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Wednesdays with Wayne – 14AJ Returns!
(Bill W) June 24, 2009 – A trip to the Pacific Northwest didn't go totally as planned for sprint car driver Wayne Johnson. The prime objective was winning the $25,000 Skagit Dirt Cup, but it was a struggle just to qualify for the finale. This week, he'll be back in the Midwest piloting the FattFro #14AJ at both Osborn, Missouri and Knoxville with the World of Outlaws.
After being rained out at the Southern Oregon Speedway with the Golden State Challenge series on Saturday, June 13, Wayne and the Harold Main #35A team stuck around (literally) awhile. "Things didn't start out the best, and things continued that way all weekend," says Wayne. "We were stuck in the pits at Medford for about three hours, and had to get towed out by a dozer."
It was on to the Cottage Grove Speedway in Cottage Grove, Oregon on Monday, June 15. It looked like things would go well after turning the tenth quick time of the night and winning the heat race. A seventh place dash finish set Wayne up inside row four for the main event. "We were up to sixth in the feature, and running pretty well," he says. "At that point, we had the right rear go flat (finishing 16th). We missed on the chassis a little bit, but we were decent at Cottage Grove."
The racing jewel of the Pacific Northwest is the Jim Raper Memorial Dirt Cup at Skagit Speedway in Washington. Troubles plagued the team, and they didn't make the show on the first preliminary night (Thursday). "We really had motor issues all weekend at Skagit," says Wayne. "We were smoking, and things wouldn't run at other times. In the first heat on Thursday night, (Tim) Kaeding got together with Danielle Huson, and I had nowhere to go. Our nose wing was knocked off in that deal. We ran from the back of the B, and missed the transfer by a couple spots."
Friday, after scoring the 25th quick time of the night, Wayne finished fifth in the heat, and fell short again in the B after challenging for a transfer. "The heat race didn't go much better on Friday than it did on Thursday," he says. "We barely missed the transfer spot in the B, unfortunately. We had the guy, but just screwed up there late."
Wayne's best run at Skagit came on the final night. With points good enough to start tenth in the B, he surged up to finish third. Overheating problems caused a DNF in the main event. "Things were going good in the B," he says. "The car started to feel good. The motor was hot though, and it overheated in the feature again, and we pulled it in. We worked hard all weekend, and I'd like to thank Harold and the team for the opportunity and the time they put in."
Wayne is ready to roll this weekend in the FattFro #14AJ at the US36 Raceway near Osborn, Missouri on Friday, and at the Knoxville Raceway, just a couple miles from home on Saturday. The WoO will be visiting. "I'm excited to get after it again this weekend," he says. "We picked up our motors from Charlie Fisher in Ohio this week, and we'll be ready to go."
Wayne Johnson Apparel in Stock!
2009 Wayne Johnson apparel for both men and women is now in stock! T-shirts, long sleeve shirts, sweatshirts, tank tops and hats are all in! To order, e-mail Wayne at [email protected] or stop by the trailer at the track.
Wayne's Website
To learn more about Wayne and the team, log on to www.WayneJohnsonRacing.com!
Wayne's World
Bob Wilson asks: Wayne, I heard that you take your seat with you when you fly to the West Coast. Explain how that works out?
Wayne answers: You just check it like any other bag. It looks a little funny to the people working there in the terminal though. They put a tag on it, and you watch it go up the belt into the plane. You hope they don't lose your luggage along the way. Now, I have a seat that stays in California, so I don't have to ship it every time.
Wayne's Tech Tips
I know that you have gone between driving a 410 and a 360 quite a bit in the last few years and I've always wondered what are some of the differences in weekly maintenance and time frame of refreshening between the two styles of motors?
Wayne: Your weekly maintenance stays the same. You leak them down, check the valve springs and clean the valves and the nozzles. The time frame for refreshening is about ten races for a 410, and about 20 for a 360. It all depends on how it is wearing, and all that.
Got a question for Wayne? Each week, Wayne will answer your questions about "Tech Tips", or anything that's on your mind. If you ever wondered what a part on a sprint car is all about, send an e-mail 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!
"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 FattFro, Stone Mountain Access, Bral Restoration, Deberg Concrete, TNT Custom Golf Carts, www.RacingThreads.com, CnB Mushroom Farms, Maxim Chassis, ARP Wings, Hoosier Tire, Simpson, Weld and ButlerBuiltfor all their help!
Wayne in action at Skagit last weekend (Brian Simonseth/H2H Photo)
Bill W MediaMonroe, IA USA[email protected]
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