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William Shatner is a man of many talents. We all know he acts, some of us know he sings and the real fans know he writes books and directs occasional films. In his personal life, he's known to ride horses and fly airplanes. Now ad stock car driving to his resume. Shatner is participating in ABC's Fast Cars and Superstars airing Thursday nights, competing against other celebrities on the NASCAR circuit. With filming wrapped, Shatner wouldn't say who won, but he shared the rest of his experience. He even took the opportunity to do a good deed as you'll see later in the interview.

CraveOnline: How did this come about? How were you approached?

William Shatner: ABC had an idea of putting celebrities in a fast car like the NASCAR and they called me and wanted me to come and I was able to convince everybody else that this is what I should do.

CraveOnline: What was your first reaction to the idea?

William Shatner: I leapt at the opportunity. I don't watch a lot of NASCAR because you have to be there to really enjoy it. It's a sensory experience more than a visual experience I think. Those fast cars, it's the sound and the energy that's there. It's not so much watching cars go around and around in a circle. But it's 300,000 people in an arena and dozens of cars jostling for a position. That's the thrill. So watching it on television doesn't come anywhere near that but the idea of being able to drive as fast as you can without being assaulted by police had a certain appeal. I was looking forward to meeting these great people. These are great people at the top of their game. I made some interesting fast friends. It was just terrific. It was as much fun meeting the people who were in competition as it was driving.

CraveOnline: Could you pursue this after the show ends?

William Shatner: Well, pursue, I would but then I'd be being pursued by others trying to keep up, like my wife, holding a lasso to tie me down. When I was done, I thought, "Well, I've done that and it was like jumping out of an airplane. I don't have to do that again." But the more time that has passed, the more anxious I am to get behind a NASCAR wheel.

CraveOnline: How do you keep your reflexes sharp?

William Shatner: I fight my dogs. I sharpen my fingernails. I don't know. It's all genetic I'm sure.

CraveOnline: Do you recommend this activity for other people?

William Shatner: I only recommend it for highly trained, that or crazed egotistical individuals who wish to make spectacles of themselves.

CraveOnline: Did this experience give you a new appreciation for what NASCAR drivers do?

William Shatner: Absolutely. For safety's sake, they put us on the track one at a time. We didn't race against each other because by going around, you go on a left hand turn the whole way. The margins between you and another car would be inches and only those refined racers who've done it all their life would be equipped to handle a car like this. There is a certain amount, a limit of adhesion. At a certain speed, your car is coming out from under you at a controlled slide and it's those areas that if you were to actually have somebody on the track with you, you'd be endangering somebody else as well as yourself.

CraveOnline: Which driver mentored your group?

William Shatner: The guy who was with us was Ryan Newman. He would provide us with some information, but mostly, he was demonstrating how it should go.

CraveOnline: Were you getting any TJ Hooker flashbacks?

William Shatner: Only when I clung to the hood.

CraveOnline: If this were a Twilight Zone episode, would it be Terror at 20,000 rpms?

William Shatner: Yes, that's a good title. It was terrifying. There were some of the people who didn't admit any or very little fear. But I think they had a lobotomy before they came because it was, and you will see when you watch the show, there are several times people, the car is in a position where you don't want to be and as a result, the people who are in that position, who return to the track, go a heck of a lot slower than they were going before that incident.

CraveOnline: Well, you see that even pros like Dale Earnheart can die driving.

William Shatner: That struck me as I was driving around. And do, please everybody, remember this thing about the hospital. It's a shame. It's a dire shame that we don't take care of our boys better. We could all help Walter Reed Hospital, Maurice McDaniel, Soldier Family Assistance in Washington.

CraveOnline: Did any of your competitors surprise you?

William Shatner: Everybody was incredible. Everybody who agreed to do it knew the risks involved. So everybody who came to do it came with intense motivation. There was a lot of intensity on that field and a lot of good people, a lot of people used to competition and willing to be a fierce competitor but at the same time, equally desirous of meeting all of each other, so it was like a great party at the same time it had an intense core.

CraveOnline: Compare the driver's seat to captain's chair.

