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LETTERS ........................10 BUSINESS..................... 13 SPORTS ..........................15 FEATURES .....................20 NEIGHBORHOOD......23 YOUTH ...........................25 OBITUARIES .................30 CLASSIFIEDS................31 SOUTH
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The Voice of the West Valley for 33 years
March 6, 2019
McDowell hopes to race toward NASCAR win BY CHRISTINA FUOCO-KARASINSKI West Valley View Managing Editor
Michael McDowell has been on a race track most of his life. While most kids were learning to ride a tricycle, McDowell began competing in BMX events at age 3. Five years later, the Glendale native moved up to four wheels and started kart racing, traveling the country for the next 10 years – along the way winning 18 consecutive feature races, a World Karting Association championship and back-to-back International Kart Federation championships. Now he’s on a track of a different kind: NASCAR. “It’s all I’ve ever done,” said McDowell, who has lived in Charlotte, North Carolina, since 2004. “I’ve never done anything else but racing. It’s my dream and I’m passionate about it.” He competes full time in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 34 Ford Mustang for Front Row Motorsports. Last month, McDowell finished fifth at the Daytona 500. He returns home Friday, March 8, to Sunday, March 10, for the TicketGuardian 500 NASCAR Weekend at ISM Raceway in Avondale. “ISM is amazing,” he said. “It’s a topof-the-line, state-of-the-art facility. It’s cool that it’s my hometown. The fan in-
Glendale native Michael McDowell will compete at the TicketGuardian 500 NASCAR Weekend at ISM Raceway in Avondale March 8 through March 10. (Photo courtesy Getty Images via NASCAR)
teraction and engagement are incredible.”
God’s plan Growing up in Glendale, McDowell would have attended Deer Valley High School, but he was already racing full time by then. “I think a lot of it is timing and preparation,” he said. “A lot of it, too, is it’s God’s plan for my life.” McDowell was inspired by his older brother, Billy, who was “one step ahead of me on everything.” He raced BMX, quads
and dirt bikes. “With kart, it changed. It was real,” he said. Still in his teens, McDowell graduated to larger open-wheel race cars, earning a championship in Formula Renault USA in 2002. Moving to the Star Mazda Series, he took Rookie of the Year honors in 2003 and yet another championship title in 2004, a season in which he had seven wins and six poles. Continuing to climb the racing ladder, Mc-
NASCAR...continued on page 2
Microsoft to start construction on Goodyear facility BY CONNOR DZIAWURA
West Valley View Managing Editor
Goodyear Mayor Georgia Lord and city councilmembers recently approved an agreement allowing Microsoft to begin construction on 279 acres of land south of I-10 and Phoenix Goodyear Airport.
Microsoft purchased the swath of land – between the north side of Broadway Road and the south side of MC-85, and extending from east of Bullard Avenue to west of Litchfield Road – from Carefree Partners Investments for $48 million in August. The resolution and development agree-
ment allows the tech giant to move forward with the first two buildings of its plans and bypass certain stipulations generally required to be met before construction can commence.
Microsoft...continued on page 3
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