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The school year is wrapping up for Brett Moffitt. Final exams are under way at Johnston High School, where he is a sophomore; after-school activity on a sunny afternoon involves mowing the lawn on the sprawling grounds of his family’s home near Grimes before heading out for a round of golf with buddies.

At age 16, he is entertaining the idea of being home-schooled next year. That might not be unusual for a teenager, but his reason for wanting to stay at home might be a little out of the norm: His racing schedule on a NASCAR circuit dictates that he miss a lot of class time.

Moffitt is fresh off his first victory of the year in NASCAR’s Camping World East Series, a developmental league open to drivers 16 or older. The victory made him the youngest winner in series history and confirmed suspicions that he has a special touch behind the wheel of a race car.

In the big-dollar world of stock car racing, Moffitt’s career will depend as much on his marketability to sponsors as on his driving skills.

Though the soft-spoken, almost shy, teenager professes not to look beyond the next race, he said recently that even this season could end after three more races unless sponsors are found, no easy task during a recession.

Part of his introduction to big-time racing is learning to deal with the media, find sponsors and otherwise transform himself into a commodity that would be attractive to sponsors whose names and logos seem patched together to form the skin of cars driven by such racing notables as Kyle Busch and, Moffitt’s role model, Jimmie Johnson.

For now, much of the marketing is being done by Moffitt’s father, Dick Moffitt, the co-founder of now-defunct Regency Homes.

Dick Moffitt said that when it became apparent a few years ago that his son could have a future in racing, Regency Homes was to be his chief sponsor. That plan evaporated in April 2008 when Regency Homes and its companion companies in residential and commercial development collapsed.

The failure of Regency Homes placed Dick Moffitt, a veteran home builder who would seem more at ease swinging a hammer and studying blueprints than drumming up sponsors, in a spotlight he did not seek.

Still, working with Brett and making him familiar to the racing world has helped ease the strain of the Regency experience.

“It’s one of the things that help keep my sanity,” Dick Moffitt said.

And he can talk at length about his son and his future in racing.

Dick Moffitt is no stranger to motor sports. He drove motorcycles in motocross competitions when he was younger and collected a fair number of trophies.

Finding those trophies in storage might have triggered Brett’s interest in racing, his father said.

A brief history of racing

It certainly wasn’t Brett’s first experience with speed. That came when a friend of Dick Moffitt’s provided racing go-karts for Brett and his sister to drive.

“I actually didn’t like it the first time,” Brett said.

He pursued other sports – baseball, hockey and soccer. “But I didn’t excel in those,” he said.

He continued to drive go-karts, developed an appreciation for them and discovered that he could outperform a lot of other people in the sport. He competed in his first race at age 10. Three years later, he was winning competitions in Iowa, Missouri and Oklahoma.

“I hate to do bad at anything,” Brett said. “If I’m not good at something, I’ll keep trying until I get good at it.”

He discovered that driving fast came naturally.

In 2007, Brett was driving modified cars on dirt tracks. He became the youngest winner of a feature event at Knoxville Raceway. He won 26 feature events that year and won or placed in the top five in more than 80 percent of his competitions.

The following year, he drove for the first time on asphalt tracks, still competing in what are called modified stock cars. He was still winning races.

Brett was named “Rookie of the Year” in the ASA Late Model North Series after finishing second in the association’s point standings. He became the youngest driver in ASA’s 29-year history to qualify for another of its national races and he won the pole position, set a track speed record and won a feature event at a race in Odessa, Mo.

Brett decided to graduate this year to NASCAR and the big leagues of stock car racing.

Dick Moffitt said that decision was made after talking to other drivers who have made it to the big time.

The right mentor

NASCAR’s Camping World East Series and Andy Santerre made that possible.

Santerre retired from driving in 2005 and launched Andy Santerre Motorsports in Harrisburg, N.C. It is a business that teaches young drivers the nuances of racing, not just how to drive but how to handle the acclaim that comes with success.

