American swimmer Tyler Clary says he's considering a career as a race car driver when he hangs up his Speedo.

The gold medalist in the 200-meter backstroke said he's attended races at the track in Fontana, Calif., and, last year, participated with an off-road racing team.

"I want to take a serious shot at being a professional race car driver after swimming's over," Clary said on Sunday night's "Wind Tunnel" program on Speed Channel.

"It's funny because when you initially tell people that, you get laughs, complete surprise, but I know that this is something I could be really good at and, like I said, I want to take a serious shot at it."

He attended the IndyCar race at Long Beach this year. He also spent time with the CEO of the Skip Barber Racing School and is trying to find a way to participate in some of their programs.

"There's also the possibility of a shootout in January where I could compete against some other regional hotshots," Clary said. "If I had a way of saying, as far as racing goes, this is what I'll be doing after swimming is over, I'd be in a Formula One car. But I'm the type of guy that's ... just get me in a car and I'll be happy. If it's an Indy car, a rally car, a stock car, off-road racing would be amazing, too. Any of that stuff. I just really have a passion for auto racing and I really want to drive."

— Jenna Fryer — Twitter http://twitter.com/jennafryer

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