On Sunday, Sept. 11, Grayland resident Paul Johnson, 45, swept a field of 60-70 vehicles to bring home the first place trophy in the annual Riverdale Raceway ‘Race for the Cure’ 1/8 mile bracket drag race to benefit cancer research.
Bracket drag racing
Johnson, along with several other drivers that placed in the very well attended event, enthusiastically donated his cash prize to the fundraising effort. “I have relatives and friends who are fighting cancer and this is an important cause that’s close to my heart,” he said.
He didn’t come home empty-handed, however. Johnson is now the proud owner of his first winner’s trophy — a huge hot pink – of course – four-ft. tall metallic sparkler.
In addition to donating his winnings, Johnson was one of several drivers who gave rides auctioned off to event-goers who were more than glad to pay a premium price to actually feel the thrill of racing down the 1/8-mile track in the co-pilot’s seat. More than a thousand dollars was raised from that feature alone, with an estimated close to $8,000 total going into the donations pot this year.
Event highlight
While winning the race, hauling home that big trophy and contributing strongly to a great cause were all terrific reasons for a great day, Johnson says the highlight of the event came for him in the semi-finals, when he beat the NHRA (National Hot Rod Association) Champion drag bike that won last year’s event. “That was amazing,” he said, as he demonstrated with a very short swipe of his hand alongside this Nova just how close the two vehicles were when they crossed the finish line.
New to sport
Relatively new to the sport, Johnson says he drag raced for a couple of years and then took last winter off to build his current car, a 1972 Chevy Nova, “…from a bucket of bolts. I started by reducing it down to a metal shell to get as much weight off of it as possible and then built it back up again,” he said, explaining the steps in the long process to complete his winning ride.
His dragster has a 400 small block engine with a turbo 350 that produces around 600 horsepower on full alcohol. Unable to resist a demo, Johnson fired up his machine and made it roar like a very, very large lion, no doubt startling big-time the neighboring two-legged, four-legged and winged beings in his otherwise bucolically quiet bog-county neighborhood.
Johnson runs his car in the pro-class at E.T. (elapsed time) drag races at Riverdale Raceway in Toutle. He previously took 2nd place in the Smoke and Thunder tourney in August.
Bracket racing primer
For those of us who aren’t in the know, racket racing is a form of drag racing that allows for a handicap between predicted elapsed time (E.T. racing) of the two cars in each race over a standard distance, typically an 1/8-mile, 1,000-foot or a 1/4-mile. Johnson runs on an 1/8-mile track at Riverdale.
Rather than depending on pure machine power and speed – with winners more often than not determined by who has the most money to invest in beefing up their vehicles — bracket racing emphasizes consistency of performance by the driver and the car. Driving skills, including reaction times, shifting abilities, and the control the car – from how far off the ground the front wheels rise at the start to how strongly the tires grip the pavement on any given race day – play a much larger role, making this form of drag racing popular with casual weekend racers.
Dial-in
This format allows for a wide variety of vehicles racing against each other because each driver chooses a ‘dial-in’ time before the race, predicting the elapsed time estimated it will take the vehicle to cross the finish line. It doesn’t matter that the vehicles aren’t similar in size or number of wheels.
In the case of Johnson’s recent Riverdale win, “After doing 25-30 test runs, we averaged the run times and came up with a dial-in number of 7.77 seconds. That means the car runs consistently close to that number in the 1/8 mile and not over it,” he explained.
Dial-in numbers are displayed on the windshield so the starter can adjust the “Christmas tree” starting lights accordingly. The slower car is given the green light before the faster car by a margin of the difference between their two dial-in times, which evens the playing field. It’s then up to the driver to prove that his/her combination of dial-in, start reaction times and vehicle control are superior to his/her opponent’s.
Breaking out
It’s important to have the right dial-in number because if car crosses the finish line in less time than the one dialed-in beforehand – called a break out – it is disqualified and the other vehicle wins by default. If both cars break out, the one closer to the dial-in time wins.
Team sport
Johnson is quick to explain that bracket drag racing is definitely a team sport. “Bracket racing uses all kinds of math and science to come up with the right formula to set that dial-in number that everything depends on.”
He credits his fiancée, Kim Henness, with her invaluable contributions. “She handles all the stats, deals with tire pressure, does the tire and asphalt temperature calculations and more. All of that goes into adjusting that dial-in number on any given race day,” he said.
Johnson also credits longtime friend and accomplished drag racer, Loren Henness, for giving him invaluable advice, not only on racing technique, but also with the Nova’s build.
Off the track
A near lifelong South Beach resident – he and his family moved here when he was in the 4th grade — Johnson, now 45, has been a cranberry farmer for the past 20 years, working for Cordell Farms.
In his spare time, he’s also a professional card dealer, managing games at both the Pine Tree lounge in uptown Westport and the Local Bar &Grill in Grayland. Both businesses, by the way, came on board this year as sponsors for Johnson, and he proudly displays each establishment’s logo on the front quarter panels of his Nova.
Johnson also volunteers his time, equipment and expertise to stage fundraising poker tournaments for charities and individuals in need. A member of the OHS Class of 1985, a couple of years ago when his daughter Katie was a senior at Ocosta, Paul organized a fundraiser poker tournament to help his Senior Parents group provide a great safe-and-sober all-night party for their graduates. “I did that again last year and will continue to run those for Senior Parents that want them,” he said.
Lucky number
Jonson says his lucky number is definitely 7. “I really like that we worked that dial-in number out to 7.77 seconds for the ‘Race for the Cure,” he said, explaining that it’s a lifelong thing… He was born on 7-17-71.
Kim’s onboard with that number, as well. The couple has chosen 7-7-17 for their wedding day. That’s a Friday. What are the odds that they’ll that they will celebrate the happy event with a race on the weekend that immediately follows?
