A Dirt Track Bond – Father, son revive relationship around racing

Doug Vermilyea hadn’t seen his son Derrick for six years.That all changed with a knock on the door of Doug’s mom’s home in Luton. Among the many things spurring the reconnection made that evening was a love of stock cars.“It was a miracle when I found out Derrick was looking for me,” Doug reflected. “He asked where I lived at. My wife and I were in Sioux City when my sister called me and said Derrick was waiting for me in Akron.”“Ever since that night, we’ve been able to rebuild our relationship and it’s stronger than ever,” he added.The chance to renew the relationship with his father not only on the track but off of it was something Derrick had been hoping for.“Honestly, it’s a dream come true,” he admitted. “I got to watch him race as a kid. There was always part of me that wanted to be in a car and race wth him.”“I finally caught the idea I’d been chasing for so long,” he added about the reconnection. “I hope this is a long run for both of us and even soon for my younger brother, Avarie, to be racing together as a family.”Derrick and Doug both compete in the Sport Compact division at Park Jefferson International Speedway. Doug’s two sons also work on their dad’s pit crew come Saturday nights along with his wife Rhonda, while Doug, Avarie and Rhonda return that favor when Derrick is on the track.“Derrick really wanted to get on the track,” the elder Vermilyea said. “I’d had a 1993 Ford Tempo as my first car that didn’t work out too well. I had told him, before he went to live with his mom, that it would be his one day. Eventually, I got rid of it.”“When I reunited with him, my wife and I kept our word,” he added. “We bought him a car and helped build it up. From the first time he got behind the wheel, you could tell racing was in his blood.”The 2022 season has opened with a fair share of success for both of them. Doug sits seventh in the points standings with Derrick just outside the top 10. They’ve found themselves finishing in the best 10, too, on more than one occasion.Doug admitted he’s been fortunate to be around some of the area’s best racers as a youth where he could learn the track trade.“It goes back to when I was a kid,” he remembered. “I’d go to the races and just watch them move around and around. Honestly, while I liked it, I didn’t have that inspiration to want to get into a car and try it.”“Guys like Danny Vanderveen and Troy Brown talked with me and helped get my first car set up,” he added. “Even when things didn’t work out early with that Tempo and I felt like giving up, those two, who are my go-to guys, wouldn’t let me. My wife, Rhonda, has been a big key, too, as my biggest supporter and fan.”Derrick had similar thoughts about his first season in the sport compact division. “I’ve learned quite a bit in the process,” he noted. “Working on cars in general and how to drive a lot better have been two of the biggest lessons.”“When I first went out there, it was the last night of points competition in 2021,” he added. “I gave hot laps a try to test things out. The track was really slippery, and I smoked the wall, bending up the car and wrecking it pretty bad. I saw then there are certain situations where you have to analyze the track. My dad and some of his racing buddies are pretty smart. I’ve come to know it’s best to listen to them.”As Derrick’s Cavalier, nicknamed “Bullet” and Doug’s Larsen, which was a former sport mod car, continue to battle for points each weekend, Doug has an even larger idea for his racing family.“Someday, I’d like all three of us, once Avarie gets going, to be on the same team,” he said. “It’d be awesome to have both of my boys out on the track with me. I do want to go from there to having them take over the team when I decide I’m done.”Building on a dirt track bond.