Sheard ready for new racing challenge

Racer Kyle Sheard joins the Kenyon Midget Series for 2023.

By Ken de la Bastide

For the past decade Indiana driver Kyle Sheard has been racing go-karts on road courses, but this year is planning to dive head first into Kenyon Midget Series action. Sheard, 16, a junior at Centerville High School, will be running the full schedule with teammate Jeff Hill.

The two teammates have decided to take the next step up the career ladder and will be competing all season.

“We raced mostly the road course at New Castle,” Sheard recently said. “The plan is to run the entire Kenyon Midget season.”

He has never raced on an oval or on dirt and is entering 2023 as a learning experience. Sheard said two-time Kenyon Midget Series winner in 2022 Thomas Schrage and Kyle Ford both recommended moving up to the series.

“We're looking to get a few good races in and learn this season,” he said. “We'll be at the practice sessions and work on figuring out the cars and how they handle. We're going to try and get a win,” Sheard said. “I always like the midgets.”

Sheard said he has reviewed some of the replays of Kenyon Midget Series races last year to get an idea about some of the tracks. “This will be a different type of car,” he said.

Sheard said his grandfather used to race and purchased his first go kart when he was 5 years old. “I loved it ever since,” he said.

Sheard currently is taking classes at the Centerville Career Center in health sciences and plans to attend Indiana University East in Richmond after graduating from high school.