HANCOCK COUNTY — She was supposed to be racing Saturday night, taking part in an event at the nearby Shelby County Fairgrounds. Instead Ashlea Albertson, 24, originally from Greenfield, was honored by her family, fans and race drivers, as well as her teammates with Tony Stewart Racing.
Ashlea died Friday morning in a car crash on I-65 near Seymour, a wreck officials say may have been caused by a road rage incident.
“She lost her life not on a race track like we thought she might, but on a highway because of anger,” her father, Todd Albertson, said in a statement while at the Shelby County dirt track Saturday night.
Her family posted on her social media site, “We would like to say we are incredibly touched by the tremendous outpouring of love and concern shown to us from so many people. It has become clear that Ashlea will not be forgotten.”
Ashlea, an Indianapolis-based racer, drove TQ Midget cars for Tony Stewart Racing. Stewart posted on his social media page shortly after Ashlea passed away, making reference to her death from what he called a “road rage” incident.
“I lost a teammate,” Stewart said. “Ashlea Albertson had an infectious personality and could light up any room. She was a great race car driver that was involved in a road rage accident and lost her life. In the past, I’ve also gotten caught up in road rage. I hope that we can honor Ashlea by controlling what we can control on the highway. Losing her is a sobering reminder of how precious life is. Please join me in keeping her family and friends in your prayers.”
Officials from the Indiana State Police (ISP) say Ashlea was killed in a Friday morning car crash on I-65 near Seymour. It appears that the car she was a passenger in and another vehicle were involved in an incident prior to the crash, officials say.
Law enforcement from the ISP Versailles Post were called at 11:30 a.m. to investigate a two-vehicle fatal crash that occurred on I-65 northbound, just south of Seymour. Police say video footage recorded by another vehicle shows the two drivers accelerating rapidly and refusing to let one another pass.
According to the ISP, a black 2016 Chevrolet Malibu, being driven by Austin Cooper, 22, was traveling northbound in the right lane of I-65, near mile marker 48. A white 2018 GMC Terrain, being driven by 31-year-old Jacob Kelly, was traveling northbound in the left lane of the same area.
The driver of the Malibu (Cooper), officials from the ISP said, began to switch lanes, when the driver of the Terrain (Kelly), lost control of the vehicle, causing the two cars to collide. The Terrain rolled over, which caused the passenger, Ashlea, to be ejected.
Officials say Kelly and Ashlea were flown from the scene to University of Louisville Hospital for treatment, but Ashlea could not overcome her injuries. Kelly is being treated for non-life-threatening injuries. Cooper and a juvenile passenger were transported to Schneck Medical Center in Seymour where they were both treated for non-life-threatening injuries, officials said.
Both drivers submitted blood tests. Toxicology results are pending at this time, officials said.
The Daily Reporter published a story about Ashlea in May of 2021 when she was making a name for herself in racing. She told the Daily Reporter back then how much she loved working in a field dominated by men.
“It’s the experience behind it all; you meet so many people who become like family,” she said.
During an interview, Ashlea noted that she spent most of her free time working on her black and blue three-quarter midget car with hot pink lettering in a large barn at her father’s rural Greenfield home.
She shared the memory of the first time she won a heat at the age of 15, driving a Kenyon midget at the Anderson Speedway in 2014. When she removed her helmet to smile and wave to the cheering crowd, revealing her long hair, she said a noticeable silence fell over the crowd.
“They seemed shocked, but then the women were going crazy cheering,” she said with a grin.
Ashlea fell in love with racing at the age of 10, the first time she ever climbed behind the wheel, she noted in 2021. A friend of her dad’s invited the family to a track event where prospective drivers tested midget cars, and Ashlea was hooked.
Her father remembers the huge smile on his daughter’s face that day, he told the Daily Reporter back in 2021.
“She got behind the wheel and just took off,” he said. “It was one of the coolest things I’d ever experienced.”
On her 22nd birthday, Ashlea told the Daily Reporter she had a shot at beating Stewart in a midget car race, but came in second place, four laps behind the famous driver.
After the race at the Bartholomew County Fairgrounds, as she sat in her car a few moments to soak it all in, Stewart came over and playfully banged on the car.
“He’s the kind of driver who always gives it 100%,” she said at the time. “To be able to race against him, it’s just the best experience.”
Stewart eventually bought out the car series Ashlea drove in, The All Star Circuit of Champions TQ Midget series.
Ashlea, according to social media posts from her family, was on her way back from the Gulf Shores with her fiance (Kelly) when the incident occurred. The two were to be married in March of 2024, her family said.
The investigation into the crash remains ongoing by ISP Troopers from the Versailles Post and the Indiana State Police Crash Reconstruction Team. After the investigation, the case will be presented to the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office for review for any possible charges.
Memorial arrangements had yet to be announced by press time.
