“The last couple of years I raced full time I really wasn’t enjoying myself,” he said. “I got into a rut because it was really all I knew to do to try and make a living.”
The problem was that making a living in his accustomed way was getting harder. There was a time when he easily made ends meet, racing regularly on the bullrings of Indiana. Shuman won the WAR sprint car series title in 2015. Then, an unexpected thing happened.
“The whole WAR thing fell in my lap,” Shuman said, explaining how he began promoting races. “Owning a series was never a goal but it just sort of happened.”
His time with WAR was productive and proved to be a bit of a revelation. He saw his core constituents as blue-collar racers who desired to have fun. While that was a fair depiction of his series, it didn’t reduce the issues Shuman faced.
“It was really cool when I could see how much they had fun and enjoyed their time there,” he said. “But it also didn’t take long to realize you weren’t going to please everybody.”
The difficult moments were things many in the promotion world understand all too well.
“It was crazy to think that the things you would do and the time and effort you put into it did go completely unrecognized or unappreciated,” he said. “That was tough. The promoter and the series and a lot of people do a lot of work for the competitors and the fans and when it goes unrecognized that hurts a little bit. It is definitely a full-time job and it’s not easy by any means. You don’t show up on Saturday, put on a show and hope everything goes smoothly.”
A new door opened and Shuman soon became director for the traveling World of Outlaws Late Model Series.
“I thought they were kidding,” Shuman said. “But we sat down and talked and an hour and a half later I was going late model racing.”
The task was decidedly different. He would be overseeing a series that featured a different style of race car and a different kind of participant.
“It wasn’t long ago I was working with families who just wanted to have a good time and now we’re talking about full-blown race teams that support three, four and five people, and have corporate sponsors,” Shuman explained. “It was a huge challenge.”
Shuman had credibility in the sprint car pits, but this was a different animal.
“It took a long time to earn their respect but the more I talked to them the more they understood, hey, he is a racer, he does understand,” Shuman noted. “They also tried to get some stuff by me early on and I would say, ‘Come on man.’”
Shuman added the Xtreme Outlaw Series to his portfolio in 2022, but during the offseason he took the helm at the revitalized I-70 Raceway Park east of Kansas City.
“It is obviously a place with a lot of history,” he said. “They have done an amazing job of building it back up to where it needs to be. It just needs a little help and a little love.”
Levi Jones is one of the most decorated drivers in USAC history. At the time of his retirement, he had captured seven national championships. Persistent physical issues created problems for him and he moved on, managing a Rural King outlet in Illinois.
On the side he was helping former racer and friend Shane Hmiel campaign a midget. Then he was approached by USAC President Kevin Miller.
Jones explained, “Kevin talked to me about running an Illinois series or something like that and I said, ‘Why are you worried about doing something like that? Why not fix what you are doing now. Take care of the big stuff and the little stuff will take care of itself.’ One thing led to another, and I was an official.”
When Jones began his new role, he realized he had some preconceived notions about some of the participants, and he knew the reverse was also true. The quest was to find common ground.