NHRA Top Fuel newcomer and team owner Travis Shumake has been selected as an honoree on the 30th annual Out100 list. Out, the world’s leading LGBTQ+ publication, celebrates the most influential LGBTQ+ individuals across entertainment, politics, sports and activism.
Shumake is being recognized for his remarkable contributions to advancing representation in motorsports. Early this year Shumake made his Top Fuel debut in the National Hot Rod Association as both a team owner and driver, making him the first LGBTQ+ athlete to compete at the top level of any major touring motorsports series. Shumake is also making a name for himself by attracting Fortune 500 companies to the sport like Procter & Gamble, Kroger/Fry’s Food Stores, and Phillips 66, as well as household names like Sheetz Convenience Stores and the Arizona Lottery.
Shumake joins an illustrious list of trailblazers who have significantly impacted the world. This year’s Out100 list includes this year’s cover star and Icon of the Year, Wicked star Cynthia Erivo, SNL’s Bowen Yang, Actors Jodi Foster and Alan Cummings, and Olympians Tom Daley and Laurie Hernandez. He will be recognized at the Out100 Event on December 11, 2024, at NeueHouse Hollywood in Los Angeles.
Shumake, the son of legendary drag racer Tripp Shumake, holds competition licenses in four NHRA categories. When he’s not racing one of the fastest-accelerating machines on the planet, Travis works with LGBTQ+ youth experiencing homelessness. The former foster parent is a full-time development officer at The Ali Forney Center in New York City.
“To be included on this list is really humbling,” remarked Shumake. “I remember buying the Out100 issue each year in college and never dreamed I’d be included someday. I’m just getting started in racing and am eager for what’s to come, on and off the track. I have to give credit to the entire motorsports community, but especially the drag racing community. NHRA has been a leader in motorsports diversity for almost 50 years. I’m the icing on the NHRA diversity cake and wouldn’t be on this list without the support of the league and my fellow drivers. Race cars don’t know if you’re gay or straight. But people do. People can choose to make my life tough and that’s not something I regularly face in the NHRA. Our passion for innovation and acceleration ties us all together. In drag racing, I’m surrounded by people who are pursuing excellence on every level and it’s that spirit that drives me (pun intended) to be better and to give more of myself in everything I do.”
The timing is perfect for Shumake, who announced today that he’ll make his fourth NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Top Fuel start of the season at the upcoming Ford Performance NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, November 1-3.
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