By Ben Deatherage
FERNLEY, Nev. (Oct. 6, 2025) — The desert around Fernley stretches wide and golden, framed by the distant Sierra Nevadas and stitched with the old irrigation canals that turned sagebrush into farmland more than a century ago. Freight trains roll past the cement plant, the hum of Highway 80 in the distance, and every so often, the bark of a race engine echoes from a nearby shop.
For Shawn Natenstedt, that sound is home — the rhythm of long nights, late drives, and the relentless pursuit of one more win. That pursuit reached a milestone this summer when he captured his 100th IMCA-sanctioned victory on Aug. 2 at Lovelock Speedway, earning his place among the prestigious Century Club.
That milestone also put Natenstedt in rare company — only four other Nevada drivers have ever reached the 100-win plateau in the Friesen Performance IMCA Modified division.
“It was a hard feat, but we finally made it happen,” he said. “It didn’t come as soon as I wanted, but when it did, it meant a lot.”
Over his career, he’s posted four 10-plus win seasons, including a breakout 17-win campaign in 2010. Since his first sanctioned victory in 2006, he’s collected at least one feature win every year — with the lone exception of 2017, when business commitments kept him closer to home.
Trading Spurs for Speed
Natenstedt’s racing story began far from Nevada dust. Growing up in a small Texas town, there wasn’t much of a racing scene — he was a rodeo kid, more likely to throw a leg over a saddle than slide into a driver’s seat. But when he met his future wife, Melissa, in the mid-1990s, everything changed.
“I met her in ’94 or ’95, and a couple years later she asked if I wanted to go to a race,” he said. “I went, and I said, ‘I’ve got to get me one of these things.’ That was it — I traded a circus on hoofs for a circus on wheels.”
By 1999 he was racing a local four-cylinder — cheap, simple, and fast enough to light a fire. Within a few years, his driving caught the eye of Bud Rogers, a local racer and car owner who became both mentor and friend.
Bud started buying me motors when I moved up divisions,” Natenstedt recalled. “In 2005 he put me in his Modified. I drove for him for a year, then bought my own because I wanted to travel more.”
That independence cost him the ride but forged his future.
“He was old-school,” Natenstedt laughed. “We called him ‘Grandpa.’ He didn’t like new tech, and when I started winning in my own car, he fired me. But we stayed friends until the day he died.”
By 2006, Natenstedt earned his first IMCA Modified win at Winnemucca Regional Raceway — beating Dan Fitzgerald, then the man to beat in Nevada. Championships followed at Fallon’s Rattlesnake Raceway and Lovelock Speedway, along with three Nevada State titles.
Building a Business, Finding Balance
Racing wasn’t the only thing Natenstedt built from the ground up. In 1997, an old family friend who ran a heating and air company — and once worked alongside Shawn’s dad — offered him a steady job.
“At the time, I was on the road a lot,” Natenstedt said. “I had a wife and kid at home, and he said, ‘Come work for me.’ I could stay home more, and it was a good trade. I worked for him 11 years, then another seven for someone else.”
That experience planted the seed for what would become Ultimate Air, the company he and his wife founded more than a decade ago.
“It was a big talk with my wife,” he said. “I had a comfortable salary and could race when I wanted, but we wanted something that was ours. So we saved money and took the leap — we went all in.”
Ultimate Air now serves the Reno–Fernley area, with work stretching into Fallon and Lovelock. The company has thrived thanks to a blend of reputation, loyalty, and, yes, racing.
“We try not to go more than 60 miles from the shop, but our name spread fast — especially in Lovelock,” he said. “People who saw us at the track started calling. It’s amazing how racing ties into everything.”
With the business now running smoothly, Natenstedt can finally enjoy weekends again — whether it’s heading to a race or exploring the Nevada backcountry on side-by-sides with his family.
“We gave up a lot to make it successful,” he said. “Now we can breathe a little — and go racing again.”
Shawn Natenstedt looks toward his Friesen Performance IMCA Modified as the crew prepares for another run, balancing business, family, and his drive for victory. (Photo by Melissa Natenstedt)
Fernley: A Town Built on Grit
Fernley’s roots go back to 1904, founded as a small agricultural community made possible by the Newlands Irrigation Project — a massive federal effort that tamed the desert with canals stretching from the Truckee River to the Lahontan Reservoir. Over the decades, it grew from ranchland to an industrial hub.
The Southern Pacific Railroad arrived in 1914, and by the 1960s Nevada Cement Company brought steady work. In 1990, the Northern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery was established — a 43-acre site that now holds over 13,000 graves, a solemn tribute to generations of service. The 1990s brought Amazon’s first fulfillment center, and fifteen miles west, the Tesla Gigafactory 1 now hums in the desert, a symbol of Nevada’s modern frontier.
Today, Fernley is a crossroads — equal parts small-town grit and high-tech boom. Families gather at restaurants like The Wigwam, All Points Bar and Grill, or the Guadalajara Grill, kids bowl on weekends, and locals explore the open desert and forgotten mining shafts.
“We’ve got a great community,” Natenstedt said. “Good food, good people, and room to grow. It’s home.”
Fernley, Nev., welcomes travelers to a growing high-desert community with roots in ranching, railroads, and the Newlands Irrigation Project that transformed the surrounding desert into farmland. (Photo by TripAdvisor.com)
The Number 1 and the Family Behind It
Natenstedt’s familiar no. 1 didn’t start with ego — it started with duct tape.
“When I first started, I ran no. 5 because my youngest was five at the time and was no. 23 when I drove for Grandpa,” he said. “A couple years later my wife decided she wanted to race, so I built her a car in four days. I couldn’t afford vinyl, so I duct-taped and painted a ‘1’ on it — it was the easiest number to make.
“Later, when we bought an enclosed trailer, I didn’t want two numbers on it, so I changed mine to ‘1.’ It wasn’t about being arrogant or anything — it was about keeping it simple.”
These days, his wife races part-time as no. 1N in the IMCA Modifieds, while Natenstedt’s focus remains on competing, mentoring, and enjoying the journey.
“With the business and time being tight, she scaled back so I could race,” he said. “But we’re looking to get back to traveling together with two cars again.”
A Life Measured in Miles and Wins
Today, Natenstedt balances racing, family, and business — grateful for the people who’ve made all three possible.
“My wife scaled back her racing so I could chase my goals,” he said. “That’s huge. I’ve got to thank her and my family for putting up with it all these years.”
He also credits longtime crewman Dave Sciarroni, who’s been by his side for a decade.
“If it wasn’t for Dave, I wouldn’t have made a quarter of the races,” he said. “He works on his stuff too, but still finds time to keep mine going.”
Sponsors and supporters include Ultimate Air, J&R Signs, Competition Carburetion, CPT Manufacturing, VanderBuilt Race Cars, J.D. Gresham, and True Form Racing Products — plus the late “Grandpa” Rogers, whose influence still guides him.
“There’ve been a lot of people who helped,” Natenstedt said. “It’s been a long road, but I’m grateful. I’m lucky to still do this.”
