Today we’d like to introduce you to Todd Morris.
Hi Todd, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for sharing your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers.
My love of cars originated early in life. My grandfather was a master at taking old, dilapidated cars and restoring them to their former glory. I still have a photo of a car hanging from his oak tree in the backyard (yes, a tree) while he worked on it. This was the same tree we swung from on a picturesque tire swing, likely a tire taken from one of his many projects.
Many cars he worked on were old first-gen Mustangs, which triggered my fascination with Ford’s pony car. My first and current Mustang is a 2005 Mustang GT. It was purchased for me by my parents in 2011 when I was completing my college degree at Mizzou. Some of my fondest early memories of this car are flying down I-70 from Kansas City to Columbia and back while blasting Mumford and Sons – very 2012 of me. Initially a daily driver, this car was transitioned into a weekend cruiser until I met Dan – then it all changed.
Dan and I met in 2015 through mutual friends and immediately hit it off through our love for cars. In 2019, he told me about autocross, an entry-level motorsport that allows drivers to compete on short courses with minimal risk. I attended my first race a few weeks later; the rest is history. Eventually, we combined our love for racing with a passion project – Morris Martin Racing.
Established in 2022, Morris Martin Racing is a two-person racing team that aims to prove that racing is as accessible as exciting. Through social media and YouTube, we want to spark ambition and excitement in the next generation of racing enthusiasts looking to enter the world of motorsports.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Neither of us are “experts” in motorsports, and we aren’t trained mechanics. Our slogan is “cautiously optimistic” for a reason. But honestly, we lean into being beginners. We realized early on that many people are newly interested in motorsports or working on their car but are afraid to make the jump for fear of making mistakes. We want our content to prove that you can do anything you set your mind to as long as you have an extra set of hands, a good internet connection for YouTube, and a few emergency beers within reach. Mainly, our struggles have been tied to the fact that this is a passion project for both of us and not our full-time job. I live in Saint Louis while my wife completes her dermatology residency at Wash U, so finding the time to create content and complete builds can be tricky with us living four hours away from each other. But I pride myself in knowing that we can still commit the time to complete a full race season the last two seasons, both of which we’ve accomplished podiums in our region.
Let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a nurse by trade. I graduated from the University of Missouri’s nursing school in 2013 and practiced as an Emergency Room nurse for three years. In 2016, I joined Cerner as a clinical terminologist, and I’ve been doing that ever since. I now have a Master of Business Administration with an emphasis in Healthcare Administration, a Master of Science in Nursing with an emphasis in Nursing Executive Leadership, and I’m board-certified in Nursing Informatics. Nursing informatics is a new field, and I’m proud to be at the forefront of its expansion and development.
What matters most to you? Why?
My end goal with Morris Martin Racing has always been to grow enough to eventually create a non-profit organization to raise money to fight brain cancer on behalf of those currently battling the disease and those who have been taken from it. My sister, Lindsey Morris, died of brain cancer in 2010. Since her passing, I realized that my dream would be to have someday a platform and community to use as a driving force to raise funds and awareness for research and treatment. The median survival rate of a person diagnosed with glioblastoma is 15 months, and without treatment, this is reduced to 3-6 months. Through Morris Martin Racing, I have a vision to transform glioblastoma therapy and prolong the lives of glioblastoma patients through our passion for racing.
Contact Info:
- Website: morrismartinracing.com
- Instagram: morrismartinracing
- Youtube: Morris Martin Racing
Image Credits
All images are taken by Eric Romelus, his Instagram handle is @zoeoptics
