Following the whirlwind of celebrations and media obligations after Ricky Stenhouse Jr. won the Daytona 500, JTG Daugherty Racing co-owner Jodi Geschickter wanted to visit victory lane with her husband, Tad, to relive the day’s events in private.
Their initials make up the “JTG” in the team’s name.
“We got back there and everything was already cleaned up,” Jodi Geschickter said. “That was kind of a shocker, everything was already gone. They were washing it down, so I gathered up some of the metallic confetti and put that in my pocket and in my purse and we just shared a prayer and enjoyed and appreciated that moment.”
Finding meaning in unique ways and utilizing creative solutions is a hallmark of JTG Daugherty Racing, a team that traces its roots to ST Motorsports and the NASCAR Xfinity Series in the 1990s. In many ways, the single-car operation is a throwback to some of the sport’s earlier days, with a close-knit group of friends and family at the helm.
While not necessarily an underdog, the team still needs to scrap and claw for wins and solid results in a landscape increasingly dominated by super teams.
“I think we’re the Avis of motorsports, everyone has to try harder,” Tad Geschickter said.
However, it’s also one of the earliest examples of a team comprised of individuals with diverse professional backgrounds and upbringings, something that has become ever more commonplace in today’s NASCAR Cup Series.
“I don’t think it was intentional when we did it, we just tried to find people that had our values and were like-minded and that we enjoyed doing business with,” Tad Geschickter said.
The most well-known is Brad Daugherty, the 7-footer from Black Mountain, N.C., who played basketball for four years at the University of North Carolina before being chosen as the No. 1 overall pick in the 1986 NBA Draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Daugherty had a wildly successful NBA career in which he was named an All-Star five times. He had his No. 43 retired by the Cavaliers, a number he wore as a tribute to his hero: Richard Petty.
After losing a coin flip for the number in college, Daugherty’s only request to Cavaliers owner Gordon Gund on draft night was to ensure he could wear the number in the pros.
Daugherty grew up in a family of drag racers in the western part of the Tar Heel State, while also attending circle track races at New Asheville Speedway. He was involved in shop class in high school and had an affinity for working on cars. He befriended rising short-track ace Robert Pressley and the two traveled together to tracks throughout the Southeast as Pressley’s notoriety grew and Daugherty’s presence in the NBA became ever larger.
Daugherty was Pressley’s car owner for several Xfinity Series races and the pair won a race together in 1989 at Orange County Speedway in Rougemont, N.C.
Basketball and motorsports are two of North Carolina’s most famous activities, so it’s no surprise a native of the state like Daugherty would be a fan of both. But he stood out at the track not just for his towering frame, but as a black man at some rough-and-tumble southeastern facilities. Daugherty was never intimidated and Richard Petty’s kindness to him at North Wilkesboro Speedway when Daugherty was in his youth only added to his fandom for The King.
“We should all be able to go and have a good time and enjoy one another, especially in America, because America’s built on all of our backs,” Daugherty said.
He was instrumental in starting NASCAR’s diversity program, noting that when the pioneering Wendell Scott’s career ended, so too did the motorsports trajectory of many African Americans. Now, Daugherty is the first black owner to win the Daytona 500.