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(Bill W) September 9, 2009 – Wayne Johnson is back in California and ready for this weekend’s Gold Cup Race of Champions with the World of Outlaws. He will be driving the Harold Main #35A at the Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico. Last week, Wayne posted fourth place finishes at both the Knoxville Raceway and at the Bethany Speedway in Missouri. With only two-tenths of a second separating 1st from 14th, Wayne posted the 10th quick time of the night at Knoxville in the FattFro #14AJ. “That was a good thing,” he says of his time. “We hadn’t been all that quick there at Knoxville this year. We felt good about it. The car was o.k., but not perfect. We hadn’t been there all year, so we felt money ahead.” He then drove a steady heat race to finish third and transfer to the feature. “It was just kind of hard to pass early,” says the Knoxville, Iowa driver. “I don’t think many were doing much passing up toward the front.” An invert of eight saw Wayne lining up outside row one for the 25-lap main event. “I thought we had a really good shot going in,” he says. “We were running second there behind Bronson (Maeschen) and I was just waiting for an opportunity. I thought I was going to go by him before the caution came out.” Dusty Zomer was fast and eventually won the event, ahead of Brian Brown and Terry McCarl. Wayne settled into fourth at the checkers. “We’ve had a problem all year long blistering tires,” he says. “We were just hanging on there at the end to finish fourth with the tires. It was a good run for where we’ve been.” The Northwest Missouri Fair sprint race was held in Bethany, Missouri on Sunday. “There were thirteen cars and they ran three heats,” says Wayne. “You drew the heat race, and I started third, behind a 360 with (Don) Droud (Jr.) and Skip (Jackson) on the outside. It was heavy. I had to follow them to third in the heat.” The finish put him inside row five for a main event that was scheduled for 30 laps. “I passed quite a few cars there on the first lap,” he says of his start. “I really thought we had the fastest car there. I hit a big rut and spun out.” The comedy of errors continued and Wayne ended up fourth behind Droud, Bob Weuve and Rager Phillips. “I went to the back, and drove back up to fourth behind Skip,” he says. “That time, I ran off the racetrack in two. By the time I was back on, I was eighth. I passed a couple cars, and two cars spun out in front of me. I thought I was fourth, but they were given their spot back. We got to fourth and the race was over. I’m pretty sure we didn’t go 30 laps.” Wayne is looking forward to hitting Chico again. “I’ve heard some things about the new surface they’ve put on since we were here last,” he says. “I’m sure Rob Hart, who is helping me out this week, will get it figured out for us. I’m looking forward to it, and thankful to Harold and the rest of the Main family.”
Fisher Motors for Sale!
Wayne has a pair of Fisher motors for sale…
1. Charlie Fisher 410 – AllPro 286-4; 2/900 Engler; 16 nights from new; 6 nights from fresh; $30,000 2. Charlie Fisher 410 – AllPro 286-2; 2 13/16 Engler; new block last rebuild; Knoxville Nationals A Main 5 consecutive years; 5 nights since fresh; $22,500
Call 405 306-5426…
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 WayneJohnsonRacing@yahoo.com 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 Big Don in Garland, TX asks: The big 360 races are coming up in Texas and Arkansas. Do you have any plans to run them?
Wayne answers: We’d love to do it; we just don’t have a 360 motor. We need a sponsor or a ride to get that one done. We usually do well down at those races, so I’m really hoping so.
Wayne’s Tech Tips
I hear the term beadlock, but am not sure exactly how it works with the tires. I remember Donny Schatz putting them on the inside and that didn’t work too well for him a few years back at the Nationals. Is there an advantage to putting them on the inside, and is anyone still doing it?
Wayne: The beadlock is actually a ring that bolts to the wheel that pinches the lip of the tire so it locks to the wheel. We’ve gotten to where we’re spinning the tires so much, we have beadlocks on the inside and outside of the right rear. I think you’re talking about when Donny peeled the left rear tire off in the Nationals. Actually, all my beadlocks on the left rear are on the inside. Pretty much everyone does. The car slides to the right, so the tire is harder on the inside of the wheel going into the corners. Guys used to run them on the outside, mostly if they were bumping wheels, it was stouter. Having it on the inside actually keeps it on the wheel better.
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 sprntcar@iowatelecom.net, 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 sprntcar@iowatelecom.net 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 ButlerBuilt for all their help!
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