Pro Stock Motorcycle racer Steve Johnson has only had three weekends
off from competition and to the seasoned rider from Irondale, Alabama,
the layoff has been long enough.
“It seems like forever since we’ve raced,” said Johnson, who will
compete in this weekend’s NHRA Southern Nationals. “I know it’s really
only been about three weeks, and our team has been really busy, but
there’s nothing like real, on-the-track competition to keep your blood
flowing.
“We’re ready for this coming weekend, believe me. We’ve been testing
four times since we raced in Houston, and while we did find some things
that will improve our performances, I’m not going to go out on a limb
and make wild promises. I’d rather wait and see how quick and fast we
are in Atlanta, and take it from there.”
The goal this coming weekend is to make four good qualifying runs on
Friday and Saturday, and then win two or three rounds of racing on
Sunday. “Yeah, we’d like to win all four rounds, but we have to be
realistic,” Johnson said. “If we can make it to the semifinal round
we’ll know we’re headed in the right direction. That’s a realistic
goal for us right now. It’s extremely tough competing against the
Buells and Harley-Davidsons because they have a significant cubic inch
advantage over the Suzukis. We’re not discouraged by that, though. It
just makes us work that much harder.”