February 26, 2023 8.00 am This story is over 23 months old

Jack Harvey: The Lincolnshire racer living his dream Stateside

Indy 500 regular, relentless racer, but most importantly, Lincolnshire through and through

By Local Democracy Reporter

Around 12 months ago, Lincolnshire racer Jack Harvey crashed into a wall in Texas and a force of 100G was felt inside his helmet.

Many would struggle to recover from this fear, but for Jack it is just part of the job.

Bassingham-born Jack Harvey has racing in his blood. He spent much of his childhood travelling around circuits to watch his dad race in karting or motorbike events, and his uncle does long circuit go-kart events at the likes of Silverstone and Donington Park.

The 29-year-old started his sporting journey playing football for his local village team, but on his 9th birthday his life would alter forever, and his new path would make itself known.

“When I turned nine my dad bought me a go-kart,” Jack remembers. “I know it’s cliche to say, but the rest really is history.”

Jack’s early talents were clear as he won races and trophies galore. | Photo: Jack Harvey

Jack currently races in the NTT IndyCar Series in America, and is preparing for his seventh season in the famous competition – and second year for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.

He has taken part in six consecutive Indianapolis 500 races, one of motorsport’s coveted Triple Crown events, alongside the Le Mans 24 hour endurance race and Formula 1’s Monaco Grand Prix.

But how is a racer built and formed? How do you build up the courage and bravery to sit alone behind the wheel of an unimaginably fast vehicle, overtaking others on a narrow track at over 200mph?

Jack’s answer is simple: “You just want a great outcome. Pushing the car to the maximum is only to try and be the quickest person out there.

“Everyone has outright fear, and as a driver I accept the risk of racing, so I try not to spend time dwelling on it. I don’t like the word ‘fear’ really.

“The moment you start moving away from overtakes through being scared of a crash, that’s the moment you should probably call it a day.

“I’ve spent my whole life preparing for situations like this, and now I have the appropriate risk/reward levels.”

Most elite racing careers start at go-kart level, and Jack excelled in his younger years. | Photo: Jack Harvey

This process is one that has taken years to develop. The world of motorsport is brutal and competitive, so in order to stay afloat you must not just compete, but stand head and shoulders above the rest.

It was as a 13-year-old when Jack really thought he could make a name for himself in motorsport, after he won the MSA Super One British title and the Kartmasters British Grand Prix in the same year.

Jack soon became a serial winner at karting level, collecting trophies in all corners of the globe and eventually joining the McLaren Young Driver programme – which has birthed Formula One stars Lando Norris and Alex Albon in recent years, as well as a little known racer called Lewis Hamilton.

Jack said: “People like Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc all started go-karting, and when that becomes you, all of a sudden you dream about how far it could take you.

“It was around this time where I humbly decided I was quite good at this and could maybe make a career out of it.

“In my career I raced against Carlos Sainz (Ferrari driver in F1) in three separate seasons and beat him all three times.”

His career went from strength to strength through karting into formula racing. | Photo: Jack Harvey

Jack progressed through formula racing and won the 2012 British Formula 3 Championship in what appeared to be a march towards the pinnacle of open-wheel racing – a seat on the Formula 1 grid.

However, in 2014 he made a bold decision that would alter his path entirely. Jack moved across the Atlantic Ocean to join IndyLights, the junior feeder series for American competition the IndyCar Series.

Consecutive runner-up finishes in the IndyLights Series earned him a call up to IndyCar, and his debut was at no less than the Indianapolis 500.

He would earn a more consistent seat in the sport later in his career, and in 2021 he made the move to Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (RLL), co-owned by famous talk show host David Letterman.

A disappointing first season with the team saw Jack fail to secure any podium finishes or fastest laps, leaving him 22nd in the overall championship, but he is keen to put things right this time around.

The 2023 NTT IndyCar Series kicks off on March 5 around the streets of St Petersburg, Florida, running for 17 races and concluding at Laguna Seca in California on September 10.

Jack with two-time Formula 1 World Champion Fernando Alonso at the 2017 Indianapolis 500. | Photo: Jack Harvey

Jack said: “My IndyCar career in general has been a case of plenty of potential but not many great results, but that’s part of the business.

“We’ve spent a lot of time understanding where we went wrong last season and what we can do better.

“We want to compete for podiums again, before I made the change to RLL I was doing this, and the move happened for a reason, there’s a lot of desire from everyone in the team for us to succeed, and that’s down to us making the best decisions we can.”

With all of the incredible things that happen in Jack’s life as a result of his effort and dedication to the sport, he often takes time to reflect on the journey and how fortunate he feels to be in this position.

He says: “We live in a small village outside of Lincoln, and here I am in another country doing something that not many get to do, meeting people like Letterman and my heroes.

“It’s still not easy to put into words how cool it all is and the gratitude you get. It’s just wild that a lad from Bassingham can live my life.”

One thing has remained a constant in his ever-changing world, and that is the love and support of his family. Jack’s parents funded his karting journey as far as they could, before investors and sponsors helped him compete against perhaps more wealthier opponents.

Jack speaks fondly of the help of his parents, saying: “I’m really lucky my parents were in a position where they could support me through karting.

“What they have provided for both me and my sister is mind-blowing, and being as lucky as I am to live the life I have, it comes from the hard work of my family.

“Motorsport is very expensive, and it came with limits, so we found ways to achieve more together. They still come and watch my races whenever they can.”

There aren’t many behind an open wheel racer than Jack Harvey. | Photo: Jack Harvey

There is a large motorsport presence in the county, and that is reflected in the number of competitors emerging from Lincolnshire.

Jack Harvey is flying the flag in IndyCar, Sam Lowes is racing in MotoGP’s daughter classification Moto2, while his twin brother Alex Lowes regularly competes near the top of the Superbikes World Championship standings.

Outside of motorsport we have stars in other fields who are putting the county on the map. Sophie Wells is an eight-time Paralympic medalist from Lincoln, Skegness’ Tom Jarvis is a national table tennis champion, while Grantham’s Freya Colbert became a Commonwealth Games medalist at just 18 years old.

But why is this? Jack feels it could be down to the tight-knit spirit of a smaller community like ours in Lincolnshire, compared to the big city life of somewhere like London or Manchester.

“The thing that amazes me is that Lincolnshire isn’t really known for most of these sports, there’s no national sports centres in Lincoln so it’s always interesting seeing people from smaller places make it into this world of sport.

“The support and love you get from everyone in your community is reciprocated and you carry it with you along the way.

“Lincoln is one of the epicentres of my support, you’ll struggle to find people who love Lincoln more than me and my family – it’s such a forever home for me.”


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