself like it's so stupid I can't get upset over the stupid things. In a moment I can, but like, have the moment, let it go, move on. What can we do to be better next time? Yeah, like this weekend. This past weekend I couldn't hit the broad side of the barn, couldn't do it, but I could play the top end like nobody's business and it was working for me. So I didn't change a thing until it wasn't working for me yeah, well, and you know it's.

Melinda Russell:

Isn't it amazing how today the car is great, you don't do a thing. Tomorrow, you're at the same track, you're doing the same thing and it's terrible and you're like, okay, what happened? It's, it's, it's air pressure, it's heat, it's all the things and, and sometimes you just throw up your hands and be like I don't know what else to do. I'm just going to do the best I can and chalk it up to uh seat time and go from there absolutely and like we.

Karyl Bell:

Actually I had a conversation with another racer. They're like we raced yesterday. Car was great, no wrong, put it away, bring it out. And like everything was wrong. They're like we put it away Fine, what happened with it? Sitting there.

Melinda Russell:

I know Happens in every kind of racing there is. I hear it all the time and I see it when I'm watching racing. You know they might practice great or qualify great and then they race terrible and it's just what it is for sure. Oh absolutely yeah. So, Karyl, do you think drag racing, motorsports in general, is a good sport for girls to be in? You know, have you ever had any time when you feel like you didn't belong? Can you kind of talk about that?

Karyl Bell:

I do think it's a good sport for girls and women to be in. And, yes, you do have to have slightly a thicker skin to be in it, Because you're gonna come up against and I'm going to say men and they're going to look at you and be like you shouldn't be here. And I had an experience when I was younger, in juniors, with a professional racer and I wanted him to sign my helmet and he was like you don't race, Like you're just a girl like girls don't race. You're just a girl like girls don't race. And back then that was kind of the stigma and I was like you want to bet?

Karyl Bell:

like and how rude of him it was really rude and, honestly, to this day, I still don't like him. I wouldn't either like and like. I felt like I had a point to prove like I should be. I have a right to be here. I put my pants on the same way. You know everybody else puts their pants on. There is no difference. You know and like, if you can't handle us putting the helmet on the same way and me being next to you, maybe you shouldn't be in here.

Melinda Russell:

I was just thinking the same thing. Yeah, because and I think you know it's been a few years since you raced juniors, but I think it's it's getting better all the time there's so many little girls that are in juniors now. I mean any track you go to where there's drag racing so many little girls. We have US 131 Motorsports Park real close here to me and great, just a great track and facilities. And the first time I went up there back in 2018 to check out, you know, the drag racing Because they have amazing national events and everything I was overwhelmed with how many little girls there were, and that was seven years ago.

Karyl Bell:

It's just getting bigger and bigger all the time oh, absolutely, and I know, like our junior program, um, there's a few girls um growing up. Like when I was in it, I think we dominated the guys. Yeah, like that's just how it was. And you know, a lot of them are still in racing in some capacity, which is amazing, and that's what it has to be. You have to invite these people in and whether they're male, like, if we don't have these younger kids, period, there is no sports.

Melinda Russell:

Right, no future.

Karyl Bell:

There is no future. And you know where I look around is the junior dragster scene is pretty, pretty decent.

Melinda Russell:

Yeah it really is is those kids are competitive.

Karyl Bell:

I don't want them to come to super they're way too competitive.

Melinda Russell:

No so, Karyl, on race day, do you have any superstitions, or you always wear the same socks, or anything like that? I always go to mcdonald's for breakfast. Whatever it might be, what is it?

Karyl Bell:

I actually don't. I say I don't. I think like subconsciously I do things like that are superstitious and I just don't realize it. But if I sit in my trailer I can't do it, so I have to like walk around. I know, right before I burn out, you know, as I'm sitting there I just pray, you know, for everybody to have a safe run, like I do stuff like that. But like to wear the same socks to like no, as long as they're tall socks and they go above my ankle, cool, cool, okay, as long as I'm wearing shorts that aren't gonna like fold up Cool.

