Photo courtesy to Sheila Ledarney Antosko

By Tanner Smith

Seven Year Old Drag Racer

Seven year old Beaverlodge Drag Racer

May 28, 2022 | 3:24 PM

A Drag Racer from the North Peace Racing Association is proving she’s the fastest on the track and the fastest learner.

Bella Iles first started driving at five years old on her local track, Bella’s father Blair the Sponsorship Director of the North Peace Bracket Racing Association, says it was never something that was on his radar, but Bella has become completely addicted…

“I don’t think there’s any doubt she’s hooked now, she’s gone now and won a couple of rounds and is continually getting better and better, I can see in her that she’s becoming more addicted and more excited for every race that comes along.” Says Blair Iles.

Bella’s racing career started from the bleachers, taking in the action with her Dad and Step-Dad and what started as a joke quickly turned into reality when they found the perfect machine at a garage sale…

“We watched a couple of times, then me, myself and Bella’s Step Dad were garage sailing for ourselves and we stumbled across the car that Bella is currently driving and through some back and forth conversation, that we thought started as a joke and we ended up buying the car and turned it down as much as we could and let Bella get comfortable with it, she actually made her first-ever pass down the local track when she was five,” says Blair.

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The Father-Daughter duo has their eyes set on eight races this season, stretching all over BC, Alberta, and down across the border into Idaho.

“As of right now there will be four race weekends here in the area, with a race on each day and then four out-of-town races, basically you’re looking at a total of two weeks of the summer that she will be running and rolling on the track,” Blair says.

What started as a joke between co-parents has now turned into a passion for a seven-year-old girl. Bella has gone as fast as 80km/h and has her next race at the Napa Speedway in Beaverlodge on June 11 and 12.