You would be hard pressed to find someone in the SRO America paddock who knows Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta like Ryan Eversley does. His roots at the Georgia track run deep, and as the series prepares for its long-awaited return for the first time since 2011 for the GT World Atlanta event from June 12th to 14th, few drivers arrive with the kind of history Eversley will be carrying into the weekend.
For many people in the motorsports industry, being raised at the track is a common notion, but for Eversley that was very much the reality.
“I’ve been going to Road Atlanta literally since I was an infant,” Eversley said. “It was not only one of the first tracks I ever went to, it was also the first track I had a job at. I’m a second-generation racer. My dad had a really, really strong career, and so I followed in his footsteps.”
Long before he became a pro driver, he was a teenager finding his way in the paddock at the very track he now calls home. His path began at just 16 years old, when Eversley took a job with Archangel Motorsports founder Mike Johnson.
“I started sweeping the floors at the technical garages behind Turn 1,” he recalled. “I got a job working for Mike and started homeschooling so I could get into racing. At the same time, I was also doing some small karting events, and then worked my way into some proper rides, and eventually went on to become a full-time sports car driver.”
That rise ultimately led to a decade as a factory Honda and Acura driver in GT and touring car competition, but through every stage of his career, Road Atlanta remained a constant.
In the present day, you’ll find him behind the wheel of the No. 03 Precision Racing LA Toyota Gazoo Racing GR Supra GT4 EVO2, competing with teammate Karl Forman in the Pro-Am class of the Pirelli GT4 America championship.
“This whole season is basically built around Karl’s development as a driver,” Eversley said. “It's his first time racing a GT4 car and his first time racing in a multi-driver series with pit stops and driver changes, and he's only in his second year of his professional road racing career. He has quite a bit of experience in stock cars, which is why he's gotten up to speed so quickly. I expect us to hopefully get on the podium a few times this year, but really the whole goal of this year is to build towards next season where we plan to show up and chase after the championship."
As the pairing turns their attention to the sprint race doubleheader at Road Atlanta, Eversley enters the weekend prepared to add another strong chapter to his history there, as his ties to the facility have only strengthened over time.
In addition to racing, he spent eight years working at the Panoz Racing School and Audi Driving Experience, teaching and developing an intimate understanding of one of the most interesting and demanding circuits in America.
That familiarity could become an advantage as SRO competitors head to a venue many in the Pirelli GT4 America field have possibly never raced at before. He believes that his expansive knowledge, especially regarding the circuit’s recent updates and unique rhythm, will prove useful even against one of the deepest grids in sports car racing.
“One of the things for me is I’ve been very versatile in my career, so I’ve been racing in multiple series quite a lot,” Eversley explained. “The SRO series hasn’t been to Road Atlanta in quite some time, whereas I’ve been able to race there in various other programs. I think I have the track knowledge at hand, but GT4 America grid is so stacked with talent that even those that haven’t been there before are going to figure it out pretty quickly. So I will have a slight advantage, but I’ll take anything I can get.”
Road Atlanta’s challenge comes not only from its speed, but from its unforgiving nature. Unlike modern facilities with expansive runoff areas, the Georgia circuit truly leaves no room for error.
“Road Atlanta is one of those old school tracks that does not allow mistakes,” Eversley stated. “If you falter even slightly at Road Atlanta, it could be a big, big problem. It could even end the weekend.”
The elevation changes, blind corner entries, and high-speed commitment through the esses have made the track legendary among drivers for many decades. There are subtle details that separate veterans from first-timers, but Eversley believes patience and respect are essential no matter your experience level.
“Be smart about the passing moves you make because it’s a really hard track to pass at,” he shared. “There’s a handful of corners at the track that invite you to take the line the wrong way. It won’t even necessarily be that slow of a way of doing it, but it will be slower than somebody who has been there a million times.”
One example is the signature esses, as the positioning can dramatically affect exit speed and overtaking opportunities later in the lap. Another overlooked passing zone, according to Eversley, comes entering Turn 1 if the setup through Turns 10A and 10B is executed correctly.
“Keeping those things in mind and being patient is important,” he reaffirmed. “Those are the key moves that you can make there that most people don't think about.”
Beyond the on-track performance, he is greatly looking forward to the personal element that comes along with home races: the opportunity to race in front of friends and family. That local connection extends beyond the track itself. Eversley grew up nearby in Winder, Georgia, just 20 minutes from the circuit gates, and still speaks passionately about the surrounding area.
For first-time visitors, he recommends making the trip to the top of Spectator Hill overlooking the esses near Turn 5.
“It’s just a breathtaking view,” Eversley expressed. “You can see the cars coming over Turn 3 all the way down till they go into Turn 6, and the speeds are very, very fast. It really paints a full picture.”
That sense of pride in both the track and the region as a whole runs deep, and is inseparable from the history of sports car racing in America itself.
“Road Atlanta and the Atlanta area was one of the hubs for sports car racing when it really started to blow up here in the United States in the ’70s,” Eversley detailed. “Atlanta plays a very important role in sports car racing in general, and obviously is a core reason why I followed and got involved in the sport.”
In many ways, that rich history shaped his own life before he was even born, spanning multiple generations and putting him on the racing path before he ever even got behind the wheel. Now, as SRO America returns to Road Atlanta for a new era of GT racing, Eversley arrives not simply as another driver on the grid, but as someone whose entire journey has been intertwined with the circuit itself.
To see Ryan and the Precision Racing LA team in action at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta from June 12th to 14th, get your GT World Atlanta tickets now!