Melinda Russell:

Yeah.

Karyl Bell:

I usually race in like a tank top, you know so. But I think what it is is like now that I have to like do things a certain way, like I won't put my okay, I lied, I do have one. I won't put my pants on until, like they call the class before us, because I don't take my pants off the whole day.

Melinda Russell:

Okay.

Karyl Bell:

Because to try to get my pants off is it's not fun? Yeah, they just kind of stick to you and I'm like I'd rather just deal with the heat or deal with the sweat, whatever.

Melinda Russell:

Yeah.

Karyl Bell:

Until I'm done, instead of getting comfortable.

Melinda Russell:

Yeah, okay.

Karyl Bell:

So I guess, making myself uncomfortable all day would be another one another one.

Melinda Russell:

That's cool. Now, how about advice? Has anybody given you like a piece of advice or a quote or something that has stuck with you while you've been racing?

Karyl Bell:

don't think okay um, that one really stuck with me because I like to think a lot, but then when I start thinking I think about other things. So as soon as I do my burnout and I back up, I can't think about anything else. That nothing it's in my hands. But like, don't overthink it. And then have plans A, b and C.

Melinda Russell:

Yeah.

Karyl Bell:

Go for A. You're going to know when you leave that line if A is going to work. If that don't work, go to B. You're going to know that by eighth mile if you're running quarter mile. If that ain't going to work, throw the number C. Hail Mary. Always have multiple plans, but know which plan you're going to target.

Melinda Russell:

Okay, good advice, good, good advice for other people too. What's your favorite race memory from all your time in racing? Could be good, could be bad, could be anything, but it's like, oh, I'll never forget this, yeah.

Karyl Bell:

I definitely think it would be my runner up at US 131 in the SFG 1.1 females race. The fact, like I and it's not even the runner up, it's just that race in general I was going against so many big names and I'm like, do you like nobody knows who I am, like I'm just having fun, and like I was going against an opponent and he was trying to get my attention, like by moving in his cage and stuff, and I won, and I come back and my dad's like did you even notice what he was doing over there? Oh, not a clue, didn't even look like he's like you have, you are really just. But I'm like you've always told me don't pay attention to what they're doing right focus on what you need to do yeah and he goes.

Karyl Bell:

Yeah, that's about right yeah um, but like just going against so many different racers and risk racing styles um, taught me a lot. And like always watch your opponents when you're out or you're waiting, um, or if they're in a different class, like we have a top dragster, top sportsman class as well that runs once in a while. Go and watch them, see their racing habits, because I pulled into the stage or the water box and I turned my car off because I knew the two in front of me, none of them going first. They sat there for two minutes on a burndown. So it's like knowing your opponents and knowing what they're going to do. Yeah, also up your game.

Melinda Russell:

Absolutely, absolutely.

Karyl Bell:

One thing from that that I learned and I continue to do is I watched, I learned and I tried.

Melinda Russell:

Yeah, you can learn a lot by just being quiet and observing other other drivers, other people, et cetera. For sure, oh, absolutely. Yeah, so let's talk about social media here before we hang up. How can people follow you and how do you use social media to promote yourself?

Karyl Bell:

I have an Instagram. It's buckwild198. Instagram it's buckwild198. I also have a Facebook and it's my name Karyl K-A-R-Y-L-B-E-L-L. I also have a business page for the KB Performance on Facebook. Okay, um, so I use the KB performance page to do a lot of business stuff. Like we get new stuff in um, or like I sponsored a race at Lebanon and put up flyers, and I use that more for the business stuff. And then my personal accounts are anything from racing, which I'll use a Tik TOK as well.

Karyl Bell:

I have a Tik TOK account that's mainly racing and I'll take photos and um the videos that my dad graciously takes of every run. Uh, and try to make the best content that I can and then I'll share that to Instagram, which will then share it to Facebook, right? So I try to at least once a week, try twice a week, to post something racing related on small pages.

