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While all the action may look like it’s on the track or in the pit, Nick Payne ’18 is perched high above the track watching every lap closely. As a spotter for 23XI Racing and driver Tyler Reddick, Payne serves as the eyes in the sky — relaying real-time information, guiding strategy and helping keep the driver safe at 200 miles per hour.

“We’re the metaphorical guy who sits on the shoulders of the driver,” Payne said. “We’re constantly telling him information… a lot of coaching, sometimes a lot of cheerleading… We kind of look out for him since he’s very visually limited.”

Before starting his career in NASCAR, Payne set out on his first major journey: college.

He grew up playing sports and watching NASCAR races.

When it came time to pick a college and a major, Payne was drawn to WCU for its outdoor adventures and engineering program.

While studying engineering technology at WCU, Payne initially had dreams of becoming a crew chief, but those evolved over time as he explored opportunities in the sport. What began as a weekend hobby spotting friends at local races became something more.

After some time spent in a part-time role helping 23XI driver Bubba Wallace, Payne was invited to interview for a full-time role once the company expanded.

“I came down, I sat, I met Tyler (Reddick). It’s the first time I ever met Tyler, and we kind of knew instantly that we were probably building something strong,” Payne said. “For the past two and a half years, we’ve had a lot of fun, a lot of success.”

Since joining 23XI, Payne has been part of some of the team’s biggest moments, including a win at Talladega in 2024 — his first plate race victory — and a defining win at Homestead-Miami that punched their ticket to the Championship 4.

“Talladega was big for me personally,” he said. “But Homestead was special for the whole company. It validated everything we’d been working on.”

Even now, years after graduating, Payne still credits WCU — and one staff member in particular — for helping him find his voice. “I took Brian Boyer’s class, Band of Brothers. It was a big class that taught me a lot about myself and what I could learn and how I could learn about others,” he said.

Years later, their relationship came full circle when Boyer officiated Payne’s wedding.

“Western really opened the door to a wide range of experiences for me,” he said. “It had a strong connection to nature, and the sense of community was incredible. Everyone was genuinely kind and supportive — it felt like being part of a close-knit small town. WCU is the place for learning how to build relationships and finding out who you are, which has helped me so much in my career.”

Austin Holland ’15, has had a front row seat for almost a decade as a tire changer — a career he didn’t plan for, but fought hard to earn.

While at WCU, Holland learned who he was, kept a good routine of balancing academics with extracurriculars and was able to get involved with several student organizations, including campus ministry and intramural sports.

“I learned a lot at Western, and I got plugged into a lot of great things like the campus ministry and intramural sports. My whole life I grew up playing sports thinking, ‘Man, this is what I want to do.’ I just didn’t know which sport,” he said.

Holland earned a bachelor’s in communication from WCU in 2015 and got his professional start at WBTV, a news station in Charlotte. From there, he transitioned into a sales role with Newell Rubbermaid.

But there was always something in the back of his mind that pulled him towards NASCAR.

Holland grew up in Huntersville and would go with his brother and parents to Charlotte Motor Speedway and watch the races.

“I can remember conversations with my dad talking about the guys changing tires and putting gas in the car, you know, just amazed because it’s a hundred pound can,” Holland said. “We’d always talk about how cool it was. I had no idea that I’d ever find myself in a position to be doing this.”

The turning point for Holland to get into NASCAR came during a pickup basketball game.

“I was playing with some guys who were pit crew athletes in NASCAR,” Holland said. “They seemed happy, loved their job. I asked them what they did and how they made their way into NASCAR”.

That glimpse lit a spark. So, Holland quit his job. It was a leap of faith — and a tough one. To make ends meet, he sold women’s shoes at Dillard’s in the Northlake Mall while he answered phones and networked. Eventually, the call came. A team was looking for a tire changer to try out.

“That was nine years ago. Holland has been on a pit crew ever since.

“Knowing all along I wanted to be in sports, I felt athletic, but was a smaller guy but as I have gotten further into my NASCAR career, I have put on some weight and size,” Holland said. “I feel like this is a new opportunity for me to hone in on my athletic ability in NASCAR and start to see some success from all the days that didn’t work out. I’ve been able to really take a lot of pride in working with NASCAR and Track House and just give my all and put my best foot forward every single day.”

His patience and persistence paid off. In 2021, Holland was part of the Front Row Motorsports crew that won the Daytona 500, helping steer Michael McDowell to one of the most memorable underdogs wins in recent memory.

“I was in the pit stall, sobbing,” he said. “I called my dad and said, ‘you know, it all worked out.’”

Holland shared that the most rewarding part of life is the journey of self-discovery and the drive to constantly improve. He emphasized the grit it takes to recognize there’s more potential within yourself and to pursue that growth with determination.

