For many racers in the Red Line Oil PDRA Drag Racing Series, a pre-run prayer with God Speed Ministry chaplains Renee Bingham and Tammie Smith is as much a part of their race routine as the warm-up and burnout. Bingham has been a constant on the PDRA tour since the very beginning of the series in 2014, while Smith joined in 2018 and was quickly adopted by the family-focused organization. Together, they make a significant impact on the racers, crew members, media members, and more that make up the PDRA.
[Editor’s Note: This story originally appeared in DI #189, the Women of Power Issue, in July/August of 2024.]
Bingham and her husband, Gary, founded God Speed Ministry 20 years ago at the suggestion of the late Bill Bader Sr., who was the president of IHRA at the time. The ministry started with a 30-minute service at IHRA national events. At its largest, the organization included 39 chaplains and 36 volunteers.
Before the PDRA officially launched in 2014, then-series director Bob Harris reached out to Bingham to first get her involved in the race control department as a computer operator. As a longtime racer and series official, Bingham was well-versed with the Compulink system, but she initially wasn’t interested in the position.
“Bob called me when they were beginning the PDRA to ask me if I would run the computer, and I told him no,” Bingham remembers. “He called me three times and I told him no every time. On the fourth time, I’m like, ‘OK, God, what are you up to?’ While we were having that discussion, I was telling him, yes, I would work for the PDRA as a computer operator, and he said, ‘Well, we also need a ministry.’ And I said, ‘I would love it.’ That’s just how it happened.”
Bingham and Smith are often seen at PDRA races offering pre-run prayers for racers in the staging lanes, providing a prayer over the P.A. system during pre-race ceremonies, and holding non-denominational church services on Saturday mornings before eliminations begin. But that’s just a glimpse of what they do. They offer a calming presence in good times and bad.
“I’ve had many racers say, ‘When I see you there, my blood pressure drops and I know there’s a peace.’” Bingham says. “We’re there if somebody has an accident, of course, we’re there for the family, but we’re there for the ones involved. We’re there hopefully in times of good, but many, many times in times of bad.”
Smith’s first encounter with drag racing happened when she was just three years old, as her stepfather bracket raced. She says she rededicated her life to the Lord in 2006, and in 2008, she was inspired by an ESPN2 top-end interview by NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle racer Angelle Sampey. The Louisiana native was grappling with the fact that she was racing at the U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis while Hurricane Ike was striking her home state. Sampey spoke about the Racers for Christ (RFC) chaplains who prayed with her, and Smith decided she wanted to serve racers in that same way.
“It was so cool how God brought me back into drag racing and in such an amazing way that would bring such joy to my life,” Smith says. “I have so much love to give and give it to people who are hungry, but they’re hungry for Him. I got to share that testimony with Angelle one day at one of the NHRA nationals in Charlotte. It just made my day. We never know the things that we say and the impact and the ripple effect that it has on people.”
Smith, who also has experience building engines, has been with RFC for 16 years and with God Speed since 2018 when she joined the Binghams at the PDRA’s stop at Darlington Dragway. She was shy at first, but she soon realized the PDRA community embraces the presence of God Speed Ministry chaplains. She started developing relationships with the touring regulars and local racers alike.
“The race car is the icebreaker,” Smith says. “I can talk their language. I can take parts of that car and I can teach them God’s Word using their car parts because if I get it, they are going to get it.”
The impact that Bingham, Smith, and the other God Speed representatives is felt throughout the eight-race PDRA season, but also at the annual Championship Awards Banquet in Indianapolis. They’re mentioned in nearly every champion’s acceptance speech along with family, friends, and sponsors.
“It’s humbling to know that people appreciate what we do,” Bingham says. “First, it makes us feel like what we’re doing is worthwhile, that when we spend those hours in the staging lanes in the heat, the cold or whatever, that we are having an impact.”
Similarly, the PDRA community itself has made an impact on both Bingham and Smith.
“It’s been really life-changing because this organization, of all the different ones that we serve, they want prayer,” Bingham says. “They want God in part of it. That has helped me, as someone who grew up very shy and very timid, come out of my shell. Even though I’m still an introvert, there is just a grace that comes and I am fueled. The love and the support and the return is just wonderful.”
For Smith, the PDRA and its racers helped her cope with the loss of her husband, Jay, in 2021 following a cancer battle. They surrounded her with support immediately following his passing and have continued to make her feel like a part of the PDRA family.
“The PDRA fills holes in my life, and I tell them as much as I can, America needs heroes, and for some of us, it’s drag racers,” Smith says. “Of course, the military is a cut above. But I tell them I never thought that I would be doing what I’m doing without Jay. I have experienced such great brokenness in private parts of my life, and when Jr. Dragster drivers come up to me and they hug me, that is pure. When a mama says, ‘Pray with me because my son’s getting in that hot rod,’ I’m going to pray for her. They love me in ways that I can’t even put into words.”
As God Speed Ministry celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, Bingham says the group has no intentions of slowing down. Instead, the organization is seeking additional chaplains and volunteers to join the current lineup. God Speed Ministry is also always accepting donations to support its programs.
“We invite people to learn more, to get involved, and visit our website,” says Bingham, noting the website is GodSpeedMinistry.com. “All of the information and the applications are there. We would just love to see this ministry explode and have an even greater impact in the future. I think our world needs it.”
This story was originally published on August 8, 2024.
The post God Speed Ministry’s Renee Bingham and Tammie Smith Provide Calming Presence at PDRA Events first appeared on Drag Illustrated.