Thomas Praytor
Thomas Praytor born (February 28, 1990 in Mobile Alabama) is a professional race car driver who currently competes in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards. Personal Life and Early CareerPraytor was born in Mobile, Alabama in 1990. Praytor is the son of local Realtor and owner of Praytor Realty in Mobile Alabama, Tommy Praytor. Making Praytor a third generation Realtor.In 2013 Praytor was Named Top 20 In Their 20s by AL.com in the Mobile Area.Praytor is no stranger to the cockpit having his racing teeth at only eight-years old in a borrowed yard kart from a family friend.Karts quickly progressed to Bandoleros and Praytor was wheeling an Outdoor Channel- sponsored car.From 600 racing cars to Late Models, Praytor has crisscrossed the Southeast picking up 3 US Army Rookie of the Year titles, local and state titles. Praytor and the Max Force Racing Team earned the Ironman Status of the Gulf Coast competing in every Pro and Super Late Model Race at Mobile International Speedway and Five Flags Speedway while finishing in the top 10 of the Championship standing at both tracks. Got Moose?Most people think Praytor’s nickname, Moose, comes from being part of a state Championship football team and playing center with teammates like Alabama Quarterback AJ McCarron & Tampa Bay Buccaneer Cornerback Mark Barron but that’s not how it happened at all. One of Praytor’s first cars was sponsored by the Outdoor Channel and featured a giant Moose coming out of the rear wheel well. On the roof Thomas was changed to “Thomoose.” Over the course of time “Thomoose” was shortened to Moose and the nickname stuck. While the Outdoor Channel Bandolero was a long time ago every car Praytor has driven since then has had “Thomoose Praytor” on the roof. ARCA Racing Series 2013 ARCA car at Road America Praytor made his first ARCA start at the inaugural ARCA-Mobile 200 at the Mobile International Speedway in 2012. The season also had Praytor racing at the Hall of Fame 250 at Talladega Super Speedway and also saw starts with Venturini Motorsports.In the 2013 season Max force Racing teamed up with Hixson Motorsports to field cars for Praytor. Also in the season Praytor joined up with University of Alabama's very own AJ McCarron to create a specially- prepared McCarron replica racing helmet. Praytor wore the helmet at Daytona and Talladega, after which it was donated to the Alabama institute of the Deaf and Blind to benefit the annual Race Fever action.In the 2013 season Praytor's Max Force racing team with Hixson Motorsports finished up the ARCA Racing Series with the 9th place in Championship standings and earning the HG Adcox Sportsmanship Award, the driver told AL.com "I am just being myself". The 2014 racing season has been a great chase for Praytor and his newly sponsored DK-LOK Fitting and Valves team, Praytor reached overall 8th place standing in the ARCA Series points. Praytor was also named the "Hard Charger" Driver after the Herr's Chase the Taste 200 in Winchester.Also during the 2014 session Praytor hit 4,000 ARCA miles during his race at the Ansell Armr 150 at Chicagoland Speedway. DK-LOK SponosrshipDK-LOK Fittings and Valves teamed up with Thomas “Moose” Praytor and Max Force Racing for the first time at Daytona International Speedway in 2014. An associate sponsor role quickly grew to a race sponsorship position at the ARCA Mobile 200 and in to a primary sponsorship by the time the ARCA series landed at Pocono Speedway for the Pennsylvania 200. With distributors across the United States including down into South America and a product line that includes tube fittings, instrument pipe, weld fittings, and valves, motorsports has given DK-LOK unique exposure to the United States and International markets. While DK-LOK is new to motorsports the company has a long standing reputation for quality. DK-LOK’s product line is manufactured to stringent industry standards, with the use of only the highest grade raw material and 1/1000″ tolerance control on each and every part, DK-LOK assures a leak-tight seal in all process, power, and instrumentation applications. On the track or off the DK-LOK team is committed to success. RadioPraytor is no rookie off the track either Thomas is aired weekley on a sports talk radio show on WNSP "Inside ARCA Racing" Thomas' segment is named after his nickname Moose and is the "Moose Call". You can listen locally in Mobile area at 105.5 FM or online at WNSP.com. Television & Film AppearancesIn 2008 Praytors race team had a car for sale and that led to a great opportunity for Praytor with Warner Brothers Pictures. Warner Brothers came out to Mobile International Speedway to film the 4th installment of the highly successful Final Destination franchise The Final Destination.In June 2008 140 movie crew members and over 200 extras descended on Mobile International Speedway for two weeks of filming. Praytor with sponsorship from Cooper Tires was one of the local racers that turned stunt driver for the movie while his father acted as the go between the racetrack, local teams and the movie. For two weeks David Ellis and company raced, wrecked, flipped, rolled and wreaked havoc at the speedway for the high definition 3D cameras and the making of The Final Destination "Rest In Pieces". External links
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
