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HUDSON, N.C. -- Before drivers can be a part of NASCAR’s Sprint Cup series, many of them earn their stripes on the short tracks of North Carolina.

Bob Dillner is a recognizable face to racing fans; he covers the sport for the Speed Channel. When he isn't working, Dillner's thoughts aren't on Jeff Gordon or Jimmie Johnson, instead they’re on a driver that's a little closer to his heart, his daughter, Meghan.

“It’s nerve-racking from time to time knowing your daughter is out there and she’s battling other people,” Dillner said. “It’s a big challenge for her but as far as the safety is concerned, I’m not really concerned about that.

“I’m more concerned about her doing well and hoping she has a smile at the end of the race.

Meghan Dillner races in the Pro Challenge Series and has done pretty well for herself, finishing fifth in points last season and voted most popular driver. She's been racing since she was 11, and now at age 15, she seems to be getting the hang of it and says, for her, racing is an escape.

“Once you get on that track, you forget every other problem and you’re focused and that focus is getting ahead, you know, getting a little bit faster each time, getting into the corner,” she said. “You get that rush, that excited feeling and I love it so much.”

Matt Kentfield, who runs Dillner’s racing teams, says she has all the tools to excel at the sport. BDJ Racing has cars running in four different series and plans to move Dillner up to late models before the end of the summer. With each move forward, she earns more respect from her peers, something that took her time to earn but is no longer a problem.

“It doesn’t matter that I’m a girl or that I’m Bob Dillner’s daughter, it doesn’t matter at all,” she said. “I just go out there and I’m one of everybody else. I’m just one of the drivers.”

Dillner finished second Friday night at Tri-County Speedway, kicking off a summer schedule that should prepare her for the next level. That move comes with one requirement from her father, fun.

“I don’t care if she’s the next riding star, we just want to come out here, and as long as she wants to do it and is having fun doing it, then we’ll do it,” Bob Dillner said.

Dillner hopes to go on to the University of North Carolina, but racing will always be in her heart.