Ryan Eversley
| Ryan Eversley | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Nationality | American |
| Born |
December 22, 1983 Lithonia, Georgia, U.S. |
| Pirelli World Challenge career | |
| Debut season | 2010 |
| Current team | RealTime Acura |
| Car no. | 43 |
| Wins | 5 |
| Previous series | |
| 2010 | SCCA Pro Racing World Challenge |
Ryan Eversley (born December 22, 1983, in Lithonia, Georgia) is an American race car driver. Starting in 2015, Eversley has been a Honda factory driver who primarily races in the Pirelli World Challenge series for the RealTime Racing Acura team in an Acura TLX-GT in the GT class. In 2017 Eversley and his team started racing the new NSX GT3.
Son of mechanic and crew chief John Eversley, Ryan grew up around racing and wanted to be involved from an early age. While he struggled early on to get driving opportunities and later to find consistent work, Ryan's persistence eventually earned him success and notoriety in the racing world.
Though his parents could not fund his racing career, they were supportive and did help Ryan to find opportunities. He left public school and pursued his high school degree in a homeschooling program so he could pursue a driving career.
Eversley got a job from Mike Johnson in 2001 with the Archangel Racing Team as a mechanic.
“I was one of the first guys in the shop every day and I was the one they had to tell to go home because I was so excited to be working on prototypes at 16 and 17 years old," Ryan stated in an interview on the Marshall Pruett Podcast in 2016. His first race as a mechanic was with the Archangel team the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona in 2001.
Using the money he made working, Ryan went to the Panoz Racing Schools at Road Atlanta and raced go karts whenever possible to gain experience. A driver himself, Mike Johnson was able to help Ryan get seat time and eventually a ride in the Continental Tire Series.
Ryan's first race took place in Sonoma in the Spring of 2003 in a Star Mazda. In Ryan's own words: “I rent a ride from a kid I met on Auto Racing AOL chatroom. This kid, Chris Nelson, him and his dad Bob Nelson help me out.” The Nelsons had the car, but didn’t have enough money to race it. Eversley continues: “They said come to Sonoma. As long as you don’t crash you’re fine. It was kind of nerve wracking, because I don’t have two pennies to rub together … We go. I finish dead last, I sucked and I was so happy.”
Debuted in ST I class. He finished 16th in only one race at Virginia International Raceway.
In 2004, James Cook offered Eversley a ride in three IMSA races if he would build the car for him. Ryan accepted and created a team with Crew Chief Jason Duncan. They built the B2K/40 Lola with a Millington turbo engine and raced it at Mid-Ohio, Lime Rock and Road Atlanta in the LMP2 class. Though the class was small, the car finished 2nd in each race.
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