New Year’s PRI 2025 “Girl Power” Special with Michaela Conner, Dina Parise, Linda Vaughn & Nitro Allie
Happy New Year from The Pits Are Open! Host Will Marotti and producer Alex Smith kick off 2026 with a high-energy PRI 2025 special spotlighting four women who are shaping motorsports through marketing, competition, legacy, and community-building.
Will opens the episode with gratitude for the show’s first year with the SpeedSport family and invites listeners to get involved by signing up for the weekly newsletter at thepitsareopen.com and leaving a voice message through the site’s microphone feature. He also shares that the show is actively seeking a title sponsor for 2026 to support continued growth and expanded coverage.
Then the episode shifts into an all-female lineup recorded at PRI 2025:
Dina “Spicy Meatball” Parise shares her remarkable story—starting drag racing in her 30s, winning the 2015 IHRA Pro Mod Championship as the first woman to do so, and preparing for a full-force return in 2026. Her background as a professional figure skater with the Ice Capades makes her path to horsepower even more unforgettable.
Next, motorsports marketing rising star Michaela Conner breaks down how she built Trackside, a unique agency that goes beyond social media by bringing brands to the track, building real relationships, and helping grassroots racers close the sponsorship gap. Her approach centers on trust, business outcomes, and trackside experiences that turn first-time partners into long-term supporters.
The show also features the legendary Linda Vaughn, widely known as the First Lady of Racing and the iconic Hurst Shifter ambassador. Linda reflects on her beginnings at drag strips, the marketing mindset that shaped her decades-long career, and why storytelling and authenticity have always powered motorsports growth.
Finally, fan-favorite racing ambassador Nitro Allie joins the show to share how she turned her lifelong drag racing passion into a public persona that promotes events, supports race tracks, and encourages youth involvement in motorsports. She also opens up about balancing racing community work with her career as a death investigator, and why motorsports became a healthy, mission-driven outlet.
Presented by SpeedSport, Redline Ace, Schaeffer Oil, and America’s Christian Credit Union.
🔗 Mentioned Links
The Pits Are Open (newsletter + listener voicemail mic): thepitsareopen.com
SpeedSport / SpeedSport 1: speedsport.com | speedsport1.com
Redline Ace Racing Graphics: redlineace.com
Schaeffer Oil: schaefferoil.com
America’s Christian Credit Union: americaschristiancu.com/pits
🎧 Featured Guests
Michaela Conner – Founder, Trackside (motorsports marketing + sponsorship relationship building)
Dina Parise – 2015 IHRA Pro Mod Champion; “Spicy Meatball” (drag racing comeback story)
Linda Vaughn – “First Lady of Racing”; legendary motorsports ambassador and Hurst Shifter icon
Nitro Allie – Motorsports personality and racing ambassador; NHRA community connector