WJ's NHRA Wrap Sheet - National Trail Raceway Edition

(Please note:  The following has been provided as a supplement to Warren
Johnson's pre-race release for this weekend's NHRA event Columbus, and
looks back at some of his memorable moments of his career at National
Trail Raceway.  We do have pictures of his 1975 Camaro, 1982 Calais and
2001 Grand Am as mentioned in this article available upon request.
Thank you.)

 

Contact:

 
Jon Knapp

 
TMG Sports Marketing, Inc.

 
Ph: (704) 662-3121

 
jgknapp@tmgsports.net  

 

WJ's Wrap Sheet - 

National Trail Raceway Edition

 

1.  WJ's First Columbus Race - 1975

Race Car:  1975 Chevrolet Camaro

Performance:  WJ Qualified Thirteenth, 9.139 seconds

                          Defeated Scott Shafiroff and Wayne Gapp

                          Lost to Bill Jenkins

 

In Warren's Words:

 

"It was an interesting time for Pro Stock, simply because the fields
were so varied.   The regulations were based on pounds per cubic inch,
and the NHRA had to tear their hair out trying to keep the playing field
as level as possible.  They would make adjustments to the weight factors
almost on a weekly basis.  

 

"We were running a big-block Camaro, which wasn't the favorite
combination of the time, but it was all I had in my arsenal, so I had to
make it work as best as I could.  Most people were using small blocks,
so I was one of the rare ones with the big block, but we had it running
well that weekend."

 

Notes of the time:

*      This was Warren's first NHRA national event of the 1975 season,
and second race in his NHRA Pro Stock career.

*      This marked the 11th edition of the annual NHRA race at National
Trail Raceway, which was at the time was known as the Springnationals.

*      Warren scored the first two elimination round wins of his career
at this race, defeating Scott Shafiroff and Wayne Gapp in the opening
two rounds.

*      WJ's wins came in impressive fashion, as both came on holeshots.
In the first round, WJ's 9.18-second pass bested No. 5 qualifier
Shafiroff's 9.11, 147.29 mph run, while his 9.13-second, 149.50 mph run
in the second round trailered No. 1 qualifier Wayne Gapp, despite Gapp's
quicker 9.10-second effort.

*      Gapp was the No. 1 qualifier with an 8.94-second time, while Roy
Hill anchored the field with a 9.15-second run

*      WJ's Camaro featured a big-block "rat" motor, which was a 427
cubic inch engine destroked to 390 c.i.

*      Bill "Grumpy" Jenkins, who edged WJ in the semis, went on to win
the race, defeating Roy Hill in the final.  It was the 11th win of
Jenkins' Pro Stock career, which at the time was the most ever by a
single driver in the still nascent category.

*      The varied Pro Stock field consisted of Chevrolet Vegas and
Camaros, Ford Mustangs, Mavericks and Mustang IIs, Dodge Darts, a
Plymouth Duster and an AMC Hornet.

*      This was the first NHRA event with sponsorship from Winston,
marking the beginning of a 27-year relationship between the sanctioning
body and the title sponsor.

*      Other winners that day included Marvin Graham over Shirley
Muldowney in the Top Fuel final, marking the first appearance of a woman
in an NHRA professional final round, and current team owner Don "The
Snake" Prudhomme, who drove his U.S. Army Chevy Monza to the win over
Raymond Beadle in the Blue Max Mustang II in the Funny Car final.

 

2.  WJ's First Columbus Final - 1976

Race Car:  1975 Chevrolet Camaro

Performance:  WJ Qualified Second, 8.84 seconds, 155.17 mph

                          Defeated Wayne Gapp, Larry Lombardo and Bob
Glidden

                          Lost to Wally Booth

 

In Warren's Words:

 

"I was still racing my Camaro, which I had nicknamed 'The Incredible
Hulk'.  Funnily enough, I don't remember anything specific about our
performance that weekend.  However, any time you can reach the final
round, it's a good weekend, so I guess we weren't doing too bad."

 

Notes of the time:

*      This was the second career final round appearance for WJ in nine
career starts, and came on the heels of his first championship round
showing at the previous race the 1975 Gatornationals in Gainesville, FL.

*      Although WJ ran his quickest elapsed time of the weekend in the
final at 8.81 seconds, it was not enough to hold off Booth, who posted
low elapsed time of the event in the final at 8.74 seconds.

*      Warren did set Top Speed of the Event in the final with his
156.25 mph top speed.

*      Booth was the No. 1 qualifier at 8.82 seconds, with Rich Simone
rounding out the sixteen-car field with his 9.25-second clocking.

*      Once again, the Pro Stock field consisted of a mixture of cars,
with Chevrolet Camaros, Monzas and Vegas, Ford Mustangs, Pintos and
Mustang IIs, a Plymouth Duster, a Dodge Colt and Booth's AMC Hornet.

*      Other winners included Shirley Muldowney in Top Fuel, who
defeated Bob Edwards in the final and Don Prudhomme over Tom McEwen in
the Funny Car final, in one of the classic "Snake vs. Mongoose"
confrontations.

