Photos by Robert Richard, Gary Rowe
Samuel Peterson arrived at Bradenton Motorsports Park expecting to help service a Pro Modified car, not drive one. But when team owner Joel Wensley Jr. suffered a sudden back injury en route to Florida, Peterson — the third generation of a family deeply woven into Pro Modified history — was unexpectedly called to the starting line.
Peterson, 24, had never driven anything faster than a 10.5 car before this week. His response was a full-power pass of 3.610 seconds at 209.95 mph, completing his licensing run and earning entry into the Outlaw Snowbird Nationals, the opening round of the Drag Illustrated Winter Series presented by J&A Services. “We barely made it to the track,” Peterson said. “His back got worse, so they threw me in there.”
The phrase “threw me in there,” he said, was no exaggeration. “It was pretty much like getting tossed in the deep end,” Peterson said. “Definitely overwhelming, but I’m feeling comfortable.” He had tested Wensley’s 10.5 car previously, but nothing prepared him for the sensory overload that came with his first Pro Mod launch.
“First time I let go of that button, everything got real blurry,” he said. The run began chaotically, but he regained clarity near 150 feet. “It cleared up and I could really see where I was at, and they told me if I felt comfortable to take it all the way.” He did — and learned quickly that parachutes hit as hard as the acceleration. “I was not ready for those.”
Even with limited seat time, Peterson said he feels capable of handling the weekend. “Treading lightly here, keeping the equipment shiny and right side up,” he said. His biggest challenge so far has been avoiding instinctive corrections. “Twice I pedaled it without thinking,” he said. “Then I’m like, ‘What are you doing, stupid? They told you not to do that.’”
What he lacks in Pro Mod experience, Peterson makes up for in lineage. He is the son of US 131 Motorsports Park General Manager Jason Peterson and grandson of two men who helped shape Snowbird history. His paternal grandfather, Chuck Peterson, won Pro Modified at the 1994 Snowbirds — a defining victory during the era when Pro Mod was exploding across the IHRA landscape.
On his mother’s side, his grandfather Steve Earwood promoted the Snowbird Nationals from 1975–1984, strengthening the event during a pivotal stretch of its development. His great-uncle Terry Earwood reached the Super Stock final round at the inaugural Snowbirds in 1972 and again in 1973. Peterson is now continuing a family tradition more than 50 years in the making.
Asked how he progressed to this moment, Peterson credited immersion, not formal training. “Being around tuners and drivers all summer long for years really gives a good insight to everything,” he said. He drove junior dragsters, radial cars, a front-engine dragster, and finally a 10.5 car before this unexpected leap.
The third-generation racer now enters a legendary event with a storyline few rookies carry — one anchored in family history, opportunity, and timing. Whether Peterson can extend his family’s Snowbird success will unfold over the next several days at Bradenton Motorsports Park.
