This story was shared by Linda Butcher, wife of Top Sportsman racer Glenn Butcher.“ The love of drag racing when it comes from a fan perspective is neat to watch,” Linda says.“ Being a sportsman racer’ s wife, you would think we wouldn’ t have many fans, but we do have so many fans we don’ t even know we have. Many of them stop by the pit wanting to buy a T-shirt or get Glenn to autograph their hero card or T-shirt. Those are the fans we interact with. We appreciate their support and that they are cheering us on every race.

“ I remember being at a race in Bristol, Tennessee, with my daughter, Lyla, who at the time was 8 years old,” Linda says.“ She and I were in line at the Kona Ice truck getting snow cones. I wasn’ t wearing my Butcher Racing gear; I was just in my plain black shirt and shorts. We ordered our snow cones, and this man tapped me on my shoulder and said,‘ Linda.’ I said,‘ Yes’ with a strange look on my face because I had never seen this man before, yet he knew my name, so I asked,‘ Do I know you, sir?’ He said,‘ No, but I am a huge fan of Butcher Racing and I watch you line up your husband and see you get him down the track. It’ s very cool to see a husbandand-wife team.’

“ He proceeded to tell me that he had been a fan of Glenn since his 1963 Corvette days, which was a long time ago,” Linda continues.“ We talked a few more minutes and then we had to get back to the pit. I told him where we were pitted, and to stop by to visit.

I was not surprised when not long after the interaction, he did just that. To this day, many years later, he visits us whenever he comes to a race where we are competing.

“ Fans are very special to us,” Linda concludes.“ We are not a pro team, and we don’ t get the media coverage or recognition like a pro team. It means a lot when people stop by or see us walking around and tell us they enjoy watching Glenn race and seeing our family work well together. Race fans are what keep drag racing alive.”

Tommy Franklin Motorsports fan Justin Warren and TFM crew member Todd Wilcox

Another story was shared with me by Judy Franklin, wife of three-time PDRA Pro Nitrous champion Tommy Franklin.“ My favorite fan interaction goes back several years,” Judy says.“ We were at a PDRA race at GALOT Motorsports Park in 2017 when we met a young man named Justin Warren. He came up to meet Tommy and we gave him a T-shirt. What we didn’ t know at the time is that T-shirt was the start of a great bond that was created with Justin. He loves our family and we love him. Justin has been through a lot with losing his Poppa and his Granny, but when he gets to the racetrack, you can see his face light up with happiness and know he’ s at his happy place.

“ Justin has the biggest heart and loves his family and drag racing,” Judy continues.“ He enjoys coming to as many races as possible to support our race team and many others that have also welcomed Justin in with open arms. Justin has become a part of our racing family and I am his‘ Race Momma’ and Tommy is his‘ Race Dad.’ He calls our daughters‘ Sister Amber’ and‘ Sister Ashley’ and Amber’ s husband is‘ Cousin Blake.’ Our race team has really enjoyed getting to know Justin over the years and letting him do certain jobs on the car – that just brightens his day.

“ Our Bristol PDRA events have been birthday weekends for Justin, so we celebrate his birth-day with him,” Judy adds.“ Even if he’ s not at a race, he cheers us on from home. We are grateful and blessed that God crossed our paths with Justin and his family. We are so thankful for his mom, Dee Dee, and his dad, Jeff, bringing him to the races so he could be-come part of our race family.”

The last one I want to share is from Top Fuel racer Krista Baldwin. Krista is the granddaugh-ter of Top Fuel pioneer Chris Karamesines and the daughter of Bobby Baldwin, who also competed in Top Fuel before his passing in 2001.

“ An older male fan brought a model of my grandfather’ s red Top Fuel car for me to sign,” Baldwin says.“ When he handed it to me, I realized that it was already signed by my grandfather and my father. That made my heart smile and gave me a memory that will stay with me. Fans are the heart of drag racing. I am always happy to spend a few minutes with them.”

As I always say, we need to celebrate the fans in the stands. DI

74 | Drag Illustrated | DragIllustrated. com Issue 197