Although he says he’s “not a very lovey guy”, 24-year old David Ragan, driver of the No. 6 UPS Ford for Roush Fenway Racing, hopes to be feeling the love this Valentine’s Day. He’ll share it with his girlfriend, Jacquelyn, his family, his friends and 165,000 screaming NASCAR fans at the running of what’s billed as The Great American Race, the 52nd annual Daytona 500.

Last November, David – along with Daytona International Speedway President Robin Braig and UPS package car driver Robert Clopton – spread a little love of their own when they hand-delivered Daytona 500 tickets to race fans’ houses. No, not all 165,000 tickets (even in his race car he’s not that fast). But three very lucky longtime ticketholders got a chance to meet David when he delivered their tickets and special goodie bags.

“The Daytona 500 is the biggest race of the year,” Ragan said. “It’s the first one. It’s a tone-setter for the rest of the season.”

David grew up in Unadilla, Ga., where he was introduced to racing by his father, former NASCAR driver Ken Ragan, and uncle, Marvin Ragan, who owned Ken Ragan’s NASCAR team. In 1997, Ken took over running the Legends racing program at Atlanta Motor Speedway, and the family moved to McDonough, Ga. It wasn’t long before David Ragan was in a car of his own. At 11 years old, in his first year racing Bandolero cars on the quarter-mile track at Atlanta Motor Speedway, he won 12 races and the National Championship. He would win another championship two years later. His next move was competing in the Goody’s Dash Series, where he was finally able to drive a full-size car. And as soon as he turned 18, the legal age for NASCAR drivers, he began running select Truck Series and Nationwide Series events, along with a limited ARCA schedule.

Racing takes money – lots of money. Money for Ragan’s racing came from sponsors, friends, and family. In 2003, Ken Ragan made a huge sacrifice for his son, selling his 1966 sunflower yellow convertible Corvette to help fund his son’s dream. It was the car Ken Ragan had dreamed of as a teenager, acquired as an adult and spent 11 years restoring. But he knew the dream could come true for David, if he helped kick-start it. And it did.

David’s big break came in 2005 when he participated in the Roush “Driver X” competition. Jack Roush, owner of Roush Fenway Racing, holds open auditions for drivers from around the world in hopes of hiring special young talent for the NASCAR Camping World Truck series. In 2005, over 1,700 applications were submitted, and the event was documented on the Discovery Channel. David dove into the competition. He had the references, driving skills, people skills and media savvy. Those things combined landed him in the top four, and he was awarded a contract with Roush, receiving his first official paycheck for driving a race car.

David worked hard, and that work paid off when he was selected by Jack Roush to be the driver of the No. 6 AAA Ford Fusion for the 2007 NASCAR Sprint Cup season. He was runner-up for the Rookie of the Year title in the Sprint Cup Series and won Rookie of the Year in the Nascar Nationwide Series. The 2008 season marked his second full year in the Sprint Cup Series, and he finished 13th in the point standings, barely missing the Chase for the Championship.

UPS became a sponsor of David’s car in 2009 and will be back for the 2010 season, which lasts from February to November. The off months, December and January, are not really months off. The drivers spend a lot of time testing their cars, working with their crew and, for David, also making commercials. In December, he was in Hollywood filming a series of comic commercials for UPS called “Maximum Driver” in which David the NASCAR driver is pitted against UPS package car drivers. He said California was great, but he prefers the slower pace of life in South Georgia.

Even though he now lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, he still calls Unadilla home and gets back as often as possible to see his grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins. You might find him hanging out at Cree Mee Bar-B-Q and Dairy Bar or at the Dairy Queen before he heads out to do a little hunting.

“I like to stay around home,” Ragan said. “During the racing season we live out of a suitcase and are on the road all the time. My enjoyment is sleeping in my own bed, doing things outside like knocking down trees or building a pond.”

Family is very important to David, and racing is in the family blood. David’s cousin, Brett Ragan, has worked for Roush for four years doing setup and chassis suspension. He and David share a home in Charlotte. His uncle Marvin runs the Watermelon Capital Speedway in Cordele and his father is still very involved in his career.

When the green flag drops on a NASCAR race, only 43 drivers have the privilege of being behind the wheel. David knows how competitive the sport is and how fortunate he is to be able to do something he loves. He said he would do it even if they didn’t pay him a dime (hope Jack Roush doesn’t read this). He also gets high praise from around the racing world for being grounded and an all-around good guy.

“David has demonstrated his driving talent week in and week out on NASCAR tracks across the nation,” Atlanta Motor Speedway President Ed Clark said. “The side of David that most people don’t get to see is his genuine good nature and caring personality. David comes from a tremendous family with a rich racing heritage. He is a great ambassador for the Middle Georgia area and for NASCAR.”