Belinda [00:00:02]:
Hello and welcome to the Motorsport Coaching podcast.
Jure [00:00:07]:
Hi. Thank you having me on the channel.
Belinda [00:00:10]:
I'm very excited to share your story. So, for those who don't know you, can you share about how you first got involved in motorsport, what you currently raise, where you're raised?
Jure [00:00:20]:
Yeah, I guess we'll just get straight into it. So my dad wanted to teach. My sister and I had a drive before we got our driver's license, and we'd been pretty lucky to try a bunch of different sports and activities growing up, but we never really thought about motorsport. So we're driving to the Whitsunday Coast airport and it was raining pretty heavy that the roads were flooded. And as we turned down the road to the airport, there was a bunch of cars parked at the go kart track, so we thought we'd pull in and see what was happening. And it ended up being the Queensland State Tide, and anyone there can remember how wet it was. And then we just stayed for a bit, watched the races, thought it was so exciting. So from there, dad was like, let's buy some go carts. So he bought one for my sister and I, and then, yeah, from there I just started racing.
Belinda [00:01:14]:
And how long ago was that?
Jure [00:01:18]:
About three years ago.
Belinda [00:01:20]:
That's a pretty cool story. Not everyone I was expecting normally, like, people like their dads or mums or it's a family connection that got you started, but that's a fantastic story to hear. And so how did you get started? I guess sometimes people don't even know how to get started. Obviously, you've just rocked up to the track and you've seen them then. How did you know what was the next step? Did you go speak to someone? Did you know someone that was racing in the end?
Jure [00:01:51]:
Well, we started going to the track and practicing a few days and then, yeah, we sort of just did it on ourselves. It was a pretty steep learning curve, learning just the car in itself, all the setup, the data, tires, mechanics, all of that. And there was definitely people around us helping us out. We didn't know anyone in the sport, so everything came as always happening.
Belinda [00:02:19]:
And is your dad, like, into mechanics or is an engineer or anything like that? Anything from a kind of motor industry?
Jure [00:02:28]:
Back in the day, he actually was the fastest front wheel drive car on street tires, doing drags, so that sort of motorsport thing, but I don't think that really counts. But besides that, he's never had interest. The family hasn't really done anything like go carting before, so I'm the first one.
Belinda [00:02:52]:
Oh, that's fantastic. And does your sister still do it?
Jure [00:02:55]:
No, she raced a few races, but didn't enjoy it as much as I do. But she's always been into the mechanics, so every race she'll come out almost races and help with the data and the mechanics and all that stuff.
Belinda [00:03:11]:
Oh, that's pretty cool. And is it just left right now? Are you just a family run team or are you running with the team?
Jure [00:03:24]:
Throughout this year we're with a team and that was definitely an experience, a learning step. But currently I'm just by myself.
Belinda [00:03:34]:
Yeah. And so what category are you currently racing?
Jure [00:03:39]:
This year I was in the K three junior course.
Belinda [00:03:44]:
And do you know what you're doing in 2024 yet?
Jure [00:03:47]:
We have a few plans in the making, but currently I can't say anything.
Belinda [00:03:53]:
Oh, okay. We'll have to do a follow up podcast to see what it's all about.
Jure [00:03:57]:
Yeah, if you want to keep on track, if you want to keep watching my journey, it's going to be super exciting next year.
Belinda [00:04:07]:
Oh, very good. And while we're on the topic, how can people follow your journey? I normally ask that at the end, but hey, perfect line.
Jure [00:04:14]:
Now, through all my social media, so Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, I've also got a website and yeah, mainly the social media, Instagram and Facebook.
Belinda [00:04:29]:
And what's the handle?
Jure [00:04:31]:
Jerry Portelli Racing. I think.
Belinda [00:04:36]:
Those links will be in the show notes, so, of course, to follow, make sure you go and click on it and hear on the exciting news Board 2024. Jerry, as you mentioned, you've only been racing for three short years, but you've certainly achieved some great milestones. What are some of your exciting achievements that you think that's occurred in the last three years?
Jure [00:04:57]:
There's been so many memories. I think every race has memories, and especially living so far away, we're always traveling, so there's been so many road trips and long flights all around the country and around the world. But Hi and me, I have some cool trophies. So there's the Makai Sugar City Titles K Knives. I've won three of them throughout the year, as well as coming third in the Queensland State Cup was a big achievement for me. I was close to winning two classes there, but unfortunately it wasn't meant to be, as well as winning two classes in the NQ series overall.
