Operation Motorsport Veterans Headed to SimRacing Expo

Raleigh, N.C., 11 May 2026 – For U.S. Army and Navy veteran Richard Davenport, virtual simulation racing has been one way to find a community again after the leaving the military. “It’s a way to stay connected with other veterans virtually any time and to have a blast racing and developing skills alongside them,” said Davenport, who joined Operation Motorsport® as a participant in 2024.

Davenport is proud to tell his story at the SimRacing Expo May 22-24, 2026 at the Charlotte Convention Center. It’s the first sim Expo to be held in the U.S. A delegation of U.S. and Canadian veterans from Operation Motorsport will attend on behalf of the Operation eMotorsport League, a virtual iRacing series for veterans with a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs/Veterans Affairs of Canada rating, currently serving military and those who support them. Representatives will be introduced on stage at 11 a.m. EST on the Friday of the event.

Like many competitors, Davenport’s at-home racing set-up started small, with a Logitech G923 wheel and pedals from a connection on Twitch. Then he bought a set of Heusinkveld Sprint pedals from another Operation Motorsport participant.

“I saw a meme that said, someone will tell you not to spend $1,000 on sim racing gear,” Davenport said. “That $3,000 will be the best $10,000 dollars you’ve ever spent. That’s pretty accurate.”

The Operation eMotorsport League has grown exponentially since its inception six years ago. When racing was cancelled worldwide as a result of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic, Operation Motorsport staff were determined not to let it stop their life-changing work with veterans. But for an organization whose model depended on embedding veterans with professional racing teams at tracks, it would mean completely changing their scope.

In spite of the difficulties, Operation Motorsport made the leap and the Operation eMotorsport League was born.

Now, competition between the core of regular racers who show up nearly every event and casual drop-ins mean a dependable 35-48 entrants for each race, with the total number registered at 76 leaving plenty of room for new racers to join the community.

“It’s really become this supportive community of veterans,” said Tiffany Lodder, Executive Director, Operation Motorsport. “We’ve seen real change in our veterans who participate. It’s designed to bring veterans out of themselves, out of their worries, give them something else to focus on and an avenue to build themselves up again. Many of our veterans are struggling to connect with others when they come to us and going to a race track feels out of reach. For a multitude of reasons they’ve had a hard time with the transition back to civilian life and while they might not be ready to be around others in person, meeting new people online in this setting is just what they need in that moment of their journey. We are there to help them build the confidence and direction that comes from being given a Team, Identity and Purpose again.”   

Supporters of Operation Motorsport can get 10% off the ticket price with the code SRE_operationmotorsport at https://ticket.simracingexpo.com/.  For more information about the SIM. Racing Expo, visit www.simracingexpo.com Veterans with a VA/VAC rating in the U.S. and Canada are eligible to apply for Operation Motorsport’s programs. For more information, visit: https://operationmotorsport.org

About Operation Motorsport

Operation Motorsport® is a Veteran Led and Operated, Canadian Registered Charity, based in Brighton, Ontario, serving Canadian Service Members and Veterans and is based on three core values: Team, Identity, and Purpose. Operation Motorsport supports the recovery of medically releasing or retired Service Members affected by military service through Motorsports opportunities. Our motto is One At A Time.

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