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Wednesdays with Wayne – Win at Lakeside!
(Bill W) July 9, 2008 – Wayne Johnson ended his win draught with the American Sprint Cars on Tour as he handled the competition handily last Friday night at the Lakeside Speedway near Kansas City, Kansas. The win was his first with ASCoT in 2008, but his sixth overall this season. Now Wayne and crew chief Jeremy Rankin will concentrate on getting ready for ASCS Speedweek which starts this Friday night in Texarkana.
The Lakeside fortunes started with a good draw from Wayne's oldest daughter. "My daughter Hunter was in town, and she was a good luck charm," he explains. "She drew a twelve, which was the lowest number we've had all year." The result was a front row starting spot and a heat race win. A pill draw of four for the feature set him up outside row two.
The big half-mile tracks are good to Wayne, and Friday was no exception. He stormed past pole-sitter Natalie Sather on the opening circuit and never looked back. "The car was beautiful," he says. "This was our backup Fisher (motor), but it was running nice. We were able to get around Natalie there on lap one, and just set sail. The racetrack was beautiful. It was a little slick, but a little sticky too. It was one of the best tracks we've seen all year long."
Wayne has always had a fondness for Lakeside. "It's one of those places that I really enjoy," he says. "We've run some non-wing stuff there too with some success. The big half-mile just fits my style well."
Saturday night at Lake Ozark Speedway near Eldon, Missouri, Wayne started sixth in the main event and ran third. "It was slick to the curb, which lent to single-file racing a bit," he explains about the feature. "On the start, Jack Dover got a bit reckless and that slowed a bunch of guys up. Later, Jack and I had a heck of a race for third, and we were able to get by. It was a bit hard to pass. Gary Taylor ran second and came from twelfth. He was able to get by us there on the first lap. He screwed up on the cushion on the last corner and we about got him, but not quite."
Another third place finish occurred a week ago Saturday at the Dakota Fair Speedway in Huron, South Dakota. "We were good at Huron," says Wayne. "We were able to win the heat from the front row. We started sixth and run third come feature time. We were able to run (leaders) Jason (Johnson) and Garry Lee (Maier) down…we kind of ran out of laps. It was slick. We're running the backup motor now, so we're just down on power a bit from the lead guys."
ASCS Speedweek looks like this. On Friday, it kicks off at 67 Speedway in Texarkana, Arkansas before heading for the I-30 Speedway near Little Rock on Saturday. Monday, they'll hit Creek County Speedway near Sapulpa, Oklahoma, and next Thursday, Friday and Saturday, they'll be at the Devil's Bowl Speedway in Mesquite, Texas, the State Fair Speedway in Oklahoma City, and Lawton Speedway in Lawton, Oklahoma. Following all of that, Wayne and the team will head back home to Knoxville to prepare for the big shows in August.
Bill W Takes a Break
Family vacation calls the next two weeks, but all of those on the mailing list will be getting updates on Wayne's goings on!
T-shirts and Hats
Separate shirts for the H&H #94 and FattFro #14AJ are now available at the trailer. Keep an eye on www.RacingThreads.com in the near future or visit the trailer to get your Wayne Johnson merchandise.
Wayne's Website
To learn more about Wayne and the team, log on to www.WayneJohnsonRacing.com!
Wayne's World
Archie from Memphis, TN asks: Wayne, when speedweek is winding down does it get more tough physically or mentally? How do you stay sharp?
Wayne answers: I think it's tougher physically, because it is just (crew chief) Jeremy (Rankin) and I. There's a lot of work and travel involved. The heat is usually ridiculous down there this time of year, so that takes a toll on you physically. To stay focused is just a matter of getting enough sleep and staying cool. The timeframe really kicks you so you need to stay cool and find the shade when you can. Jeremy and I can take turns driving and sleeping, so that helps.
Got a question for Wayne? Send it to us at [email protected], and we may answer it in this section! Put "? for Wayne" in your subject line. He'll try to keep it clean if you do!
Wayne's Fast Facts
Wayne is tied for third on the all-time ASCS Speedweek feature starts list with Terry Gray at 58. Only Gary Wright (87) and Tim Crawley (75) have started more. He is tied for fourth with 38 top ten finishes, and is fourth in top five finishes (27). He has four Speedweek wins to his credit, but is still looking for his first Speedweek title!
"Wednesday's with Wayne"
"Wednesday's With Wayne" is an up close look at the past, present and future of colorful and talented sprint car driver Wayne Johnson. You'll never know what to expect next with Wayne, so don't miss us on Wednesdays!
To receive "Wednesday's with Wayne", send an e-mail to [email protected] with "Wayne" in the subject line.
Wayne would like to thank H&H Enterprises, Pearson Farms, R&A Farms, FattFro, Stone Mountain Access, Cerma Advanced Lubrication Technology (www.cermastore.com), www.RacingThreads.com, CnB Mushroom Farms, Maxim Chassis, ARP Wings, Hoosier Tire, Simpson, Weld and ButlerBuiltfor all their help!
Wayne and Family in Victory Lane at Lakeside (ASCS)
Bill W MediaMonroe, IA USA[email protected]
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