Belinda [00:05:38]:
Fantastic. And what else has happened this year?
Jure [00:05:44]:
My main goal from the start was always being chosen for the Ferrari Driver Academy Rising Stars program. And in August, just after we got back from around for AKC, I got an email saying, oh, I've been selected. Come to Italy, be there in two weeks. So we had less than two weeks notice to be in Italy, and we had no idea what to do. So I started training pretty intensely, 9 hours a day. Cardio strength, as well as balance, coordination, reflexes, all that stuff. And nutrition and recovery was also a big part during that. And yes, that was super exciting. We flew there not knowing what to expect, sort of thinking would be in go carts because that's what they've done in the previous years. And then as we're on the flight into Italy from Singapore, we got the documents with all the information, and it had a photo of the F Four steering wheel saying, learn all the buttons, you're going to be in an F four car. And we're like, what? So, yeah, that was the first time I realized I was going to be driving an F Four car.
Belinda [00:06:59]:
Oh, fantastic. And who went over with you on the journey?
Jure [00:07:03]:
It was my dad and myself.
Belinda [00:07:05]:
Beautiful. So you tell us a bit about that experience. As you said, like, you got the email two weeks beforehand, went in crisis mode, went really hard on your training, went over there, and what was the experience like? So you got that email in transit saying it's going to be an F Four car once you landed. What did the days and the experience actually look like?
Jure [00:07:26]:
It was all incredible. It's definitely something I'll never forget. The whole Prima team was amazing. Everyone from Ferrari, they're all amazing. We did so many things with the three, two, one performance. They tested all out for our physical, mental strength and everything. And then with the prima team, we would go out, do a few sessions in the car. The first session was definitely so much thrill and adrenaline driving the car for the first time. And then we'd come in after the sessions, look over the data, compare data between us girls, see where we can improve, and then go back out in the car and just keep driving. Beautiful.
Belinda [00:08:14]:
And can you read data? Is that something that your sister has been teaching you? Or again, was that a quick learning curve that you had to get accustomed to whilst I was there?
Jure [00:08:26]:
We've always looked at the data racing the go carts, and we've always looked at it, but not super in depth because me and dad sort of just had to learn it together. And, yeah, we just look at what we know and try and figure out if I'm doing something or the car is doing something, what we need to change. Yeah, we work on everything together.
Belinda [00:08:55]:
And what was the experience in the F four like? Do you like the open wheeler?
Jure [00:08:59]:
I love it. It's definitely a different experience. I think the go cards, everyone's sort of more carefree in a way, and just send it. But the F four just being so close to another car, like when some of us girls are a bit closer, it was a completely different feeling.
Belinda [00:09:22]:
Fantastic. And more importantly, do you get to keep the clothes?
Jure [00:09:27]:
Yes, we worked it out. There's about $7,000 worth of race gear that we got to keep for free. So that's the race suit, the Fireproof underwear, the gloves, the boots, bella clover and socks.
Belinda [00:09:44]:
And do the boots actually have f four academy on there or anything like that? Or are they just their plain red ones?
Jure [00:09:51]:
The boots, they're a blue color, but the suit has all of the logos and designs and everything on that.
Belinda [00:10:01]:
Oh, that's fantastic. And so obviously met some great friends over there across the world and have you stayed in contact with them and any plans to maybe go overseas and race in the next year?
Jure [00:10:13]:
I'd love to go overseas and race next year, but we'll have to see what's planned. But for the people, we got in contact with a bunch of the Aussies racing over there and met up with them at the go kart track because the WSK European World Championships were on. So we went and watched that and met up with a bunch of our friends and yeah, that was definitely fun.
Belinda [00:10:38]:
Fantastic. Now, you mentioned at the beginning that you just did like the 9 hours of training, which was very intense. What does your normal training pattern look like for carding? Do you normally do fitness training?
Jure [00:10:53]:
At the start I didn't do much and I just end up covering in bruises after a race meet. And then last year I was racing two classes, so I sort of picked up training a bit. I'd usually just go for a run or go to the gym and do strength training, but after I found out that we're going over for the Ferrari Driver Academy, I picked up the training a lot more intensely. I've had two companies take care of me, looking, pushing my training to the next level. So it's yet seven days a week, I'm still training three days doing PT sessions, and then the other days I'm focusing on neck strength, wrist strength, strength, coordination, reflexes, all that sort of stuff, as well as recovery and nutrition.
