Type the name “Kurt Johnson” into Google and you’ll get 3,780,000 hits, so if you think this story is about KJ the Pro Stock racer, think again. It’s about Kurt Johnson the NHRA guy – and a lot more. It’s about O’Reilly Raceway Park in Indianapolis and the future.
You don’t know the Kurt Johnson this story is about. You may have seen his face in the background at the finish line during an ESPN2 Gary Gerould interview with a winner. You may have caught a glimpse of him as he helped push a Funny Car out of the way so there’d be room for the coming Top Fuel cars. You might have even seen him scraping the track with the Safety Safari. Or you might have never seen him at all – but the management team at NHRA headquarters in Glendora has not only “seen” him, they’ve noted his professionalism and dedication to drag racing. They like what they’ve seen.
THE RACING SURFACE AT ORP HAS NEVER BEEN BETTER, THANKS TO KURT JOHNSON AND FRIENDS
Type the name “Kurt Johnson” into Google and you’ll get 3,780,000 hits, so if you think this story is about KJ the Pro Stock racer, think again. It’s about Kurt Johnson the NHRA guy – and a lot more. It’s about O’Reilly Raceway Park in Indianapolis and the future.
You don’t know the Kurt Johnson this story is about. You may have seen his face in the background at the finish line during an ESPN2 Gary Gerould interview with a winner. You may have caught a glimpse of him as he helped push a Funny Car out of the way so there’d be room for the coming Top Fuel cars. You might have even seen him scraping the track with the Safety Safari. Or you might have never seen him at all – but the management team at NHRA headquarters in Glendora has not only “seen” him, they’ve noted his professionalism and dedication to drag racing. They like what they’ve seen.
While we know this doesn’t mean a darn thing to you, in a way it actually does. Up until now one of Johnson’s responsibilities has been running the finish line during the final rounds of Full Throttle series races. It may sound like a snap job, but it’s anything but. Timing, and the ability to move things along quickly are the hallmark of the job. It means positioning every car and winning driver so that the TV people can do their jobs. Part of that job is making sure sponsor logos on the inflatables in the background show up on TV. It means keeping your cool in the face of inexperienced newspaper photographers who think they own the world. It means representing NHRA in a totally professional manner so that there’s no blow-back from that irate photographer who thinks it’s all right to walk in front of the TV cameras and then objects when Johnson gently directs him out of the shot. Johnson has succeeded in every respect. Journalists and sponsors working the finish line universally agree that things have never been more efficient than they’ve been under his direction.
On the Friday of the Brainerd race Johnson was informed that he’d been promoted and would immediately take over as Director of Operations for O’Reilly Raceway Park, home of the U.S. Nationals. Johnson’s responsibilities will include all aspects of the facility, from the scheduling of events for both the drag strip and circle track, to marketing, promotions and more. He’ll also interact with NASCAR in putting on the important Nationwide Series event on Saturday night of the Brickyard 400 Sprint Cup weekend.
Johnson guides Tony Schumacher’s car out of the way at the Gatornationals.
Although not spelled out in the press release announcing his promotion, Johnson’s most immediate and important task was the preparation of the ORP racing surface for next weekend’s NHRA Mac Tools U.S. Nationals. Since Cory McClenathan set both ends of the track in testing a few days ago it looks like Johnson did the job right. As he told Attitude Apparel’s CompetitionPlus.com in an exclusive interview, “If the weather’s right I have no doubt that it’ll be one of the best Indys ever.”
Johnson, a former Marine, has been working for NHRA since 2008. Prior to that he drove one of Don Schumacher Racing’s rigs, and yes, he’s also raced himself. He started on the ground floor at NHRA and worked his way up. “I’ve tried to help in any way I could,” he says of his days with NHRA. “I’ve tried to keep my nose to the ground no matter what. I guess they saw some of the capabilities I have through my work.”
Johnson is quick to credit the many people who helped him with the ORP track prep. “Believe me, I had a lot of it. Riley Miller from the Safety Safari and Mike Savage from Atlanta Dragway were great. They really helped me through all of it,” Johnsons says. “I don’t know how many hours we had in it. Basically, from Tuesday to Tuesday we were here from five AM until eleven PM. We stripped the track completely, and even shaved the rubber off the asphalt. We also washed the track numerous times. I believe the cleanliness of a track is critically important. You start at the base of it and work your way up.” Johnson believes “the track’s in better condition right now than it’s been in a long, long time.”
In addition to those previously mentioned Johnson cites members of Don Schumacher Racing, John Force Racing, Al-Anabi Racing and others as having provided valuable assistance and input. “We must have had about 20 guys out here, and no one was barking orders or making demands about what we were doing,” Johnson says. “Everyone worked together to make the track better. There were a lot of suggestions offered, and everyone paid attention. We sifted through everything and ended up with a pretty darn good racing surface when it was all over.
“I knew we were in for a major job when I got here. This is my home. I raced on this track myself, so I kinda knew what we had to do. It was daunting at first. On the drive back from Brainerd all that was going through my mind was, ‘Don’t screw this up!’”
Because he’s been a “Road Warrior” for the last couple of years Johnson acknowledges that when Indy ends and the tour moves on to Charlotte, leaving him behind, “it’s going to be a major adjustment for me. I’m used to being on the road all the time, and the people on the tour are my family. I’m used to being around ‘em, so it’s going to be a little bit of shock for me when they’re gone.” Johnson will, however, go back on the road to work the year’s final races at Las Vegas and Pomona, so his “divorce” from the “family” won’t be permanent.
With Andrew Hines at the finish line in Denver after he won.
When asked about his ultimate goals Johnson reveals his connection to NHRA. “I want to be wherever I can do the most good for NHRA,” he says. “I want to do whatever I can to help the sport grow, help the tour grow. I’m also way into the grass roots stuff, too. I want to be involved in getting more new people involved in our sport.” This, people, is the kind of forward-looking individual the sport needs more of.
Johnson doesn’t know what NHRA’s long term plans for him might be, but he knows that the experience he’ll pick up at ORP will help round out his knowledge of the sport, and what he might be able to contribute to it. “I did talk to (management) about the ORP thing when I heard it might be available,” he says, “but I didn’t push for it.
“To me (O’Reilly Raceway Park) is pretty sacred real estate, and I think it can be a lot more than it is right now. I think we can really grow a great grass roots program here. I think there are things we can do with the other NHRA tracks in the area. All of these tracks can move forward if we work together.”
That will come later. For right now Kurt Johnson may have already overseen the preparation of the Indy racing surface to the best it’s ever been. We’ll know that for sure, one way or the other, come late Monday afternoon September 6th.
