★ 13TH ANNUAL SPORTSMAN SPECIAL ISSUE ★
race .” At the end of that year , he asked me if I would like to run a few Pro Stock races next year . I did the back half of Jimmy Ålund ’ s car and got my license [ after ] Charlotte . I remember sitting there in the water , and Jason sticking his head in and saying , “ Turn the fuel pump on , maybe pump it one and a half times , and fire it up .” That was my lesson . So , I do a burnout and make a good thousand-foot run , and it ’ s perfect . Greg came over and said , “ Where do I need to sign this thing ; you ’ re good .”
Looking back , a couple things happened . We didn ’ t know the EFI stuff was coming , and they needed cars for the class . There were other people dropping out and nobody to replace them with . KB Racing and Richard Freeman are a big part of what kept Pro Stock alive .
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What were those early years like in Pro Stock ?
BB : They have to get you familiar with the car , but that season we did OK , and the next season we were very fast . Then the EFI stuff comes in , and we were like five-hundredths faster than everybody . John Meanie [ from Big- Stuff 3 ] stayed down there and really made it work . I had a lot of freakin ’ runner-ups , though , before I won a Pro Stock race . I had been successful in about any car I got in , so it was like , “ Man , I can ’ t believe I can ’ t win these races .” I ’ d see other people making runs , and I ’ d look at my shift points and wonder what I was doing wrong . But come to find out , you can make the best run ever , but everything is about timing . Right place , right time .
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Randi Lyn , when Bo was going to step up to Pro Stock , what were your original thoughts ?
RL : I was nervous , just with the whole pro aspect of it . It ’ s a different experience to go pro racing , and I guess a big part of me thought when we went pro racing , the sportsman stuff would stop . That scared me . Not that I feel like I have to race all the time , but I do like it , and I like Bo racing with me . I think more of my fear when we started was , “ Oh , we ’ re just going to be pro racers now .” I didn ’ t want to just roll in on Sunday with perfect hair and be Bo ’ s Pro Stock wife . I wanted to be out there experiencing it . Now , I feel like we ’ ve figured out a good balance . The pro side is very serious , but we still keep the Sportsman side going . I ’ m happy .
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You two have really been instrumental in helping others . We see JBA [ Jim Butner Auto Group , the family car dealership ] on the side of race cars , and you ’ ve really given opportunities to a whole bunch of folks to learn different sides of racing and grow . Is this something that you do intentionally , or has it just sort of come about organically ?
BB : Randi is just like me , we believe that this is a great sport , and these are great people . I can ’ t think of anybody I really don ’ t get along with . My family has always been that way , and if something happens to a racer , Randi Lyn ’ s dad [ Randy Shipp ] is the first one to jump in . the racing world is a lot like that . Look at Jason Johnson from Johnson ’ s Horsepowered Garage ; he wants to help , and he ’ s not doing it for any business reason . He just loves this sport , and it ’ s a passion . Our passion it to help others . It could change tomorrow , but we are very blessed every day . We want to help people who want to help themselves . You can give to the wrong people , which we ’ ve done sometimes , but usually , people deserve the help .
RL : Bo has that helping spirit . It wouldn ’ t matter what it was , he will help his friends to the end . Both of us care about the sport , and we both feel like we ’ re all in this together , whether you ’ re a hot dog salesman , a t-shirt sales girl , or whatever it is that ywou do . We ’ re all part of making the fan experience great and helping the sport grow . He ’ s very giving and very helpful , and when there are good people in the sport , you don ’ t want to lose them – you want them around , and in the end , it helps everybody .
THE BUTNERS HAVE USUALLY RACED IN DIFFERENT CLASSES , BUT A PAIR OF SUPER COMP DRAGSTERS HAS RECENTLY GIVEN THEM THE OPPORTUNITY TO LINE UP NEXT TO EACH OTHER IN THE SAME CLASS .
106 | Drag Illustrated | DragIllustrated . com Issue 183