About Chad Graves

Hello and welcome to my biography page. I am currently the Warehouse Manager for J.W. Perry. I have been working there for the last 13 years. I also am the owner/driver of a Hobby Stock Race Car, which I race every Sunday night at Huset's Speedway. When I'm not at a track I am usually found in my garage working on the race car during the weekdays.

I have been a racing fan all of my life. When I was a lot younger, I frequently attended weekly races at Huset's Speedway with my family, and or friends. I had hoped to more involved in racing as I got older. While growing up I was influenced by Danny Lasoski, Dana Gulbrandson, and Marty Barber. When I was in High School I often spent many nights out with friends where I picked up my nickname "Thunder", which is why Thunder Racing is my logo for all my racing themes.

During the 1995 thru 1997 race seasons I assisted Neill Hansen with his #39 Street Stock and #39 Sportsman race cars at Huset's Speedway and I-90 Speedway.

My friend Kermit and I purchased a Sportsman Race Car in the fall of 1997. We tore it down to the frame and decided to build a Street Stock with a Big Block Engine. When completed, we decided to put an experienced driver behind the wheel. Our choice was Ray Sveeggen. He has been involved in racing thru driving Hobby Stocks, Street Stocks, and building race cars over the past 15 years. The race car was driven only a few races at the end of the 1998 season. It was in a wreck at Huset's Cheater's Day Races located at the Sioux Falls Fairgrounds. After the season, we disassembled the car and parted it out to fellow racing competitors. While in the pit's during 1999 thru 2001 race seasons, I helped out Ray Sveeggen at I-90 Speedway. Currently Ray continues to race his own #21 Street Stock at various local tracks within the surrounding area.

In the fall of 2001, I purchased a 1982 Chevy Monte Carlo race car, from a local racer, after the Cheater's Day race at I-90 Speedway. The car came straight to my garage after the races and I quickly got to work. The car was basically race ready for the next season, except for the routine engine work that needed to be done. The body was painted by Macco and the lettering was hand-painted by Signman, out of Inwood, IA. I finished 8th in the point standings at I-90 Speedway and was also the 2002 Rookie of the Year in the Hobby Stock Division. After the season ended I stripped down the car and rebuilt it from its bare chassis.

I purchased a new body for the car and quickly started creating a fresh car for the 2003 race season. While I was busy skinning the car, my 2002 race car motor was being refreshened by Sehr Performance Machine. Then it was put back together by D.A.D.'s Repair owner Gerald Dahlin, who also is the crew chief of Ray Sveeggen's #21 Street Stock. For the 2003 race car I added a nosepiece. The frame, engine, and roll cage are all the same from the 2002 race season. My color scheme is reflecting NASCAR's #48 Jimmie Johnson. I raced at I-90 Speedway for the 2003 race season and finished 3rd in the points standings. I also gained my first ever A Feature win in a race car.

At the end of the 2003 season the car needed a few repairs, so I had Race Fab Chassis owner Brad Haas incorporate a few needed roll cage bars. Also, a new body was put on and a new paint scheme for the 2004 race season was incorporated. The lettering was done by Bret Heitritter out of Rock Rapids, IA. I raced the full 2004 race season at I-90 Speedway and finished 6th in the point standings. I also raced Park Jefferson's Cheater's Day were I won my heat and that qualified me for racing in the Trophy Dash, which I also won. For the A-main feature I started 8th and won the race. T-shirts and sweatshirts are available for purchase with the 2004 race car on them.

I sold my 2004 Hobby Stock to a local racer and purchased a 2005 Pro Chassis Pro Hobby Stock Chassis. For the 2005 race season I decided to race with a Schwanke Sealed Hobby Stock Engine. The race car was painted by GENESIS Autoworks owner Randy Harberer. Since I received good feedback on the 2004 car lettering I decided to have Bret Heitritter letter it for the 2005 race car. There are a few t-shirts and sweatshirts available for purchase, so stop by the pits and have a look. The 2005 race season started out better than I thought. All I was hoping for was to possibly gain a win at Huset's Speedway. In the end I gained 5 total. I also finished the season taking the Championship in the Hobby Stock Division.

Since the 2005 race car's condition was in decent shape I decided to use the same body for another year. I did replace the front 2 fenders and have it repainted. Randy Harberer painted it yet again for this year. Bret Heitritter also lettered the car again this year. I finished 4th in the point standings at Huset's Speedway. I raced on a part-time basis at both Rock Rapids Speedway and Lake County Speedway. Between racing part-time and full-time at the area tracks I ended up racing in 54 races and captured 9 A Feature wins. The season ended on a good note by winning the NMRA's Championship in the Hobby Stock Division and the Schwanke Sealed Engine Point Fund.

The 2007 race season was my sixth year driving a Hobby Stock race car. I replaced the body of the car and had the roll cage repaired by Pro-Chassis, out of Luverne, MN. For the fourth straight year Genesis Autoworks owner Randy Harberer, located in Tea, SD painted the car and the lettering was done by Bret Heitritter, out of Rock Rapids, IA. Due to time constraints I didn't get the car to any of the area's car shows, but pictures and a few t-shirts and sweatshirts were available after the races. I ended the year by finishing 2nd in the Hobby Stock Division at Huset's Speedway and gained 2 wins for the season.