Author: Tammy Lane • First Posted: Monday, July 14, 2008

 A big Mark Martin fan who recalls watching races with his grandfather, Joseph Hampton has enjoyed NASCAR for as long as he can remember. These days, the Bryan Station High School graduate is living a dream – working on the cars he’s always loved.

  “There’s a lot more that goes into these cars that you don’t hear about,” the young mechanic said, describing his job with Penske Racing. “I really enjoy every minute of it.”

  Hampton recently was back in his hometown to share his story with teens who share his vision: a career in the automotive or racing industry. He spoke March 22 at Universal Technical Institute’s mid-year orientation meeting for Kentucky high school seniors who have enrolled at one of its 10 campuses across the country.

  “It gives me an opportunity to drive home that if you have the right passion and commitment, this is the kind of success you can have,” said Rick Nielsen, a field admissions counselor for UTI.

  Hampton, who eventually wants to join a pit crew, advised the students who gathered that Saturday at Eastside Technical Center to “be a sponge.” “Soak up every little thing you can – positive or negative,” he said. “Stick through it, and don’t give up.”

  Hampton studied under instructor Greg Jones for two years at Eastside; he then completed training at UTI’s NASCAR Technical Institute in Mooresville, N.C., in October 2006. A few months before NTI graduation, he started working with the Penske team of driver Sam Hornish Jr. After tearing down engines and assembling test cars, Hampton has moved on to working on the “77” crew team.

  “I don’t build the engine, but as soon as the engineering shop gets done, I install it in the car,” he explained.

  The first Cup race Hampton attended was the Brickyard 400 in Indianapolis in 2003, at age 16. Now he gets to travel as a professional – working races in Phoenix and Homestead, Fla., and heading to Detroit for wind-tunnel testing.

  “If you want a great job and a great career, you’ve got to set everything (else) aside,” Hampton told the UTI-bound students.

  “It’s going to be a struggle,” he added, noting the long hours with classes and part-time jobs. “You’re going to have to buckle down and do it.”

  Hampton said he likes living in Mooresville, N.C., where “within a 30-mile radius … there’s nothing but race teams,” but it has been hard trying to network in a new place.

  “The biggest thing is learning to grow up and doing a lot of things on your own,” said Hampton, 21, who was born and raised in Lexington.

  “Kentucky still has a place in my heart, but I’m here for my dream and my career. Deep down, this is where I want to be – working on these race cars.”

  Jeremy Levenson, a graduate of Tates Creek High School and UTI in Avondale, Ariz., also has found himself far away from home, now living in Tucson.

  “At 19 years old, he has more responsibility than most kids in college. … He’s got nobody but himself,” said Jim Levenson, his father.

  A schedule conflict kept Jeremy from Saturday’s UTI orientation, so his dad spoke instead – from the parents’ perspective.

  Levenson, who said his son eventually wants to design suspension and braking systems, said he’s proud of how Jeremy went out there, graduated and got a job in his industry.

  “Even when he was a little fellow, he always liked working on things,” recalled Levenson, noting that Jeremy later raced Sprint Karts in high school. “It just seemed like he was in his element there.”

  After high school, UTI seemed to fit best with Jeremy’s interests.

  While studying automotive/diesel technology at the main campus in Arizona, Jeremy worked as a fleet tech at Bob Bondurant’s racing school. He now is a technician with one of Brooks Associates Racing’s cars.

  “His long-term goal is to work in Formula One racing, and if you look at the current opportunity that he is working in, he is one step closer to achieving that dream,” UTI’s Nielsen said.

  What is Levenson’s best advice for other parents of young people who want to get into racing?

“Don’t let the homesickness and the money hinder you,” he said. “You’ve got to gut it out.”