I just posted this after missing your post. Man I love hearing this.
Me too. The highlight of my year used to be the Pro Stock Invitational at Woodburn drag strip. They did it between Sonoma and Seattle. It was a great show.
Plus, in the first day the guys were relaxed (as relaxed as they can be) while doing testing. And they would spend way more time with you then they could do the next day for the race or at the nationals.
I got to me Greg Anderson (super smart guy) WJ several times (who is a close friend to a friend of mine) and seeing the Johnson family every year was a real treat.
I met Roy and Allen in 1996 at Seattle. They were qualifying 14-16 regularly and sometimes not making the show.
A group of us headed over to their trailer and Roy was leaking down the engine. So I just asked him what was the hold up from moving up the ladder. To my surprise he invited me inside the tape and leaked all 4 cylinders while I watched. 3 and 5 were leaking 15% plus. I said head gasket? He said no, this head bolt is about 1/8th inch off. If I could move that head bolt I could clean that up.
Then he said what you see on the gauge isn’t half as bad as it really is. He said the blowby meter on the dyno shows we are down at least 25 HP just with that. And then he said it makes the carbs very unhappy. I didn’t understand that then, but I damn well do now.
I actually went there to buy a T shirt because I couldn’t find one anywhere. He explained they had not worked out a marketing plan with NHRA so they couldn’t sell anything.
Allen came down from the lounge in the trailer (he heard us talking), invited me in, gave me a whole bag of swag for free and spent about 20 minutes just talking with me about the plans for the future etc. I just couldn’t show anyone any of the stuff he gave me. It would have pissed off the poobahs of NHRA.
It wasn’t long after that Woodburn started the PSI. And every year I bought stuff, visited with both Johnson’s, got the straight poop from them.
You won’t find a better family in Racing of any form.