William Shatner: Well, centrifugal force plays a huge part in a NASCAR race and none on a spaceship.

CraveOnline: Have you heard of this Star Trek prequel?

William Shatner: Yeah, I've heard of it. I wish them well.

CraveOnline: Would you do a cameo in the new Star Trek?

William Shatner: They haven't asked me to the party so I don't know what's happening.

CraveOnline: Would you be comfortable doing that?

William Shatner: I don't know. I'd have to see what it was all about.

CraveOnline: Boston Legal ended with Denny saying, "I wonder what's going to happen next season." Do you have any idea?

William Shatner: No, and I don't believe anybody knows what's going to happen next season. I wonder if this is the time to ask you, let me take 30 seconds of all your time to tell you about our soldiers at Walter Reed Hospital and their need. If you could somehow fit into this article on all of us driving fast and death defying, and I'm not using that as superlatives, there was injury possibilities all the time. If you could take a moment from that to know that if people want to help our soldiers at Walter Reed hospital. Maurice McDaniel, at the Soldier Family Assistance [Center] would appreciate hearing from anybody who wanted to help our soldiers in those hospitals.

CraveOnline: Is that something as a celebrity you're really able to get behind?

William Shatner: My wife discovered that a lot of soldiers didn't have any clean bedding, so she took some action on that. And I asked if there was something I could do and this was the moment I wanted to do it. So Walter Reed Hospital, Maurice McDaniel, if your readers are listening, Soldier Family Assistance, they could use our help.

CraveOnline: What is your personal involvement with Walter Reed?

William Shatner: My wife had discovered that, to our American shame, that our boys in post operative treatment are not getting the best of facilities. They need things like electronic games and stuff. The best way to do it is by buying a Wal Mart card and sending it to Maurice McDaniel at Walter Reed Hospital. But the boys, the soldiers, the guys who were willing to give their lives for our country, are not being… I don't know how to put it. You're going to have to find the words yourself. I'm afraid of being too harsh. With just you people mentioning it this once, there'll be an outcry and Maurice McDaniel will get his response for the Soldier Family Assistance which is send the boys something that they can read, play with, occupy their time while they're recovering from their wounds. And Maurice McDaniel himself will respond to everybody and make sure that what they give, especially in the form of credit cards from these large companies like Wal Mart or however it works, you can go to my website actually. We're putting up that information in detail. My website, Shatnervision.com I didn't want to get myself involved in it but the information is so important that even if you just say Maurice McDaniel, Soldier Family Assistance in Washington, 6900 Georgia Ave – Room 3G04, Washington, 20307. They just need all kinds of things that a person in bed would need. Thank you, I'm willing to continue talking about my experience now.

CraveOnline: We were talking about Boston Legal. As a TV veteran with several characters, is that one particularly fun to return to?

William Shatner: It's the most fun I've ever had performing. It's the darndest thing. It's so well written and the people are so good and so nice, I look forward to going to work all the time.

CraveOnline: What was it like drinking out of the Stanley Cup?

William Shatner: I'll tell you, you're not allowed by law, now this is interesting, to hold it above your head. But I did. I broke the law. I hold the Stanley Cup like I had seen Maurice Richard hold the cup above his head. It was a thrill. For Canadians who grew up with hockey, to be able to touch the Stanley Cup and address it and look at it and touch it and then drink from it, how intimate.

CraveOnline: What else is on your horizon?

William Shatner: Well, I do have a lot of things going on. I've got some interesting things happening. Out of an album I made a couple of years ago, called Has Been, a ballet was choreographed and performed in Milwaukee and I filmed it. I'm about to do something with it, I'm not quite sure what, but either it's a music video, 25 minute music video or it's a movie about how ballet is made. I've got a new book coming out on young Captain Kirk and young Spock called Academy-Collision Course that's coming out in September. I'm working on a film about grief and laughter called The Shiva Club. I'm going to host the Comedy Festival in Montreal in July.

CraveOnline: Thank you.

William Shatner: Thank you everybody for all of your time and listening to me. You're going to be writing about a very exciting 7 ½ hours. You'll be very happy. This is a real exciting time.