“When you grit your teeth and say, ‘I’m going to find a way,’ and take steps forward, the best things come your way when you believe in yourself,” he said.

Reflecting on conversations with fans, especially young people at the racetrack, Holland often hears the question, “How did you get into this?” His answer is rooted in self-belief — he took a chance on himself, and it paid off.

What makes working in NASCAR even more special, he added, is hearing others share similar stories of ambition and resilience. While each path is unique, many begin with the same realization: “I’m not where I want to be, but I know where I want to go.”

Ask anyone who has graduated from WCU’s sports management program in the College of Business what the most important part is, and they will all say internships.

Ask Josh Jones ’01 what he got from his internship with Keystone Marketing, and he will first say dressing up as the Oreo cookie mascot for NASCAR driver Kevin Harvick, who had just won the race.

Then he will share how that initial internship opened the doors for him to be where he is now as vice president of sports marketing and entertainment for Kevin Harvick Inc. (Yes, he now works for the same person he dressed up as cookie for all those years ago).

But just like his journey from internship to executive has had lots of twists and turns, so has his higher education route.

“My friend Rob was looking to go to WCU and needed a roommate. I was waiting to see if I got any football scholarship offers,” Jones said. “I ended up getting a few from small schools that just weren’t the right fit for me, so I decided to go to WCU without even visiting, hoping I could be a walk-on kicker for the football team.”

Once on campus, Jones tried without success for several weeks to get information about walk-on tryouts. Finally, he received an email from one of the administrative associates in the athletics department letting him know that try-outs were the next day. Jones made the football team and after having his heart set on studying criminal justice, was led to another major: sports management.

“After talking with some of my teammates, I saw the value in getting a degree in sports management instead of criminal justice for what I wanted to do after college,” he said. “I absolutely loved the program and learned so much. WCU was the best four years of my life besides marriage and children. I give everything to WCU. It is a true home.”

Jones was an All-American kicker. When it was time to start looking for internships, Jones dug in and started reaching out to marketing firms.

“I sent 50 emails, 30 letters, and one marketing firm reached out and offered me a six-month paid internship,” he said. “When I started, I noticed everyone was very sharply dressed and ‘dress like the person you want to be’ came top of mind. I went to the NASCAR races with press kits, running around the track handing out press releases. I started at the very bottom.”

After that initial season, Jones went to work for Keystone Marketing full-time. In early 2005, Jones was working for Reese’s, and after that NASCAR season, was approached by Kevin Harvick about joining the KHI team, where he has been ever since. Starting in public relations before moving his way up through the ranks to vice president of marketing and client management.

“KHI manages 10-12 athletes from NASCAR, the UFC and the PGA,” Jones said. “It is all about knowing your client, the sponsors and being able to talk race cars or golf, depending on the situation.”

Over the years, Jones has taken what he learned at WCU about professionalism and giving your all and has been able to share that with his own children and others that work at KHI, instilling these values in the next generation of leadership in NASCAR marketing.

When asked what his advice to current WCU students would be, he emphasized dressing for the role you want, doing more than the minimum and being careful about what you share on social media.

Scott Clodfelter ’85 has been driving an 18-wheeler cross country for Xfinity and Cup Series races for nearly 20 years. But prior to his life on the road, driving for NASCAR, he was a young college student at WCU.

“My brother, who was six years older, had gone to WCU, so I had plenty of opportunities to visit campus and knew that was where I wanted to be. I have so many fond memories of WCU from Leatherwood Dorm, spending summers floating down the river and being the founding father of Sigma,” he said.

Clodfelter, a Lexington native, grew up in a trucking family. Both his father and his grandfather were truck drivers, and he figured once he graduated, he would move back to Lexington to do the same, but after graduating with a business administration degree, Clodfelter ended up in Asheville, eventually working in financial services at Wachovia Bank.

“In 2003, Wachovia was in merger talks, and at that point, I decided to pursue what I really wanted to do – truck driving,” Clodfelter said. “I started out with Andy Petree Racing in Hendersonville and drove for the Cup Series for about 15 years going all over the country. I then decided to move to driving for Xfinity to be on the road less.”

Clodfelter’s role as hauler is to not only transport the race cars to the different tracks but to keep track of inventory and make sure everything is accounted for in the truck.

“With all of the parts we keep in the hauler, we can build an entire race car,” he said.

Clodfelter also assists in the pit crew and lifts the 100-pound gas can over his shoulder to help with refueling.

Now hauling for Richard Childress Racing driver Jesse Love, Clodfelter says having the support of his wife and family and great friends in NASCAR is what motivates him and allows him to drive to 35 races per year, which is his favorite part of the job.