Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive show news, updates, and more!
'Now It's Our Lives': Whitney Dillon, Mariel Swan Talk NASCAR's Biggest Myths
Whitney Dillon and Mariel Swan have been best friends since college and now they're excited to showcase their NASCAR lifestyle on "Life In The Fast Lane."
Best friends Whitney Dillon and Mariel Swan offered some insight into who they are and some NASCAR misconceptions they hope to debunk with their new reality series, “Austin Dillon’s Life In The Fast Lane.”
In a new behind-the-scenes interview with the duo, who have been besties since college and are now business partners, they share how their upbringing didn’t necessarily prepare them to be this close to the sport of professional racing.
“I grew up in a really small town and my dad raced dirt bikes,” Whitney explains. “I was just really into the dirt bike world and I thought that was really cool.”
Mariel, meanwhile, says her childhood was “very much girly.”
“I grew up in pageants, I grew up in ballet, I grew up in the theater,” she says.
“We weren’t race fans but now it’s our lives,” Whitney adds.
Whitney married Austin in 2017 two years before their respective best friends, Mariel and Paul, tied the knot as well. Throughout their experience dating the men who are now their husbands, the duo not only learned everything there is to know about NASCAR, but they practically pioneered the best ways to root for their men on the track.
Whitney is known for dressing herself and their son, Ace, in different jerseys that support Austin and the No. 3 car. Often, Mariel joins in sporting the Richard Childress Racing team through her race day attire.
“We remember races by our outfits,” Whitney says in the video.
After years of supporting Austin and Paul and seeing the hard work that goes into a NASCAR career and the complexities the boys deal with every single day, they’re excited that “Life In The Fast Lane” will now allow them to show the world that there’s more to the sport than just doing laps on a big road.
“I feel like it’s a super intricate sport where there are so many moving pieces behind closed doors that no one ever talks about,” Mariel said when asked what NASCAR misconceptions she’d like to debunk. ”Not only is the driver concentrating at full capacity, but it’s a physical sport and then you’ve got all these other brainiacs that are working with the engineers, working on the cars, then you’ve got the pit crew, they’re coming in with all this athleticism…”
Whitney adds: “There’s so much more to NASCAR than what meets the eye.”
“Austin Dillon’s Life In The Fast Lane” airs Thursdays at 9:30/8:30c on USA Network.
