Sheppard Family Giving Fellow Illinois Racer Golden Opportunity

Kolby Vandenbergh hasn’t raced much the past three years with perhaps a dozen starts.

Yet the Ashland, Ill., driver now finds himself behind the wheel of Steve Sheppard Jr.’s No. 5s Rocket Chassis for three Illinois Speedweek events, beginning with Wednesday’s FloRacing Night in America event at Spoon River Speedway followed by Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series action Friday and Saturday at Farmer City and Fairbury. | RaceWire

Thanks to a longstanding connection with the Sheppard family that includes five-time national touring champion Brandon — the Vandenberghs operate an excavating business while the Sheppards run a scrapyard, their operations just 15 minutes apart with overlapping ties — the 28-year-old is aiming to make the most of his best racing opportunity since he finished runner-up in Midwest LateModel Racing Association points in 2022.

“We’re gonna see where it goes from there. We have our own car coming, but we’re gonna furnish it out of their own shop,” Vandenbergh said. “I think we’re gonna kinda play it out the first couple races and see how it goes. (Steve’s) car the first couple of nights, then we might totally transition to my 15 car. But still run out of Shepp’s speed shop, looking at maybe 15, might be 25 races. We’ll see how it goes.”

Vandenbergh is rebuilding his family-owned No. 15 operation after infrequent starts since 2023 — a slowdown that followed Rookie of the Year MLRA run when he finished second to champion Chad Simpson in points on the Missouri-based circuit.

That remains Vandenbergh’s proudest achievement in Dirt Late Model racing to this day because he finished the season from start to finish with a single car and two engines, posting 16 top-10 runs in 27 features.

“To get that accomplishment was huge for us because there was a lot of times we'd go to work, you know, three days a week and then leave that night and go racing,” Vandenbergh said.

He scaled back his racing schedule largely because of increased responsibilities at the family business, Vandenbergh Concrete & Excavating. He was fortunate to make it to Wednesday’s event at Spoon River Speedway after getting off work in time, but work obligations will sideline him for Thursday’s FloRacing tour stop at Lincoln Speedway.

“I took more responsibility over with the family business and that kind of pulls you from the from the racing a little bit,” Vandenbergh said. “But hopefully with teaming up with Brandon and the help from them and everything, we can kind of get out there a little bit more than what we used to.”