He provides six cars that are of the same design as the cars featured in NASCAR’s top divisions. The principal difference is that the cars in the Camping World series don’t have as much horsepower as in the top divisions.

As it is, Brett is driving at speeds that average 100 mph and can reach 160 mph – a speed he reached while driving to a sixth-place finish May 17 at the Iowa Speedway in Newton. The event was won by NASCAR celebrity Kyle Busch.

Dick Moffitt spends a good deal of time of every day making telephone calls to prospective sponsors. There are lots of possibilities, but few commitments. Carl Moyer, owner of Karl Chevrolet in Ankeny, will provide money to help defray expenses for a few races this year, and Brett will drive a Moyer truck in an upcoming race at the Iowa State Fairgrounds racetrack.

If Brett advances to the upper echelons of racing, he has the potential to make $10 million to $12 million per year in earnings and endorsements.

Brett has made an important first step in reaching his earning potential.

“The best marketing is sitting in that car in victory lane,” Santerre said. “It brings a lot of attention to you.”

But the next best thing is having parents who are committed to helping advance a career.

“His dad has put in a huge effort to get him this far, and we just hope that one of the big teams will show some interest,” Santerre said. “It’s only the elite that make it. It’s like any other professional sport. This is absolutely no different, but it takes money. His dad has sacrificed a lot to get him where he is.

“I think Brett’s got the ability – it’s just if the right doors open at the right time.”

Still learning

The first door to open belonged to Santerre, who counts racing legend Dale Earnhardt’s grandson among his former pupils.

Santerre said his fee for the entire season will run about $1 million. Santerre owns the cars and provides the mechanics and pit crew who will tend to Brett during races.

“For me, this is just a business, but for him, it’s more about learning how to drive than making money,” Santerre said.

Brett is second in the Camping World Series East point standings and to date is the circuit’s leading money winner, with purses totaling a little more than $17,000. Of that, 75 percent goes to Santerre, and the Moffitts keep the remainder to help pay for travel expenses.

In addition to getting his first win in the series last weekend in South Boston, Va., and becoming the youngest winner in its history, Brett has placed twice in the top 5 in the four races he has competed in this year and three times in the top 10. He also became the youngest driver to claim the pole position in a race.

Santerre said Brett doesn’t act his age out on the track.

“You would never know it when he straps in; he knows how to drive a car,” Santerre said. “Most guys that good are more outspoken, more outgoing. He lets his driving talk for him. He’s better to listen. I’ve given that advice before, but he listens.”

However, Brett isn’t alone at the top. There are other talented 16-year-olds on the circuit, some who started driving go-karts at age 5. Brett has to wait until he is 18 to attempt to break into NASCAR’s top two divisions. That requires skill and money.

Santerre said that to compete in NASCAR’s Nationwide Series, the equivalent of Triple-A baseball, will cost $6 million to $7 million. The Sprint Cup is at the top. Those teams often employ a crew of 500 and own about 20 cars costing around $100,000 each that are transported in trucks that also carry six-figure price tags.

On the road

Brett and his dad left Grimes last Thursday for historic Watkins Glen International speedway in New York, where his single-race expense will be about $65,000.

Before leaving for the race, Dick Moffitt was making phone calls, searching for sponsors.

“I’m about empty, imagine that,” Dick Moffitt said, chuckling, while talking about the expense of supporting his son and also dealing with the collapse of Regency Homes.

“Our goal is to get him to the top of NASCAR,” Moffitt said. “We wouldn’t be doing this if we didn’t think he had a good chance of making it.”

Brett said that his parents have given up a lot of free time to guide him through his brief career. His mother, Becky, does not attend races, but she does most of the scheduling and makes travel arrangements.

Dick Moffitt attends all the races and watches from the pits.

That parental attention explains why Brett looks up to driver Jimmie Johnson, who is NASCAR’s top driver this year.

It isn’t because of the winning or the money.

“He projects more of a family-friendly image,” Brett said.