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SEPTEMBER NEWS
Berlin Raceway Champions
The 2004 season at Berlin Raceway has come to an end.
The JBFC would like to congratulate the champions in the following
divisions: Joe Bush - Late Models, Brian
Wiersma - Super Stock and Terry VanHaitsma -
Sportsman. (09-27-04)
Top 5 Finish in Las Vegas!
Congratulations to Johnny, Greg Ely and the entire #23 Bill
Davis Racing Team for their fourth place finish in Las
Vegas. Even as the sun set for the start of the race,
the temperature registered at 90 degrees with a 17%
humidity. Johnny patiently moved through the field
with his first pit stop for tires at Lap 22 and another pit
stop at Lap 80. During the closing laps, Johnny was
slipping and sliding and put on a good battle with Mike
Skinner. Shane Hmiel used fresh tires to his advantage
to earn his first win.
(09-26-04)
Get Well Soon Grandpa Benson!!!!
We hope you are feeling better after your
shoulder surgery. Please rest and listen to your
doctor!
Love,
Katelyn, Mikayla, Aunt Barb, Debbie and Johnny Benson
(As you can see, the JBFC has some help with the website
updates this week! Barb)
Johnny Starts 16th in Las Vegas
The #23 Bill Davis Racing Team took what they
learned in the 2.5 hour practice session to find some
speed in the #23 Toyota Tundra. Johnny's best time in
practice clocked in at 33.801 at a speed of 159.759 placing
him 27th fastest. Qualifying went better as Johnny
timed in at 33.285 at a speed of 162.235 placing him in the
16th starting position. There were 38 trucks who
qualified for the event, forcing two trucks to go home.
(09-25-04)
Jump Start Your Race
Day with the RACE FAN Brunch
Join us for a
delicious brunch featuring NASCAR family favorites, Q & A
session with NASCAR wives, Autograph session with NASCAR
wives, Silent auction and more! The event will take
place on Saturday, October 16, 2004
9:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. at the Fleetwood
Pavilion at Tom Johnson Camping Center (Located at Entrance
X off of Speedway Blvd., Near Lowe’s Motor Speedway,
Concord, N.C.). Cost is $25.00 per person.
All proceeds will benefit
WAM Racing and Race Fans for a cure. To make
your reservation please contact the Women’s Auxiliary of
Motorsports office at 704-455-9299 or email reservations to
psmith@waminc.org.
We accept checks and credit cards (Visa and Mastercard) Make
checks payable to WAM, Inc.
SPACE IS LIMITED!! Make your reservation by
September 29, 2004 and receive a limited edition
Race Fans for a Cure® collector's tin containing two 1:64
scale diecast cars. Race Fans for a Cure® is a
registered mark of the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer
Foundation. (09-01-04)
Inside Nextel Cup
Johnny will not be on the Inside
Nextel Cup Show that will air on Monday, September 27, 2004.
He will remain on the West Coast to participate in a TRD
Open House and then head to the next Craftsman Truck Race in
California. (09-22-04)
Toyota Motorsports Photos
The JBFC would like to thank Toyota
Motorsports for giving us access to Johnny's photos
from Johnny's Craftsman Truck Events. We plan on
posting photos from previous events, so keep checking the
site. (09-22-04)
New Hampshire Photos
Courtesy of Toyota Motorsports
(09-20-04)
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| Johnny busy at work |
#23 Truck tours the
track |
Travis Kvapil and
Johnny |
New Hampshire
Truck Re-Broadcast
The New Hampshire Truck Race will be
rebroadcast on Monday, September 20, at 12:30 pm - 3:00 pm on
SPEED. (Thanks, Ray - 09-19-04)
Johnny
Qualifies 26th in New Hampshire
Johnny Benson, No. 23 Toyota Quote:
“Qualifying was a lot better than the rest of our day. We
struggled a bit in practice this morning, and we’re just
trying to catch up a little bit. We made some major changes
before qualifying, just trying to catch up to the track.
Greg (Ely, crew chief) and the guys are trying to get the
truck the way I like it -- to feel the way I like it to
feel. If we were the way we were in practice during the
race, it would be a long, long race. And, we would
definitely be in trouble. But, I’m a little more optimistic
after all the changes, and we’ll just have to make the
adjustments we need tomorrow during the race.”
(Thanks, SoCalFan)
(09-19-04)
Congratulations!
To Susan Flanagan of Quebec, Canada who won
the “Race to the Chase” Message Board Contest that was held
on johnnybenson.com. She correctly guessed the ten drivers
who would make the chase for the championship. She is the
lucky winner of a 2003 1:24 JB / Valvoline Team Caliber car.
Awesome job, Sue!
(09-19-04)
The #23 crew hard at
work
Inside Nextel Cup
Hosted by Allen Bestwick,
the original panel includes Waltrip and fellow NASCAR
drivers Johnny Benson and Ken Schrader, with Jimmy Spencer
and Kenny Wallace often filling empty seats. Started in
1996, Inside NEXTEL Cup missed only one season -- 2001 when
NASCAR signed its most recent TV deal. And even in that off
year, the foursome congregated at Schrader's race shop for a
reunion special. Features weekly recaps and analysis of
Nextel Cup racing action. From the pits to victory lane,
Inside Nextel
Cup [Old Info there] provides up-to-date coverage of all
the important developments on the Nextel Cup circuit. Inside
NEXTEL Cup now has more than 500,000 weekly viewers, with
more than 300,000 tuning in for Monday premieres -- a 30
percent increase from 2003. Inside NEXTEL Cup producer Harry
Cogan, who has missed only one show in nine years. The
show airs on SPEED Channel Mondays at 7:00pm/et and normally
re-airs on Monday at 11:00pm/et and on Tuesdays at
3:00pm/et.
(9-13-2004)
JB's Truck Series Fact
Did you know that Johnny has been
running at the finish in 15 of his 16 career CTS starts?
Pretty good stats! (09-07-04)
John Sr, Phil Parsons
and JB at IRP
SHOP TALK - Johnny Benson Sr.
by Brian Nelson
Many of today’s racing fans
know well the story of Berlin’s favorite son, Johnny
Benson, Jr. A few die hard Berlin disciples may even
remember his track championship from 1989. What most fans
do not know is the story of the man who may be responsible
for Johnny’s success - his father Johnny Benson Sr.
As I prepared to interview the
Berlin Raceway legend and current Late Model team owner,
his crew warned me to have my questions ready and added
“John doesn’t say much.” But upon my visit to the elder
Benson’s home on Grand Rapids’ northeast side, I found
John Benson was ready to journey through his scrapbook of
stories.
Johnny Benson never watched a
race until he became a race-car driver in 1956. “I
had this 1932 Ford pickup truck that I was making a hot
rod out of,” he remembers. “A friend of mine wanted
that truck so bad he could taste it. He finally
offered to trade me an old Hudson stock car he had for it.
At the time it seemed like a pretty good deal, so I traded
it to him and got the stock car.”
Complete Story
(09-02-04)
Testing at Chicagoland
Johnny and the #23 Bill Davis Racing team
spent time testing with their Toyota Tundra at Chicagoland
Speedway this week. Johnny felt the testing went
very well and what they learned could be applied to
upcoming super speedway tracks they will be competing at on the Craftsman
Truck schedule. (09-02-04)
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