Rita Goulet
Goulet atNashville Fairgrounds Speedway in 2024
Born	Ritamarie Thomason (1983-08-25)August 25, 1983 (age 42) Pawtucket, Rhode Island, U.S.
ARCA Menards Series career
15 races run over 3 years
Best finish	32nd (2023)
First race	2022Zinsser SmartCoat 200 (Berlin)
Last race	2024Reese's 150 (Kansas)
Wins Top tens Poles 0 0 0
ARCA Menards Series East career
17 races run over 4 years
Best finish	11th (2024)
First race	2022Sprecher 150 (Milwaukee)
Last race	2025Dutch Boy 150 (Flat Rock)
Wins Top tens Poles 0 0 0
Police career
Department	Gastonia Police Department
Service years	2022–present
Statistics up to date as of May 17, 2025.

Ritamarie Goulet (née Thomason; born August 25, 1983) is an American professionalstock car racing driver andpolice sergeant. She last competed part-time in theARCA Menards Series East, driving the No. 31Chevrolet SS for Rise Motorsports, and the No. 01Chevrolet forWayne Peterson Racing, and currently serves as apolice officer for theGastonia Police Department inNorth Carolina. She was previously employed as a police sergeant for theTuscaloosa Police Department inAlabama.

Thomason was born on August 25, 1983, inPawtucket, Rhode Island, to a poor family. Thomason eventuallysettled inAlaska 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 of9/11, she continued to live in a homeless shelter, and worked part-time at a tourist attraction inAnchorage. 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 aparamedic. She was transferred into a vocational school to train as amedical assistant. She was later offered an opportunity to finish her paramedic training inTuscaloosa, Alabama, for which she accepted.^[1][2][3]

After working as a paramedic for five years, Thomason began working as apolice 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 aschool 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-stylebowling alley.^[2][4]

After moving toDenver, North Carolina in late 2022 with her husband, she began working as an officer for theGastonia Police Department.^[5]

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 1992Mazda Miata. She officially started racing in 2018, at 33-years old, driving in anautocross 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 theSCCA 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 theChampCar Endurance Series, along with the24 Hours of Lemons. That same year, she would earn a couple of wins in the SCCA. After watching oldNASCAR races, she decided she wanted to gostock car racing. In 2021, she sold her Miata, along with her trailer, and purchased a 2014Chevrolet SS stock car. She had her car tuned up byDick andBob Rahilly, the owners ofRahMoc Enterprises.^[2][3][4]

During the fall of 2021, Thomason tested her stock car at local road courses. She would sign part-time withClubb Racing Inc. for the2022 ARCA Menards Series, where she planned to run two road courses, and 2-4 short tracks. She made her first start atBerlin Raceway, where she started 15th, and finished 12th.^[6]

Since 2023, Goulet has driven for her own team, Rise Motorsports.

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 wassexually,physically, andfinancially 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 metNASCAR pit crew memberTim Goulet in early 2022, and realized that they both had the same goals of owning anARCA Menards Series team in the near future. Rita and Tim married on January 1, 2023, and they currently reside inDenver, North Carolina, with a daughter and a son from Tim's previous marriage.^[2][3][5]

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time.Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

• Rita Goulet driver statistics at Racing-Reference
• Rita Goulet crew chief statistics at Racing-Reference
• Official website

• 1983 births
• American female racing drivers
• American LGBTQ sportswomen
• American women police officers
• ARCA Menards Series drivers
• Champ Car drivers
• LGBTQ people from Rhode Island
• LGBTQ racing drivers
• Living people
• Racing drivers from Rhode Island
• Law enforcement officials from Alabama

• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Use American English from October 2024
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• Use mdy dates from October 2024
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