Rita Goulet

Ritamarie Goulet (née Thomason; born August 25, 1983) is an American professional stock car racing driver and police sergeant. She currently competes part-time in the ARCA Menards Series East, driving the No. 13 Toyota for her own team, Integrity Autosports, and currently serves as a police officer for the Gastonia Police Department in North Carolina. She was previously employed as a police sergeant for the Tuscaloosa Police Department in Alabama.

Early life Thomason was born on August 25, 1983, in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, to a poor family. Thomason eventually settled in Alaska when she was 11. Her parents got divorced when she was 15. She was kicked out of her house, and was moved into a homeless shelter at the age of 16. During the events of 9/11, she continued to live in a homeless shelter, and worked part-time at a tourist attraction in Anchorage. After seeing the attack unfold on a little break room TV, she was desired to help others in difficult situations, which gave her the courage to train as a paramedic. She was transferred into a vocational school to train as a medical assistant. She was later offered an opportunity to finish her paramedic training in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, for which she accepted.

Law enforcement career After working as a paramedic for five years, Thomason began working as a police sergeant for the Tuscaloosa Police Department in 2011. She states that her persistent desire to help others led to a law enforcement career. She also works as a school resource officer on Monday mornings, a security guard for an apartment complex on Monday and Tuesday nights, and provides security for a local hospital on Thursday nights. During the weekends, she works at a game-style bowling alley.

After moving to Denver, North Carolina in late 2022 with her husband, she began working as an officer for the Gastonia Police Department.

Racing career

Early career Thomason's interest for racing came at 11-years old, after her family purchased their first car, a 1983 Subaru wagon. She explained that the car "was more rust than car at this point." She began to drive at the age of 23, and purchased a 1992 Mazda Miata. She officially started racing in 2018, at 33-years old, driving in an autocross event. She found out that amateur club racing was something that she wanted to do, so she began to strip off the interior of her Miata and make it into a race car. She started driving competitively in the SCCA in 2019, racing mostly on road courses. She received her racing license at the end of the season in November. In 2020, she began racing in the ChampCar Endurance Series, along with the 24 Hours of Lemons. That same year, she would earn a couple of wins in the SCCA. After watching old NASCAR races, she decided she wanted to go stock car racing. In 2021, she sold her Miata, along with her trailer, and purchased a 2014 Chevrolet SS stock car. She had her car tuned up by Dick and Bob Rahilly, the owners of RahMoc Enterprises.

Goulet's No. 31 car at Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway in 2024 Since 2023, Goulet has driven for her own team, Rise Motorsports.

In 2026, she formed a new team, Integrity Autosports, after she left what is now Rise Racing.

Personal life Thomason met her first husband when she was 17, living at a homeless shelter at the time. They got married two years later. Thomason explains that she was sexually, physically, and financially abused by him. She also explains that he had control of what she did, and wouldn't allow her to drive, which eventually lead to a divorce. She moved to Alabama to avoid contact with her ex-husband, and would later meet her second husband. They both married after the move, but got divorced soon after, as they realized they were better off as friends. She met her third husband a few years later, and sometime during 2022, they divorced.

Thomason met NASCAR pit crew member Tim Goulet in early 2022, and realized that they both had the same goals of owning an ARCA Menards Series team in the near future. Rita and Tim married on January 1, 2023, and they currently reside in Denver, North Carolina, with a daughter and a son from Tim's previous marriage.

Motorsports career results ARCA Menards Series (key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.) ARCA Menards Series results Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Pts Ref 2022 Clubb Racing Inc. 03 Chevy DAY PHO TAL KAN CLT IOWBLN ELKMOH POC IRP MCH 37th 100 Wayne Peterson Racingwith Tim Goulet Enterprises 06 Chevy GLN ISF Tim Goulet Enterprises 31 Chevy MLW DSF KAN BRI SLM TOL 2023 Rise Motorsports DAY PHO TAL KAN CLT BLN ELK MOH IOW POC MCH IRP GLN ISF MLW DSF KAN BRI SLM TOL 32nd 143 2024 DAY PHO TAL DOV KAN CLT IOW MOH BLN IRP SLM ELK MCH ISF MLW DSF GLN BRI KAN TOL 33rd 145 2026 Integrity Autosports 13 Toyota DAY PHO KAN TAL GLN TOL MCH POC BER ELK CHI LRP IRP IOW ISF MAD DSF SLM BRI KAN -* -*

ARCA Menards Series East ARCA Menards Series East results Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Pts Ref 2022 Tim Goulet Enterprises 31 Chevy NSM FIF DOV NSV IOW MLW BRI 56th 19 2023 Rise Motorsports FIF DOV NSV FRS IOW IRP MLW BRI 14th 177 2024 FIF DOV NSV FRS IOW IRP MLW BRI 11th 231 2025 Toyota FIF CAR FRS DOV IRP IOW BRI 28th 85 Wayne Peterson Racing 01 Chevy NSV 2026 Integrity Autosports 13 Toyota HCY CAR NSV TOL IRP FRS IOW BRI -* -*