Fans visiting Donny Schatz’s t-shirt trailer at World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series races have been greeted by a friendly face for years – his mother Diane Schatz.
She may have known little about Sprint Car racing before her husband Danny Schatz invited her to attend a race, but that hasn’t stopped her from playing a key role throughout Donny’s historic career.
“As [Donny] progressed, we got a t-shirt trailer,” Diane Schatz recalled. “And the girls got away from showing horses and ventured off into school and that type of thing. Then I went to more of the racing, and it got to where the t-shirt trailer was an income source for us also. And that kept us going with some form of income because when he started, he was not doing a lot of winning. He was up against the Steve Kinsers and Sammy Swindells and Dave Blaneys and (Andy) Hillenburg and Jac Haudenschild. I mean, it was a tough group to break into at that time because the crew chiefs had a lot of knowledge, and Don needed to get the laps and experience. So, my part was going along and trying to get some revenue besides what he could get on the track.”
Separate responsibilities with Donny’s sisters and family business didn’t allow her time to get to every race early on, but eventually she began to come along more and more to help oversee Donny’s merchandise sales. It also allowed her to support Donny as a mom and image builder.
“She’s not only the backbone of it, but she’s also the brains, always has been,” Donny Schatz said of his mother. “It’s pretty surreal. Not many people get to have a family member build their brand. She’s been a brand builder for me the entire time. Her interaction with people is second to none. She does everything just like it’s a first-class business, and she does an incredible job of it. More importantly, she enjoys it. I think she enjoys it more than what most people see. They don’t see the late nights and early mornings and making sure she provides a product that is second to none. It’s crazy to think about. I’m damn proud of her.”
The years on the road have led Diane to meeting fans from across the country. The same faces make sure to stop by the No. 15 merchandise trailer to catch up. They become more than friends. They feel like family.
“They are just like family,” Diane said of the fans. “We’ve got people that we’ve known for 30 years out there. We’ve grown old together watching the races. It’s fun to see them no matter where we go… Honestly, they’re kind of like a big support group. It’s all part of the family, and we’re pretty family oriented. That part of it has kept me going as long as it has in the racing industry honestly.”
That racing family was arguably never more important for the Schatz’s than last August. After a legendary tenure together spanning nearly two decades, Donny and Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing (TSR) parted ways following the Knoxville Nationals. That left the 10-time champion scrambling to find a way to complete his 29th World of Outlaws season. But his phone rang plenty leading to rides with Big Game Motorsports, Lunstra Motorsports, Kevin Kozlowski, and Sides Motorsports to finish out the year. The fans showed up too, ready to grab the latest Schatz gear. Fast forward to today, and Schatz has landed in a solid home at Chad Clemens’ CJB Motorsports with the renowned Barry Jackson on the wrenches.
“It was pretty devastating,” Diane admitted of the split with TSR. “It was a big transition, but the amount of support that poured out at that time to help him get through the end of the year was unbelievable. You really find out who your friends are at a time like that, and we had a lot of friends. And now with CJB it’s been a positive atmosphere, and it was a lot for Chad and Barry to take on and totally start a new team.”
There’s been another development for the family in the last couple years. Diane’s granddaughters and Donny’s nieces, Amelia and Laela Eisenschenk, reached the age where they could compete in World of Outlaws races. They’re continuing the family tradition and adding a few more shirts for Diane to make sure she has stocked. Both have been on the podium with NOSA at River Cities Speedway this year.
“Well, it’s pretty overwhelming,” Diane said of her granddaughters’ racing strides. “They’ve come a long way, especially in the last year. The girls have had a chance to race both the Late Models and a little bit of Sprint Cars with the World of Outlaws. They just soak up the knowledge, the experience, the advice.”
A special weekend is now ahead for the entire Schatz family. The three races on the calendar at River Cities Speedway (Grand Forks, ND), Fix It Forward Speedway (West Fargo, ND), and Nodak Speedway (Minot, ND) represent about as full of a homecoming as you can find for them. You’ve got a track where Donny partly cut his teeth in River Cities, the track in the town where he currently lives in West Fargo’s Fix It Forward, and the track in the town where he was born in Nodak. Amelia and Laela are also expected to be in action all three nights.
And just like she has for the last two-plus decades, so many years after Danny took her to her first Sprint Car race, Diane will be in the merchandise trailer greeting fans and working as hard as ever for her family.
“It’ll be just a good time,” Diane said. “I can’t even begin to imagine how many people I will see this weekend. It’s going to be fun. And it’s probably going to be kind of a hard weekend emotionally, but it’ll be a lot of fun.”
“I’m pretty lucky,” Donny said. “I’m pretty blessed to have her do what she does and take as much pride in it as she does.”
Catch Donny Schatz on track and Diane Schatz at the merchandise trailer this weekend in North Dakota at River Cities Speedway (Aug. 28), Fix It Forward Speedway (Aug. 29), and Nodak Speedway (Aug. 30). For tickets, CLICK HERE.
Where can you watch every World of Outlaws race? Live on DIRTVision.
Where can you see the World of Outlaws in 2026? Click to see the full schedule.