Walberg, Inc and The Mechanics of Family

Bud and Jaimie Walberg of Corning know how to keep the wheels turning in business, the racing world and family life. The couple and their 12-year-old son, Bobby Mac, keep busy packing and unpacking for Bud’s off road racing and now, with Bobby Mac behind the wheel of his own Razor XP 1000 non-turbo vehicle, there is even more to pack.

A life with many moving parts has always been the norm for both Bud and Jaimie. Bud grew up idolizing his father, Nels, who, after escaping the Bay Area for more rural family living, drove trucks and hauled construction equipment. Nels insisted that Bud go to college instead of following in his footsteps to become a truck driver. Bud obliged and took some business and economic classes. During a career day Bud asked one of the speakers how much money he made. After hearing his less than satisfactory answer, Bud quit college and bought his first backhoe and started a construction business.

Jaimie’s life had a similar trajectory. Her dad owned J and J Construction in Los Angeles but had moved the family north for a more rural life. Jaimie and Bud attended junior high and high school together in Corning and reconnected about the time Bud bought his backhoe. While dating, Jaimie encouraged Bud to keep growing his construction business while she helped with finances. The Walberg family and Walberg, Inc were both officially established in 2007 and they now have a fleet of over 40 vehicles. Once you add in the racing vehicles, that is a lot of tires on the ground.

Racing allows more family time

Bud started his racing journey with go carts when he was eight years old. Out of high school he was racing modifieds, then sprint cars, back to modifieds and now is loving wide open desert racing. Racing with the Best in the Desert Series, and with the Vorra circuit, allows for a lot more family time. Most trips last from Wednesday-Sunday and Bud’s family is the heart of his pit crew.

Jaimie says their family is part of the much larger racing family, where everyone has a job to keep things moving. For Bud and Jaimie it is especially handy to have Walberg, Inc’s mechanic, Zack Mclane, as Bud’s co-driver. At races everyone cares about each other, relies on each other and cheers each other on. Brothers and sisters are on teams or compete against each other. Kids play around the camping area on bikes or quads. Families are working together and playing together and they share in all the victories and losses.

Jaimie feels honored to help Bobby Mac navigate life’s journeys—not only with homeschooling but also on an occasional race course.

Bobby Mac is happily following in his dad’s tracks, and he is glad that those tracks are cutting across the desert these days. Before now he has enjoyed BMX racing and mountain biking. He built his own BMX bike recently and helps out with repairing all the racing vehicles. He has learned how costly it is to fix broken parts and there is no room for carelessness with their vehicles. Bud and Jaimie have also taught him to respect the privilege of business ownership. They have employees depending on them for their livelihood and even Bobby Mac can’t take that responsibility lightly.

Bobby Mac has been homeschooling for the past two years and sees all the day to day operations up close. Walberg, Inc has spent a lot of the last few years both preventing wildfires and rehabbing after the recent major fires. Jaimie also owns and operates Red Truck Rock Yard, a job she can do mostly from home while she oversees Bobby Mac’s education. Bud’s rule for Bobby Mac: he must maintain all Bs in school to race and must finish all his chores before they hit the road.

Besides maintaining vehicles, there is also a lot of safety equipment that has to be kept up to code. Overall, desert racing feels less dangerous than racing on the track but it does present its own challenges—co-drivers have to be on constant watch for wildlife and cows besides constant course navigation.

The Walberg family appears to run like a well oiled machine. Although off on her own, Bud and Jaimie’s 25 year old daughter, Mikayla, can’t seem to stay away from moving parts either. Mikayla’s job at Aircraft Extrusion Co in Chico involves manufacturing and supplying aircraft parts and her family is still cheering her on from the sidelines.

Getting involved in the local racing scene

Is your family looking for something fun to do together? Jaimie would encourage you to first get involved in the local racing scene, even as a spectator, with the Red Bluff Outlaws, for example. You may be surprised to see how family friendly the racing world can be. As a mom Jaimie feels very fulfilled in her duties in both the racing world and in their business. Besides keeping the laundry clean and stomachs filled, Jaimie is thrilled to share in both Bud and Bobby Mac’s dreams and achievements. Even the losses are wins when the family is working as a team.