YOUR MOM RACES RALLY

A debut author and rally racer reflects on motherhood and the thrills of freedom in this memoir.

After the birth of the author’s first child, when Conroy “was buried in diapers and colic,” she confesses that “all [she] wanted was to burst forward…Faster than [she] ever imagined [she] could.” As one who spent her 20s “chasing adventure and career gains,” Conroy took a winding path to rally racing, an endurance sport featuring a driver and a co-driver. After graduating college, she worked as a duck biologist and environmental educator. As the only female biologist at her job, she suffered substandard pay and sexual harassment. This career disappointment, exacerbated by ubiquitous postpartum responsibilities and boredom after the birth of her daughter, sparked a midlife quest for thrills that eventually led to racing. The concept of fun—specifically, the central role of fun (especially for women) in living a meaningful life—is one of the book’s driving themes. “Fun gives us hope, reminding us that when life is burdensome, we can still access the joy,” Conroy writes. While the author emphasizes the liberatory qualities of racing, she also acknowledges the struggles women face in a sport dominated by men. She laments, for instance, how Danica Patrick’s accomplishments at the highest levels of motorsports were overshadowed by her casting in “porn-adjacent commercials” that targeted exclusively male audiences. Alongside discussions of the intense training and financial burdens associated with entering the sport, the memoir also offers a poignant reflection on motherhood; while her husband embraced the idea of equality, the author experienced feelings of isolation when his employer refused to offer paternity leave. A trained matrescence educator (i.e., the process of becoming a mother), Conroy also candidly discusses the travails of breastfeeding and the unfair social expectations placed upon mothers. A deeply personal book that includes original poetry written by the author, this memoir offers an intimate, honest account of her internal struggles with guilt, depression, and anxiety. It also delivers the inspirational message that motherhood does not mean the end of one’s sense of self and desire for freedom.

A poignant and occasionally thrilling look at the life of a middle-aged rally-racing mom.