Taylor "Moonshine" Courtney
Age:27
Racing since: 2002
Hometown: Indianapolis, IN
Taylor Courtney began racing a quarter midget 2002 at the age of 7. Courtney ran at that rank for a handful of years and then moved into the Micro Sprint ranks, where he raced for another seven years. In 2010 Taylor's racing path had hit a divide between driving and working on race cars. He would run sporadically from 2010 to 2012.
Graduating from High School in 2012, he would accept a full-time opportunity working with C&A motorsports helping maintain their USAC national midget team with drivers Caleb Armstrong and Dalton Armstrong. Through his time with C&A motorsports, Taylor gained the knowledge he needed to continue his growth in the sport, setting roots within the USAC ranks.
In 2013 Taylor was approached by USAC Triple Crown Champion drive Tracy Hines to come and be his Car Chief for the full USAC sprint car, midget, and Silver Crown schedule. This was an opportunity he couldn't pass up, and he gladly accepted the position.
Taylor would gain the knowledge and responsibility to manage a race team within his time with Tracy Hines. Taylor's time with Tracy would be cut short with a job opportunity in Houston, Texas. This job opportunity was tasked with running an entire race team for Kyle Anderson, a longtime family friend, and sponsor of his twin brother Tyler Courtney.
Moving to Texas was a big step for Taylor as it broke him out of some shadows he had been hiding behind and could create his own story. In 2014, Taylor moved to Houston with nothing but the clothes he owned and a plane ticket. He would jump right in and take control of the team. Leading them to about a half dozen wins within the first three months. Taylor and the team were clicking; even when they would allow him to drive a couple of the races, everything went smoothly. They would compete in about 40 races the first year, including the Tulsa Shootout, in which they took five cars. In 2015, Taylor decided to step back from racing and move to Fort Worth, Texas.
Taylor moved to Fort Worth to live with his girlfriend (now wife). He would seek full-time employment with what he would consider a regular job, not just traveling and working on race cars. However, staying away from racing didn't last long. Taylor would soon find himself racing his self-owned sprint car and midget with his father-in-law Kevin Ramey.
Taylor would compete in his first Chili Bowl Nationals in 2016 and again in 2017. He then decided in 2018; it was time to go a different route which was the Chili Bowl. He and Kevin both decided it was time to get serious about the Chili bowl and brought in drivers to compete for them. By 2019 their love for the Chili Bowl grew even further with the completion of their first homemade race car built in their shop. From 2019 to 2021, Taylor and Kevin built three cars total and have no intention of looking back now. They look to continue to grow their team and talents in 2022; with more exposure coming from the performances of their cars and drivers, it's time to compete on a national level.
Taylor is racing his sprint car as well as a few other cars for people and his enjoying his life and extremely excited for the 2022 season as he looks to grow his team, his knowledge, as well as his family as he and his wife are expecting their first child in October.