Jason Line is a man of many talents. Friday during the Sox & Martin Hemi Challenge, he showcased them all in picking up his first win in the Mopar specialty event.
Line ran an 8.280 elapsed time, at 160.92 miles per hour, stopping multi-time event champion Jimmy Daniels (8,334, in the final round. When Line exited the Fish Stick ’68 Barracuda, it appeared he’d been racing inspired.
When he spoke, it became evident.
“This one ranks right up there, especially from a timing standpoint,” Line said. “Losing Ken [Black]a couple of days ago was, he suffered a lot the last 16 years, but he was a great man. He did a lot for us. And to be able to win it right now, I feel like the winner was determined before we got here, so just very cool. For sure.”
Line stopped David Bogner, Charlie Westcott and Anthony Rhodes to reach the final. For his part, Daniels secured victories over Rich Johnson, Eric Bell and defending event champion Steve Comella.
It’s one thing for Line to win, but to win in a neat and original car such as the Super Stock/A Hemi cars, makes winning even more gratifying.
“They’re unique and they’re super hard to build,” Line said. “It’s a really tough car. It really is. And the Charlie Westcott and the Bartons, all those people that have done all this for years, I mean, listen, they’re chock-full of talent. It’s not easy to do. It takes a lot of effort for sure.”
But when you’re racing inspired as Line was, it looks effortless.
