HERE IS not a day in the life of Alex Owens in which he has not known drag racing . Born in 1995 to Wade and Joyce , Owens was at the local track that same year as soon as it opened for the season . Now , 29 years later , he stands trackside and cruises the pits at every NHRA national event , capturing compelling images and preserving history as a photographer and director of business relations for legendary photo house Auto Imagery .

“ My dad had a ‘ 69 Camaro and eventually sold to Jeff Dona , and there are photos of me sitting in it when I was maybe one or younger ,” says Owens . “ He slowed down a little on the racing thing to start raising me . I remember being four or five years old and going to Sikeston Drag Strip every other weekend with my grandpa ; he had an old Wise Speed Shop Super Stock car that he bracket raced in Super Pro . There was a guy that parked next to us , Ken Parris , and he ’ d let me check his tires . I thought that was the coolest thing ever , and I didn ’ t even know at the time he was driving an ex-Rickie Smith Pro Stock car and ran the same class as my grandpa .”

While Owens and his dad switched gears from racing to car shows , the young man never lost his desire to be at the racetrack .

“ I begged him to build the Stocker ,” Owens recalls , referencing the 1966 Chevelle that would eventually come to life as car No . 3913 — the ages of father and son when it was complete . “ It was a real barn find , a basket case . The first thing we bought for it was the headers , and the exhaust for the car cost more than the car itself . We built it together in our shop in one season , start to finish , and we were able to make an open at Kansas City International Raceway at the end of the year .”

The appreciation that Owens has for drag racing was influenced beyond his family . In the early 2000s , he rode along in the truck with family friend Randy Eakins , who ran the World Street Challenge and NMRA events , to test his Pro 5.0 Mustang

at racetracks in Memphis and St . Louis . Another important person early on was Danny Byrd , who not only helped the Owens family a great deal when they started racing Stock Eliminator with their Chevelle in 2007 , but also coined the nickname “ Alkey Alex ,” which Owens still proudly answers to today .

It really ramped up for Owens when he was appointed crew chief and picture guy for his dad . Though he was quite young , he put together sponsorship proposals and snagged a deal with Redhorse Performance , a fitting company based in Illinois .

His life took a turn toward fate when , at a 2012 division race in Indianapolis , he was taking photos of his dad with a small point-and-shoot camera . Auto Imagery co-founder Richard Shute offered a few pointers , then observed how Owens would switch positions based on what he predicted the cars would do .

“ Shute said , ‘ You understand class racing ?’ and

I told him that I did . He said , ‘ I need you to shoot the JEGS Allstars with me ,’” remembers Owens , who was 16 at the time . “ I showed him my camera and said , ‘ But this is all I have .’ He said all I needed was to show up , and he ’ d make sure I had everything . The division director at the time , Jay Hullinger , told him I could shoot it if my dad signed a release form , so that ’ s what we did .”

Although he didn ’ t consider photography as a profession at the time and claims that he “ had no idea ” what he was doing , Owens continued to shoot photos beyond the Allstars , mainly of his dad and racing friends .

With the support of then-Division 3 starter Bill “ Redman ” Floyd , announcer Leo Taugher , and Randy Simpson , Owens shot photos and contributed to the AtTheDragStrip . com forum and the Good Time Gang banquet presentation . Racer Jason McCormack noticed , and in 2014 he offered a Canon Rebel DSLR as a step up . A year later , Owens made another move and purchased his first professional camera equipment , including a Nikon D3 , from photographer Gary Nastase and Shute . In 2022 , he was asked by Shute to join his team of photographers in a full-time position .

“ What I find most rewarding is when a racer ’ s face lights up when you present them with a piece of work ,” says Owens . “ If they ’ re excited about what they see , then I ’ ve done my job capturing the moment .”

Owens embraces his role . He is the at-track face for Auto Imagery , from pro to sportsman , and is eager to focus on a plan of attack for each individual client .

“ I had a lot of good racers in my corner saying I could pursue this if I wanted to ,” says Owens . “ Looking back , those photos were subpar , at best — but their encouragement gave me the confidence to hone my craft . Now , I travel all across the U . S . and meet up with some of my heroes in the drag racing world , and I get to be a small part of their NHRA experience , whether or not they make it to the winner ’ s circle . “ Being on the Drag IllustrateD 30 Under 30 list ranks right up there with a magazine cover shot to me . But I ’ m probably most proud that I remain humble and treat everyone with respect . It ’ s easy to get caught up and make it all about me , ‘ I do this , I do that ,’ but really , it ’ s the whole Auto Imagery team that I ’ m proud of . We capture memories of a lifetime for our racing family .”

– KELLY WADE DI

154 | Drag Illustrated | DragIllustrated . com Issue 191