DIALED IN
the 4.70 class.
Tony Brown’s PTRA series was also on hand
and provided many classes of competition including 5.30 index, which saw Chris Warren taking
the win over Bubba McMasters. In 6.00 index,
Don Stevens got past Roger Lester. C.J. Hodges
took the win over Rusty Crabtree in 7.00 index,
while Jeremy McSwaim won over Mike Hutchens
in the finals of Pro Tree Eliminator.
Amazingly, Ben Gibson entered two cars in Jr.
Dragster and had the daunting task of meeting
himself in the finals. It was an incredible outing
for the young driver. In Farmington’s long tree
bracket race, Keith Floyd showed everyone he
could still drive by coming out of retirement and
wheeling his son’s dragster to the victory over
Jeremy McSwaim. Charlie Watson also scored
his first Footbrake win over Tim Sidden. Virginia
Bohanon’s Memorial Weekend winning streak
continues in the Street class, as she captured the
win yet again, this time getting past Bob Goss to
defend her Stick Shift Nationals title two years
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in a row.
STICK SHIFT NATIONALS
Ronnie Flynt. Both drivers cut amazing reaction
times and each ran close to their dial-in with Flynt
barely edging out Regenthal in the thrilling finals.
It was an amazing event from start to finish,
with a total of 11 exciting classes competing in
this epic event that’s held on a single Saturday.
“As with anything this successful it requires a
lot of hard work by a lot of great people, including
the entire Farmington staff, along with dedicated
efforts from people like, Leigh Ann Flynt, and of
course, Ken and Lisa Regnethal,” comments longtime race promoter and announcer, Mark Joyce.
Additional winners from the 6th annual Stick
Shift Nationals include: Chad McCreary who
got past Scottie Keller in the Stick Shift second
chance race. Ronnie Courtney picked up the Dash
For Cash prize money, while Kevin Carpenter
edged out Nick Cline in the 4.70 class. James
Bunton dazzled fans with his unforgettable 500foot, sideways burnouts, which easily captured
the MJ Printing-sponsored Burnout Award for
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Mature Cruiser
D
enver, North Carolina’s
Virginia Bohanon has spent
many years at the drag strip,
although this mother of two
adult children didn’t even start competing until just a few seasons ago. Instead of “taking a tree” herself, she was
completely content being the longtime
crew chief for her husband of 31 years,
Bo Bohanon, who is a well-known fixture
around the local southeast tracks, racing
his familiar Chevy S-10 truck.
Upon Bo’s constant urging, however,
Virginia reluctantly entered her 1977
Chevy Monte Carlo in a race at Mooresville Dragway, while competing in Tony
Brown’s Pro Tree Racers Association
(PTRA) event. Virginia was pretty much
hooked from the very beginning. She also
appeared to be instantly talented at the
sport she’s been well-acquainted with for
so many years, and actually clinched her
first victory in only a couple of outings.
“I won my first race (ironically against another
Monte Carlo) on Saint Patrick’s Day 2012, so I figured my car must be my green ‘good luck’ charm,”
she laughs. After that, she figured it wouldn’t hurt
to choose “777” as her car number, which she
hoped would continue bringing good luck her
way each time she visits the drag strip.
Bohanon sure seems to be a perfect match with
the Monte Carlo, and also points out the fact that
she owned one identical in model year when she
was a teenager, right after she got her driver’s
license. With all thing considered, it’s easy to feel
a connection to her teenage years each time she
creeps into the staging beams, ready for the next
round of eliminations. And while she thoroughly
enjoys the thrill of competition, she also gets a
kick out of simply commuting this classic Monte
Carlo from her home in North Carolina to various
race tracks on warm, summer days.
“The car is a 95% stock classic, and is powered
by a 383 Stroker with a 700R tra nny in a 4,220
pound cruiser,” she explains. “It’s a driver.”
Virginia’s breakout season happened in 2015
when she won four races, along with three runnerups and finished second in points at Farmington.
Amazingly, she won the MJ Palooza/Stick Shift
Nationals event two years in a row. She swore
she was right in the middle of experiencing a
losing streak at Farmington when she rallied
and won her second consecutive Memorial Day
Weekend event at “The Farm” on Saturday, May
28th, 2016. In addition to racing at Farmington,
Virginia has also traveled to South Carolina’s
Union County Dragway and is currently committed to the points system at Wilkesboro Dragway
for the 2016 season.
“I feel like I’ve come a long way from being a
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pit crew chief with Bo,” she says with a smile.
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I l l u s t r a t e d | DragIllustrated.com
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PHOTOS: VAN ABERNETHY
By Van Abernethy