NHRA THUNDER VALLEY NATONAS: Johnson looking to add another notch to career with Bristol win (2024)

ALLEN GREGORYBRISTOL HERALD COURIER

Steve Johnson has competed on the Mission Foods NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle tour for 36 years and nearly 500 races.

Few stops on that never-ending road trip could top last year’s chapter at Bristol Dragway.

In the final round of the 22nd annual NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals, Johnson was pitted against No. 1 qualifier and points leader Gaige Herrera.

No question, Herrera was the favorite as he entered the championship round with a 14-0 record on the season.

During a Zoom conference last week, Johnson recounted what happened next.

“I didn’t know how hard we were going to get our heads kicked in,” Johnson said.

Powered by his radical Suzuki Hayabusa Gen 3 bike, Johnson recorded his 12th career win when Herrera left the starting line too soon by .011.

“When I looked up and saw the win light, I just couldn’t believe it,” Johnson said. “We were on a brand-new motorcycle and it was a challenge to put that thing together.”

Johnson defeated Joey Gladstone, heavy-hitting Eddie Krawiec and Hector Arana Jr. en route to the finals.

“I was just happy to advance to the second round,” Johnson said. “It takes an exceptional rider and an incredible motorcycle to win one of these national events. To get by Gaige in the finals, it was so fun.”

Herrera will again be the driver to beat this weekend at Bristol. He has won eight straight races for his Vance & Hines Suzuki team to tie the NHRA record and holds a 142-point edge in points over LE Tonglet in second place. Johnson is in the No. 9 position.

A native of Granada Hills, California, Johnson grew up cruising and zooming along famed Van Nuys Boulevard in Los Angeles with former NHRA Top Fuel regular Larry Dixon.

That’s the same road popularized in the 1973 motion picture classic American Graffiti.

Johnson said he feels a comfort zone in the green hills surrounding Thunder Valley and the goal is to create another lasting memory on his Steve Johnson Racing Suzuki in the Super Grip NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals.

“I’m more than grateful to come back to the race we won to get back to where we need to be,” Johnson said. “Gosh, darn it, it’s just fun to win any race.”

HIGHLANDS MOTORSPORTS: Ashton Higgins, 21, joined the Abingdon-based team for the May 25 CARS Pro Late Model series event at Tri-County Speedway in Hudson, North Carolina.

The Weaverville, North Carolina, driver qualified third and ran as high as second during the race before being sidelined by an engine issue.

Higgins competed in the 2023 Pro Late Model finale after Highlands owner Josh Reeves offered a backup car.

“Josh has always gone out of his way to help me. I just think it’s a winning combination,” Higgins said.

T.J. DeCaire, the regular driver for Highlands, finished second behind 17-year-old tour rookie Jake Bollman in the 16-car field at Tri-County.

The next Pro Late Model race is July 3 at Caraway Speedway.

LONESOME PINE MOTORSPORTS PARK: The motorsports community across the region lost a wise ambassador Monday with the death of Lynn Peters from Elk Garden, Virginia.

Peters, 75, helped many racers through his Pro Image Computer Graphics business. He was also a renaissance man who read at least one book a week and pursued interests ranging from photography and gardening to military history and economics.

An expert marksman, Peters trained in infantry combat tactics at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri and earned the rank of sergeant.

He won Late Model championships as a Late Model car owner with his Coyote Racing team and helped to field a NASCAR Cup car for Johnson City driver Connie Saylor at Talladega Superspeedway in 1986.

Above all, Peters was a genuine and compassionate friend to any person who expressed interest in short track racing.

KINGSPORT SPEEDWAY: Late Model title contenders Jacob York (Asheville) and Keith Helton (Kingsport) have been placed on probation following last week’s wild altercation in the pits.