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Jordan and Larry Ensslin talk winning in PDRA Extreme Pro Stock on a budget By Nate Van Wagnen
Mountain Motor Pro Stock young gun Jordan Ensslin lived out a childhood dream earlier this fall when he broke through to earn his first career win in PDRA Extreme Pro Stock at the PDRA Thunder Valley Throwdown, which was completed at GALOT Motorsports Park during DragWars in early September. With a small, tightknit team that includes his grandfather, Larry Ensslin, and wife, Jacie, Ensslin emerged victorious in class full of seasoned veterans and teams with budgets much larger than his. In an all-Florida semifinal battle, Ensslin upset 2023 and 2025 world champion Alan Drinkwater when he drove to a 4.068-second pass at 175.73 mph to finish ahead of Drinkwater and his 4.077 at 176.95. Ensslin found a little more performance in his Allen-powered Poke County Pro Stock’ 09
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Mustang for the final round against North Carolina’ s own Elijah Morton. Though Morton went red, Ensslin, a 2018 DI 30 Under 30 honoree, rolled to a 4.060-second victory lap to earn his first career win in Extreme Pro Stock.
“ We’ ve been out of the winner’ s circle for almost seven years. It kinda was eating at me, then when I saw the win light come on, I lost it,” Ensslin says as he reflects on the victory a few weeks later.“ I started tearing up and crying because it means that much to us. Winning Mountain Motor Pro Stock is one of the next-level accomplishments that was on the list. We were there. We were competing. We’ ve been to a final, been to a couple of semis, but to finally turn the last win light on was priceless.”
Similarly priceless to Ensslin is the opportunity to spend time racing with his grandfather. Larry has been racing in Florida since the mid-‘ 70s, first in Super Comp and Super Gas before moving on to the young Top Sportsman division with Jim Carlton driving. They even made it into the Sonny’ s Racing Engines 200 MPH Club. Jordan’ s dad, Jeff, then took the wheel of the family’ s Pro Modified entry, which they ran until the class became prohibitively expensive. The Ensslins
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moved into Outlaw 632, which was rapidly growing in the Sunshine State, and that’ s where Jordan started racing a big car.
Larry and Jordan have raced together for the past several seasons. Jordan picked up a win in PDRA Pro 632 at Darlington in 2018, then a few years ago, Larry and Jordan made the jump up to Mountain Motor Pro Stock. Between hours in the shop, on the road, and at the track, they’ ve had quite a bit of bonding time.
“ We get along pretty good,” Larry says.“ We have our ups and downs, little episodes, but all in all it’ s been a great experience.”
Jordan praises his grandfather for the craftsmanship and dedication he’ s put into their program to be able to compete on such a high level.
“ If it wasn’ t for Popal making everything that we basically have, we wouldn’ t have a lot because we can’ t afford it,” Jordan says.“ A lot of the stuff that you see us using at the racetrack, driving to the racetrack, and what actually hauls our race cars, he built almost everything that we have, so it makes it easier on us. Instead of spending the money, we can build it and make it and then use it just like everybody else that can buy it.”
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PHOTOGRAPHS BY TARA BOWKER AND GARY ROWE |