Private coach & instructor
Driver development across technique, mindset and racecraft.
The driver
Late start.
Accelerated curve.
Third-generation racer. First laps at 23. Leading the McLaren Trophy America Pro-Am standings in my fourth season.
(01)The story
Closing the gap
I didn’t come up through karting. I graduated from Pepperdine in 2022 with a fine arts degree, moved to Indianapolis, and started from zero at 23, when a lot of drivers already have ten years of racing behind them.
I worked for a kart team in exchange for parts, raced Briggs LO206 karts around Indiana, and went through Skip Barber’s Advanced F4 School at Sebring. In 2023 I ran a full Skip Barber Formula 4 season and finished eighth.
Racing runs in my family; I’m a third-generation driver. But I didn’t have the usual foundation, so I had to build it on purpose:
- Applied sports psychology
- Cognitive and physical performance training
- Total immersion: simulators, partnerships, and being at the track every chance I get
(02)2025 season
Results under pressure
Mechanical problems disrupted the start of 2025. After round one, the #99 car was eighth in the Radical Cup North America Pro 1500 standings.
Once we found the problems, the season turned around:
- Consistent podium finishes
- Maximum points, finishing ahead of key rivals
- A climb up the championship table, round after round
ResultPro 1500 Vice-Champion, Radical Cup North America
(03)The performance approach
Building the driver, not just the lap time
Without the traditional karting foundation, performance development became intentional rather than inherited. These are the areas I train.
- 01
Structured track & lap visualization
Driving the lap in my head before driving it on track: references, braking points and where the time is.
- 02
Cognitive reset triggers
A short routine that clears a mistake so the next corner gets my full attention.
- 03
Cognitive endurance & fast error recovery
Staying sharp to the end of a stint, and recovering within the same lap when something goes wrong.
- 04
Reaction time & decision-making under pressure
Training quick, correct calls for starts, restarts and wheel-to-wheel racing.
- 05
Mental load management on race weekends
Planning the whole weekend so energy and focus peak when the race starts.
(04)Credentials
Trusted beyond the cockpit
Formula 1 Expert Host
Led track tours and photo safaris at the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix. Invited back for several F1 events since.
McLaren Automotive professional coach
Trusted to represent a premier automotive brand behind the wheel.
SimCraft partner & product demonstrator
Unit demonstrations and sales for a premier simulator brand.
What this shows
- Experience driving and coaching in many different settings
- The trust of top automotive and motorsport organizations
- The ability to represent teams and partners in public, professionally
(05)At a glance
Driver profile
Driver profile
Spencer Schmidt
- Hometown
- Las Vegas, Nevada
- Nationality
- United States
- Racing since
- 2023
- 2026 program
- McLaren Trophy America, Pro-Am
- Team
- RWE Motorsport
- Car
- #47 McLaren Artura Trophy EVO
- Education
- Pepperdine University, BA, Magna Cum Laude
- Heritage
- Third-generation racer
(06)Career
Year by year
- 2026
Championship leader
McLaren Trophy debut
McLaren Trophy America · Pro-Am · RWE Motorsport
Four wins and a podium in all seven races so far, including a sweep of the Sonoma opener. Leads the Pro-Am standings heading into the Indianapolis finale.
- 2025
Vice-Champion
Results under pressure
Radical Cup North America · Pro 1500 · #99
Mechanical problems left the #99 eighth in the standings after round one. Once they were fixed, consistent podiums climbed the car back up to second.
- 2024
P4 in championship
Into prototypes
Radical Cup North America · Pro 1500
First Radical Cup season, finishing fourth in the Pro 1500 points. In November, worked as an Expert Host at the Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix.
- 2023
P8 in championship
First full season in cars
Skip Barber Formula Race Series
A full Formula 4 season at some of the best-known circuits in the United States.
- 2022
The groundwork
From graduation to the grid
Karting · Briggs LO206 Senior
Graduated from Pepperdine and moved to Indianapolis. Worked for a kart team in exchange for parts and completed the Skip Barber Advanced F4 School.
- December 2021: test days with Jay Howard Driver Development in USF4 cars, in the wet, at Carolina Motorsports Park
- June–November: club and national karting at Whiteland Raceway Park and New Castle Motorsports Park
- October: Skip Barber Advanced F4 School at Sebring
(07)Gallery
On track
McLaren Trophy America · Miami
McLaren Trophy America podium
Radical Cup NA · Toronto
Radical Cup NA podium
Nashville street circuit
Post-race interview