Shannon Spake is one of the most reputed TV personalities in the sporting world. From her early days of working at CBS to being featured in the Cars 3 movie, she has come a long way. Her motto is simple: If you want it all, you have to do it all. But amid her grind to reach the heights of her career, she encountered a tragic event: 9/11. And this early jolt in her career made her realize essential goals in life beyond just work.
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“I had a moment in my life, and that moment was September 11th, 2001, where sort of the curtain came back on the fact that I wanted more in my life than just work. There were some specific things that happened around that time, certain signs that really led me to say, ‘Hey, I want more in life.’” Shannon said on the Sons and Daughters podcast.
She was fresh out of college and working with CBS on the Early Show as an assistant producer. Early log-ins and late working hours were the formula for success. And it still is, but she realized there’s more to life than just work. Before 9/11, Spake didn’t have a clear idea of whether or not she would get married and start a family.
“I didn’t see myself having kids when I was younger. I wanted my family around me to be closer to my family. And so all of those things happened on September 11th, 2001. I didn’t want to stop the grind, I didn’t want to stop the sacrifice, but wanted a little more balance,” she added.
Well, Spake didn’t lift when it came to chasing her dream. She worked at the SPEED channel before moving on to ESPN as a NASCAR pit reporter. This phase of her life also saw a big transition: She got married to Jerry McSorley in 2008, and ESPN would become her second home.
Back in 2009, she was on pit road covering races despite being pregnant. And she had all the tools and resources in place to help her do the job. “The entire five months I spent working on pit road while pregnant with my twin boys. I had an expandable firesuit designed to grow with me,” she said to the Northern Kentucky Tribune.
She was part of the NASCAR baby boom era, as wives of several drivers, such as Ryan Newman, Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth, and Carl Edwards, got pregnant around the same time. Spake didn’t ditch her dreams to be able to get more from her life. All she did was find the right balance, and that’s helped her immensely.
Shannon Spake’s journey is an inspiration to all young talents, especially female professionals, who can reach their goals, be it in life or on the racetrack.
