Gulick, who finished third in ESS points this season said that he plans to give Bergeron a full test day to get acclimated to a 360 sprint car before turning him loose in “at least three races” during the season to truly evaluate his skills.

“We’re going to go out, rent a track for him … and I want to make sure I can work with him, get his pedals and seat where he’s comfortable, and make sure that we do this all the right way,” Gulick said. “I’m actually excited to take a back seat and sit and watch my car go around the race track with someone else in it. That, for me, is going to be pretty cool.

“I don’t think there’s really any expectations for him,” Gulick continued. “I know he’s going to go out there and give it all he has, though. I told him that he’s not going to go out there, most likely, and win his first ESS race … but if he goes out, finishes and runs cleanly then I believe he’ll have a lot to be happy about for a first race. Him adjusting to the speed is the only thing I’m concerned about, but I believe he can. I know he’s got what it takes.”

Bergeron did receive an opportunity to race a 305 sprint car in 2017 through Virtual2Reality.tv, but said that driving Gulick’s car will be “a very different world.

“The 305 … it’s a slower car, but the lines are the same and the skills you need to use are similar,” he said. “You have to run the cushion correctly and to be fast .. I feel like it’s mostly the same. If I can get the hang of the additional power, I feel like we’ll be okay. I’m confident in myself and in Coleman’s equipment.

“I learned the basics from that race (after starting 18th and finishing sixth) and from iRacing, I feel like, so now it’s just about fine-tuning how to work with these cars and hopefully with Coleman and his team’s help, I can do that.”

While only a few races are in the works for Bergeron as of now, Gulick was quick to note that it could become more than that in the future.

“I think there definitely could be a future for him, if he goes well next year,” Gulick said. “We obviously won’t know until we can get him on the track, but he could be running the car full time for us some day. I’m not saying it will or it won’t happen, but it’s a possibility.”

“Right now, it’s one race at a time. I was just trying to learn about the sport through Coleman’s team, so this is already more than I could have asked for,” Bergeron added. “To be part of this is a dream come true and I want to make the most of it. If it turns into more races, I’ll be thankful and go after it. You never know what will happen in this sport, but right now, I’m thankful.”

First, however, comes the realization of a dream that Gulick is all too happy to help make happen.

“There’s a lot of kids out there that dream, and for most of them, that dream never comes true, but Alex … he’s a polite kid, he’s quiet, but he’s focused and he knows what he wants and where he wants to go,” said Gulick of Bergeron. “That’s what impressed me the most, is how dedicated he is and how excited about this he is.

“That alone makes me believe he deserves a shot, and I’m going to give it to him because I like to see people striving for their dreams like that. In my mind, there’s not enough people in racing with the kind of love for the sport that he has. It’s really special.”