Alanis King is a Canadian motorsports journalist, author, and content creator who has spent her career covering NASCAR and the wider world of racing with a voice that is equal parts sharp and authoritative. She’s one of the more recognizable bylines in the sport — and one of the few women who has made that stick.

EARLY YEARS

Alanis King was born on October 10, 1993, in Canada. She grew up with a genuine passion for cars and motorsports that would eventually drive her toward a career in automotive journalism. Her path took an academic turn at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine, an institution she has remained connected to over the years. [1][2]

OTHER INTERESTS

Beyond the press box and the pit lane, King has shown a consistent appetite for storytelling in formats beyond traditional journalism. She has written for outlets well outside the motorsports bubble — including Business Insider, where she covered everything from travel to pop culture — demonstrating a range that suggests someone who arrived at car writing by genuine curiosity rather than default. [3][4] She also took her mother to her first track day, an experience she wrote about for Jalopnik, which is either endearing or a very on-brand way to spend a weekend. Probably both. [5]

EARLY SUCCESS

King built her early reputation through Jalopnik, one of the more influential automotive and motorsports publications on the internet, where her byline became a regular presence. She wrote across a wide range of topics — from NASCAR coverage to broader automotive culture pieces — establishing herself as a journalist who could handle both the hard news and the more essayistic corners of the beat. [6]

From there, she expanded her platform considerably. She joined The Autopian, a reader-supported automotive journalism outlet that attracted some of the sharpest writers in the space, where she continued producing work that combined industry knowledge with a distinct editorial voice. [7] She also became a contributor to Road & Track, one of the most storied names in automotive publishing, further cementing her standing in the field. [8]

King didn’t stop at text. She launched a YouTube channel under her own name, documenting the process with characteristic candor — including a piece for The Autopian reflecting on a full year of being a car YouTuber, cataloguing the strange and specific lessons that come with building a video audience from scratch. [9] The channel covers automotive topics and racing with the same sensibility that defines her written work. [10]

She also co-hosted Mics Are Hot, a podcast focused on NASCAR and motorsports, which returned for a second season with King alongside co-host Monica Palumbo. The show found an audience among fans who wanted something less scripted than the standard broadcast fare. [11]

King wrote Racing with Rich Energy, a book that examined one of the more chaotic sponsorship stories in recent motorsport history. The project put her in the company of serious long-form journalists willing to dig into the sport’s business side rather than just its results. [12]

NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS

• ONGOING: Staff writer and contributor at Jalopnik, covering NASCAR and automotive culture. [6]
• ONGOING: Contributor to Road & Track magazine. [8]
• ONGOING: Writer at The Autopian, the independent automotive journalism outlet. [7]
• ONGOING: Creator and host of the Alanis King YouTube channel covering motorsports and automotive topics. [9]
• ONGOING: Co-host of the Mics Are Hot podcast, Season 2, alongside Monica Palumbo. [11]
• PUBLICATION: Author of Racing with Rich Energy, published and listed on Goodreads. [12]
• ONGOING: Contributor at Business Insider. [3]

INSPIRATIONS

King has spoken about the challenge of being a woman in a space that was not designed with her in mind — and written about it directly. A piece for Jalopnik addressed what it’s actually like to be a woman who covers cars, navigating an industry that still raises eyebrows when a woman has opinions about horsepower figures or pit strategy. [13] That kind of direct engagement with her own position in the sport isn’t performative; it’s part of how she has consistently framed her work — as someone who belongs here and is going to write like it. [14]

She has also written about the heartbreaking treatment of women in motorsports more broadly, engaging with the systemic issues that extend well beyond her own career. [15] That willingness to point at uncomfortable things — in print, not just in conversation — is part of what has given her a reputation that goes beyond just being good at her job.

REPUTATION

Among the people who follow motorsports journalism seriously, Alanis King is considered one of the sharper voices in the field. Her Muck Rack profile reflects a prolific output across multiple major outlets, and her work spans the full range of the beat — breaking news, longform features, cultural commentary, and the kind of piece that doesn’t fit neatly into any category but is obviously worth reading. [16]

The Get In Her Lane podcast has described her as having an inspirational impact on the world of motorsports, a framing that acknowledges both her journalism and her visibility as a woman in a field where that visibility still matters more than it should have to. [17] She has been a guest on the show and is included in its roster of notable women in the sport. [18]

On social media, she maintains an active presence on Bluesky and has built a YouTube audience by being direct about the actual experience of creating content about cars — including the parts that don’t make for good thumbnails. That transparency has earned her a following that extends beyond the hardcore NASCAR crowd into the broader automotive enthusiast space. [9][10]

Intermission Magazine spotlighted her as a notable figure in Canadian motorsports media, a recognition that places her among the country’s most prominent voices in the space. [19]

FUTURE GOALS/PLANS

King continues to expand her multimedia presence, with her YouTube channel and podcast work running parallel to her written journalism. Given the trajectory — from staff writer to author to on-camera host to podcast co-host — the direction of travel is clearly toward building something larger than any single platform. Whether that means more books, a bigger video operation, or something else entirely, the infrastructure is already there. [9][11]

References:

Famous Birthdays: Alanis King
Bates College News
Business Insider: Alanis King Author Page
Business Insider: I Relived My Childhood at Rainforest Cafe in Las Vegas
Jalopnik: I Took My Mom to Her First Track Day and She Loved Every Second of It
Jalopnik: Alanis King Author Page
The Autopian: Alanis King Author Page
Road & Track: Alanis King Author Page
The Autopian: I’ve Been a Car YouTuber for a Year Now. Here Are All the Weird Lessons I’ve Learned.
Alanis King YouTube Channel Videos
Racing America: Mics Are Hot Returning for Season 2 with Alanis King and Monica Palumbo
Goodreads: Racing with Rich Energy
Jalopnik: Not to Be Sexist, But: What It’s Like Being a Woman Who Covers Cars
Get In Her Lane: Alanis King — Her Inspirational Impact on the World of Motorsports
Race Day Substack: The Heartbreaking Treatment of Women in Motorsports
Muck Rack: Alanis King Profile
Get In Her Lane: Alanis King Profile
Get In Her Lane: Alanis King Guest Page
Intermission Magazine: Alanis King Spotlight
Alanis King on Bluesky