Melinda Russell:

All right. So that'll tell me, like, where you're going to be racing or what you're doing, and you're mostly at Lebanon. So if we find the Lebanon schedule we'll know, right.

Karyl Bell:

Yeah, so like I'll race Lebanon Friday, saturday, sunday this week, then next week same thing, I'll be at the divisional at Lebanon Thursday through Sunday, then Lebanon again next week, same thing I'll be at the divisional at lebanon thursday through sunday, then lebanon again and then canada. Okay, all right. Are you coming back to 131 anytime soon, or have you already been?

Karyl Bell:

there this year I haven't come. This year actually I haven't gone back since that sfg race, okay. Um, since that SFG race, okay, we want to start traveling a little more, so we're hoping next year to be able to. Okay, because I really liked 131, I really loved Darlington that was a nice track and just kind of get back to traveling a little more all right.

Melinda Russell:

Well, if you come to 131, remember to let me know, because that's only about maybe a half hour from me. So straight up 131. So well, Karyl, is there anything we haven't talked about that we should have?

Karyl Bell:

No, I think, just if you feel you want to do it, do it. Don't let people tell you you can't do it or that you have limitations. The only limitations you have are what you put on yourself. Yeah, and that's in racing and just in general in life. If you want something, figure it out. Yeah, you're going to have rocks and you're going to have boulders and you're going to have to try to make it up that hill, but I feel anybody can do it if you take away your own limitations.

Melinda Russell:

Yeah, that's true. And get out of your own head. That's the thing, absolutely yeah.

Karyl Bell:

Don't tell yourself you can't do it or you're not good enough, because you are. You're only as good as the mentality you put in your own head.

Melinda Russell:

Well, and I like to think that success isn't always about winning, it's about having fun, you know, doing your best. It's. You know everybody wants to win, but we know that's not possible. But as long as you're enjoying what you're doing and and you know life can't be all about work, it has to be about things that we love, and that's why we keep going to work. You know it's a balance and so, yeah, you have to have to keep doing those things, and if you end up last every time and you're still having fun and you still want to go back the next week, then it doesn't matter what place you take.

Karyl Bell:

Exactly, and that's the thing is, is, like you said, not everybody can win, but what did you do better this time than you did the last time? Right, what is the growth, whether it be this or this?

Melinda Russell:

Right. What is the growth? Whether it be this or this Exactly? That's a good thing to remind people about, for sure. Yeah Well, Karyl, thanks for taking time today to be on the show. I really appreciate that you were here. I love hearing your story and and your idea about the store at the track. I think somebody is going to pick up on that idea for sure, so I hope so.

Karyl Bell:

Yeah, thanks for it's a benefit for anybody.

Melinda Russell:

It is Absolutely so. Thanks for being on, and hopefully you'll stay in touch so I can keep track of what you're up to.

Karyl Bell:

Oh, absolutely. I'll definitely keep in touch and you know, hopefully I'll be able to come out to Michigan at some point. Love that, yeah, awesome. Well, you hang on after.

Melinda Russell:

I'll be able to come out to Michigan at some point. Would love that. Yeah, awesome. Well, you hang on after I end the recording and get some information, then we'll go on with our days. Sounds good, all right, thank you. Thank you. That's it for this episode of the Women's Motorsports Network podcast. We hope you've been inspired by the stories I shared today and feel more connected to the amazing community of women in motorsports. Remember, whether you're behind the wheel in the pits or cheering from the stands, your story matters and together we're driving change and celebrating every milestone. If you enjoyed today's episode, be sure to subscribe, leave us a review and share it with someone who loves motorsports as much as you do, and don't forget to follow us on Facebook and Instagram for updates, behind the scenes content and more incredible stories. So until next time, stay inspired, stay connected and keep racing through life. This is the Women's Motorsports Network podcast, where every woman's story is worth celebrating.