Belinda [00:11:42]:
Fantastic.
Jure [00:11:43]:
Yeah.
Belinda [00:11:43]:
And what does your nutrition kind of look like? Do you change it up for race weekends and stuff like that?
Jure [00:11:50]:
Yes. So throughout the week, different days, depending what I'm training, I'll eat different things, and then on race weekend it's also different, so I've got all the different stoshes for what to eat, so I get all the energy.
Belinda [00:12:06]:
What's your favorite food on the race weekend?
Jure [00:12:10]:
Um, before a race, probably fruit, the sugar, and it's just light and won't make you feel sick otherwise. Yeah, I love coconut water as well. Keep you hydrated and it's not too heavy.
Belinda [00:12:30]:
Sweet. And do much work around mindset.
Jure [00:12:38]:
Yeah, mindset and media as well. Before we went over to Europe, coaching on interviews like this, just so I was sort of prepared and what to say and how to just come up with a response sort of on the spot. So, yeah, mindset and interview and media was a big part for the mindset. More of me and dad would do that together, so he'd sort of just pick up on things that I was doing or sort of put something out there that I should focus on and then I'll sort of pick up on that.
Belinda [00:13:15]:
Fantastic. Now you're still at school, what year have you just finished?
Jure [00:13:19]:
Grade nine.
Belinda [00:13:21]:
Fantastic. So going into year ten. What is kind of your electives that you're looking to do or what kind of is your career aspirations?
Jure [00:13:31]:
Um, yeah, well, for school it can be hard because we've got to travel so much, so I've had a lot of time off this year and it can be hard trying to catch up on as well as training and racing. But, yeah, for career path, I've always sort of had a take it as it come attitude. So instead of just having a strict path that I'm following, I'm sort of just taking all the opportunities in as they come and just taking everything as an experience and a learning journey.
Belinda [00:14:14]:
Sounds like you might have to look into doing some distance education, like a lot of the drivers are doing days.
Jure [00:14:21]:
Yeah, maybe we've thought about it.
Belinda [00:14:24]:
Yeah, there's lots of them that are doing it at the moment, which seems, again, like what most of people are doing. And so, in regards to your sponsors, how have you gone about getting sponsors on board and do you have any great sponsors that you'd like to talk about today?
Jure [00:14:42]:
Yeah, of course. Motorsport is expensive, there's no question about it, but there's a lot of companies that are willing to come on board and help people like myself out for the sponsors, take it as a business. So I've got my own ABN, website, social media, all that stuff, and branding and logos. And for the businesses, we don't only let them help us, we offer something in return. So it's sort of a win win situation for us and the business or the company. So we're always talking about deals and negotiation and all that sort of stuff. And speaking about sponsorship, we're currently sending out expression of interest presentations for next year, so if there's any individuals or businesses that have been following my career and want to get involved, they can contact me through my social media and I can send out all those documents.
Belinda [00:15:43]:
Fantastic. We talk in my language. Jura. I love it. Website, social media, benefits. I know you follow my stuff, so I'm hoping that you've learned some of that stuff too, from me, but that's fantastic. And of course, Andrew's details again of those links where you can contact her will be listed below in today's Show Notes. So, social media, how do you go around social media? What kind of things like content creation, do you like it, do you do it? Or do you engage in someone external to help you with that?
Jure [00:16:17]:
We always try and post something different. A lot of The Carters or just anyone in general sort of follow the trends and post the same sort of stuff. But I think that's why I've gained a bigger following, because we're always posting different stuff and trying to get people more engaged and we try to keep up the content. So posting often just random stuff, just trying to keep up the engagement and stuff. So, yeah, I do some of it. Mum's definitely a big help. She's always there on the race weekend taking photos and videos and getting all the content for that. So me and my mom work together for that.
Belinda [00:16:58]:
Awesome. And what's your favorite platform?
Jure [00:17:02]:
Instagram. I feel like a lot of people use that like, most ages. Mum does most of the stuff on Facebook because I'm not really on that, and the TikTok videos, we both make that. So, yeah, all of them go together.
Belinda [00:17:20]:
That's right. They're all a bit different. So I'm just actually having a look at your Instagram account right now. So you're also an ambassador for pit viper and horsepower heroes. Tell us a little bit about those.
