Consider this: You’re in the driver’s seat of an open-wheel racecar doing 120 miles per hour. You’ve moved past eight cars to lead all 40 cars out of turn one. You slip to second after the third turn. That’s okay—it’s a long race and you’re feeling good.

Then you’re slammed into the wall… by your own teammate. The left side of your car is ripped off. Fortunately you limp away, bruised and confused.

That’s what happened to Edmonton’s Mike Forest at the Cleveland Grand Prix in late June.

“I was astonished at his action… we could have had our first podium finish in the Cooper Series,” Forest laments.

A second-generation driver—his dad Ric was on the pro circuit years ago—he has been racing for four full seasons. He claimed the “spring cup” by earning the most championship points during the first half of the 2005 12-race season. On the same weekend as the Grand Prix of Edmonton, he had second and third place finishes in the Pacific F2000 race in Sonoma, California. He’s still leading in points, and is slated for two more races in Buttonwillow, California in September.

“My ultimate goal is to move up into the Champ Car series,” says Forest who races one level down in the Toyota Atlantic series. You know the 24-year old is dreaming of racing in front of a hometown crowd now that serious racing is back in Edmonton.

“I was pretty naïve when I started… Most drivers start with go-karting, I didn’t. It was a pretty sharp learning curve for me, but I’m determined to move up the ladder.”

Forest graduated from the University of Alberta this spring with a degree in commerce and a major in finance. Business savvy for a driver is important, “especially in attracting sponsorship and marketing,” he explains. The funds go to his PRI Motorsports four-driver team and crew for development.

Forest, who maintains his residence in Edmonton but lives in a motorhome based in Fresno, is appreciative of the support and encouragement he receives from his family.

“My dad provides guidance… my mom, sister and brother-in-law are huge fans. There’s someone there for me at virtually every race.”