1/20/2025
Midwest Legends Dirt Series
Meet the Team: Shelly Ascherien
The Midwest Legends Dirt Series could not operate if it wasn’t for some very dedicated people. This article series will spotlight the men and women behind the scenes who keep the wheels turning and races going.
Today, we meet someone who made sure the series ran smoothly. The woman who made sure everyone had their paperwork in and got entered, Shelly Ascherien. Shelly was the secretary for the MLDS’ first season. Let’s meet Shelly below!!
Name - Shelly Ascherien
Hometown - Beaver Dam
Position in the series - Secretary
How you got into racing - Way back in 1995, I started going to the races at The Dodge County Fairgrounds, with my best friend and her family. I kind of fell for this guy that drove the #7 Street Stock, you may know him, Todd Ascherien. That's when my passion for racing began! Those days at the fairgrounds were some of the best times of my life! Fast forward to 2019, the year our Son, Brady, started his racing career in a go kart. We spent 3 years in the kart program before moving up to the "big" track in a Legend in 2022. I volunteered with the kart program as the "Line Up Lady" from 2021-2024. Then I took on the role of Secretary for the MLDS. I could not imagine my life without racing!
Thoughts on the 2024 season - My initial thought was Mike was crazy for taking this on. But after our first meeting, I realized that had he not sacrificed so much, we wouldn't have been racing. I felt as a board, we learned and grew with each race. Were we perfect, hell no. But we knew what was working well, what needed improvement, and we made a plan to fix things. I think we had a great inaugural season, and the car counts proved that.
Favorite memory of last year - First & foremost, watching my Son do what he loves will always be my favorite memory! There were so many other favorites as well. Hearing all the wonderful compliments about our drivers, and the great show they put on. Watching the younger drivers improve every race. And just witnessing the camaraderie of the drivers and crews! This group is really something special!
Favorite part of the series - One of my favorite parts was meeting so many new people, and making new friends. Not to mention traveling to all the new tracks, and states that I've never been to. My other favorite part was the board that made this all possible. Mike was always there to answer my hundreds of questions! He was an incredible leader and always made sure we put on a good show. Lance was always a wealth of knowledge with his years of working with other sanctioning bodies. Always loved seeing his smiling face! Ann was so efficient in getting everyone paid quickly. She got her steps in each night for sure. Appreciate her hard work! Tim did an amazing job locking down new tracks for us to race at. I don't think people realize how much time he spends on scheduling. Dan is one of those guys you just can't do without. Always running around making sure the drivers were ready for lineup. And he was that familiar face on the infield you needed to see when your night didn't go quite as planned. The Legends Direct Team played a tremendous role in our success. Without them we wouldn't have been able to reward these drivers with that awesome points fund. Thank you for your faith in this series! And finally, thank you to Zack for all of your hard work behind the scenes. You always had everything ready for the race winners, the pictures were taken, and the social media posts were top notch! I learned so much this season about scoring, payout, check in, and how to make a race program run smoothly. It takes a great team of leaders and drivers to produce the successful season we had. I thank you all for your patience with me, as I navigated my new role. I truly enjoyed every minute of it. I'm going to miss you all so much, and I wish you nothing but success for next season! Best of luck to Kayla, as she takes over the role of Secretary. We will see you at a few tracks I'm sure. Just keep up the great, clean racing and have fun!!
Although Shelly is leaving, her impact on the MLDS and Legends racing in general has been made and we could not have been more honored to have her grace our presence.
For more information or to learn more about the series, find the series on Facebook today!!
Article Credit: Zack Krueger
Submitted By: Zack Krueger