Jure [00:17:32]:
Yeah, Horsepower Heroes, they've come on board as one of my sponsors throughout this year, and I'm also their youth ambassador, so they do fundraising and car events to help with mental health and bringing younger kids into motorsport. So they're definitely a great company that I love working with. And for Pit Vipers, I'm an ambassador for them, so I'll post content and social media for them and sometimes I'll repost it. They always send out merch and sunnies and everything. As part of that, I'll do social media giveaways or raffles or something with the sunnies just to promote them more. And, yeah, it's a win win for me and the company.
Belinda [00:18:22]:
Yeah, it's a lot of great cross promotions. So you mentioned before that you've got, like, your website and your logo, which is fantastic music to my ears. Is that something that you did or again, is it something that you outsourced or Mum and Dad's helped you or you've done all the design work yourself? Tell us about that.
Jure [00:18:43]:
We've had people, companies and people from Horsepower Heroes actually help design the logo. I love being involved with it as well, choosing all the colors and the designs. And we're currently working on some new logo and design for some stuff that might come out soon ish. So, yeah, I like having a say in it, but there's definitely people that have helped out with it.
Belinda [00:19:12]:
Fantastic. It's always good to have that skill set anyway, like knowing how to update the website and definitely knowing how to do that social media, content posting and content creation side of things. So good work for such a young person. You certainly do a lot when it comes to the motorsport as well, studying and everything else. Do you have a life outside of motorsports and school? Is there anything else that you do.
Jure [00:19:36]:
Well apart from school? Because I'm lucky enough to live in though it's Sundays, we love to get out on the water, go jet skiing, fishing, scuba diving. And I was actually the youngest certified open water scuba diver in Australia. So that was amazing. Yes, but we don't go scuba diving that often because we're always busy racing.
Belinda [00:20:00]:
Let me think. Racing, scuba diving. I know which one I'd love to be doing and on actually have a newsletter. Can people sign up to a newsletter or just to follow you on social?
Jure [00:20:15]:
Yeah, I think it's just follow me on social media. There's a bunch of photos on there and sponsorship proposals on the website, so if anyone wants to go check that out.
Belinda [00:20:27]:
Awesome. And is there anything else that you wanted to let us know about you? And, I mean, you're obviously not going to tell us about your plans for 2024, but.
Jure [00:20:41]:
As for aspiring races, I think just giving everything a go. If you don't try everything and take in all opportunities, you'll never know what you could have achieved and what you could have done. So set your goals high and work towards them. Have smaller goals as stepping stones. And I think if you're really passionate about something, you'll put in the effort and work towards it and then you'll achieve it. You can't just turn up to a race meet every once a month and expect to be the next four in the one championship. You've got to put the effort in and work towards it. And for any young girls, don't let the boys be intimidation. They're not intimidating. I think if you want something, you'll work for it.
Belinda [00:21:33]:
I love it. Have you experienced any challenges with the boys or anything like that or they were very friendly up there in the.
Jure [00:21:41]:
Whit Sundays up here, they're all super friendly. Most of the boys that I've raced are pretty friendly and supportive off the track, but on the track, that can be a different story. But if they give it, they've got to be able to take it too.
Belinda [00:22:00]:
Fantastic. I love the attitude. It's awesome. Well, thank you so much for sharing your story with us. It was great to hear all about it. Good luck for 2024. Whatever you decide to do, I can't wait to see. Obviously, I'll be following you on your socials to find out soon. Do we have a release date or are you still just signing some contracts and negotiations?
Jure [00:22:22]:
Still signing stuff. I'm not sure on a date soon, but yeah, we'll keep everyone updated.
Belinda [00:22:29]:
All right, fantastic. Well, again, make sure you jump over and follow Journey. I couldn't get that word out today over on her socials. And again, all those links will be below as well as her website. So make sure you check it out. It's pretty cool. It's pretty professional. Just checking it out. Well done. So, yeah, and congrats on all the effort and everything that you're doing off the track as well as on the track. It's fantastic to hear that you're so dedicated to training. You're doing all those socials, you're thinking about your content creation and of course, all the work that you're doing with your sponsors. So good luck with that. I hope all goes well for 2024. And yeah, we might get you on a couple more months and to get an update and see how you're going.
Jure [00:23:13]:
Thank you.
Belinda [00:23:15]:
See ya. See?
