Published: April 05, 2007 10:48 am      

Goose Lake native finds dream job on the Panther racing team

GOOSE LAKE — Goose Lake native Dan Moeller recently started the career of his dreams in auto racing.

Moeller was hired as an assistant engineer by Panther Racing, one of the oldest teams in the Indy Racing League.

Panther Racing has enjoyed much success in recent years, with driver Sam Hornish Jr. winning back-to-back IndyCar Series championships in 2001 and 2002. Driver Victor Meira placed fourth in the IndyCar Series season opener at Homestead Miami Speedway on March 24, and Moeller played an important role in the team’s success.

A great deal of vehicle data is collected from the car during races. Moeller’s role is to interpret this data and help make key decisions, such as the car’s pit stop strategy.

Moeller is currently majoring in mechanical engineering at Iowa State University. His graduation is set for May 5, but he will likely miss the ceremony due to his racing obligations. The opening weekend of the Indianapolis 500 is scheduled for the same weekend.

“I’ve always known that I wanted to get into racing,” Moeller said. This focus, combined with a considerable degree of personal ambition, led him to his goal.

Last summer, Moeller attended races and spoke to team members to determine which skills racing teams sought most. He worked with the career services department at Iowa State University to fine-tune his resume to appeal to his desired employers.

“With my remaining year at ISU I made sure to get as much experience in those areas as possible and shift that to the top of my resume,” he said, “which made a lot more people take interest in me when I sent out resumes.”

Moeller is truly enjoying his new career, and he sites the travel and intense competition as his most enjoyable parts of his work.

“Almost every week you are compared to everyone else in the business, which doesn't happen very much in other forms of employment,” Moeller said. “There is no time to sit back and relax because if you don’t find the next idea to make the car go a tick faster, someone else will. It really creates an atmosphere that motivates everyone to do their best.”

Dan’s work with Panther Racing will bring him back to his home state this summer. Iowa Speedway in Newton hosts the inaugural Iowa Corn Indy 250 race on June 24.