 

3. WJ's First NHRA Columbus Win - 1985

Race Car:  1985 Olds Calais

Performance:  WJ Qualified Third, 7.644 seconds, 181.52 mph

                          Defeated Sam Giannino, Gordie Rivera, Butch
Leal and Bruce Allen

 

In Warren's Words:

 

"I raced some very good drivers that weekend, but compared to the
all-star line-up I had faced in my first Columbus final, I had a
somewhat easier road to hoe.  The Calais I raced that year was my first
small car, following the Cutlasses, the "Flying Boxcars, which were
built with a miter saw and a square.

 

"The Calais was smaller, albeit not that aerodynamic because of the
notchback rear window.  However, it presented a smaller frontal area,
which made it a competitive package.  I came up with the mini shifter
levers because the standard size wouldn't work with the new Funny Car
roll cages we were using.  We also used the pneumatic push button system
because it allowed me to do something to the Lenco transmissions that
the competition didn't pick up on for several years."

 

Notes of the time:

*      This was the 12th NHRA national event win of WJ's career (in 17
final round appearances), third of 1985, and came in his 72nd career
start.

*      Ironically, Warren won in the first two rounds despite fighting a
miss in his engine, which forced him to change batteries, fuel
regulators and ignition as part of his between-rounds maintenance.

*      WJ's Calais was equipped with a new set of Hurst "mini-lever"
shifter levers, replacing the air-shifter buttons normally seen on cars
of the time, as the introduction of the Funny Car-style roll cages to
the Pro Stock category (another WJ innovation) prevented them from using
the normal sized levers.

*      WJ defeated then-rookie Bruce Allen in the final, who was in one
of his early Pro Stock races with the Reher-Morrison team, replacing the
legendary Lee Shepherd, who was unfortunately killed in a testing
accident earlier in the season.

*      Bob Glidden was the No. 1 qualifier with a 7.568-second elapsed
time, with Jerry Eckman capturing the sixteenth and final qualifying
position with a 7.790-second clocking.

*      Two other current Pro Stock competitors who attempted to make the
field were Rickie Smith and Mark Pawuk.

*      The Pro Stock field was made up of Old Calais, Pontiac Trans Ams
and Firebirds, Chevrolet Camaros and Ford Thunderbirds.

*      Winners in other categories that weekend included Bill Mullins,
who defeated Gary Beck in the Top Fuel final, and Kenny Bernstein, who
edged current Texas Motorplex owner Billy Meyer in the Funny Car final.

 

 

4. WJ's Most Recent Columbus Win - 2001

Race Car:  2001 GM Goodwrench Service Plus Pontiac Grand Am

Performance:  WJ Qualified Fourth, 6.959 seconds, 199.52 mph

                          Defeated Kurt Johnson, Brad Jeter, Jeg
Coughlin and Mark Osborne

 

In Warren's Words:

"That '01 race was a pretty good one.  It was the first year of the
Grand Am, and I believe I was still racing the Don Ness-built car in
Columbus.  Later on in the year, I switched to the Haas car when we got
to the really hot tracks, which proved to be an advantage.  Overall, the
selection of vehicles played a major role in our winning the
championship that year."

 

Notes of the time:

*      This was the 84th win of WJ's career, as he closed in on Bob
Glidden's record of 85 career wins.

*      This was the third of six national event wins for WJ in 2001 en
route to his sixth NHRA Pro Stock championship.

*      Warren set both the low elapsed time of the event in the first
round with his 6.907-second pass.

*      WJ also captured top speed of the meet with his 199.52 mph run in
qualifying.

*      George Marnell was the No. 1 qualifier with a 6.935-second
elapsed time, while Mike Edwards anchored the field with a 6.983-second
run.  

*      Ironically, WJ's first round opponent on this Father's Day race
was his son, Kurt.

*      The field consisted of Pontiac Grand Ams and Firebirds, Chevrolet
Cavaliers and Camaros, Oldsmobile Cutlasses and Dodge R/T's.

*      Other winners included John Force in Funny Car, who edged Del
Worsham in the final, Larry Dixon over rookie Darrell Russell in the Top
Fuel final, Angelle Savoie in Pro Stock Bike and Bob Panella in Pro
Stock Truck.

 

3. WJ's National Trail Raceway in a Nutshell - 

 

"The old race date prior to this year was not a good choice
weather-wise, as it was always hot and usually rainy.  Historically, it
has also not been the most well-groomed facility on the circuit.
However, they have improved the facility a bit recently to make it
somewhat acceptable for a national event.   For example, they have paved
the pit area so that we no longer have to bring our lawn mowers to clear
our spot. 

 

"They also resurfaced the pit area a few years ago, so it is a lot
smoother.  However, you have to bear in mind that it has to endure the
ravages of winter weather, so we never really know what we're going to
have until we get there." 

 

WJ's National Trail Raceway NHRA Box Score

 

Races

Starts

Wins

Finals

#1

Avg. Qual.

W

L

Pct.

29

29

4

9

8

2.9

46

24

.657

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