Jeff Taylor Racer's Scrapbook - NHRA.com

“In 1994, I was racing as a part ofHarold Stout’s Winnebago teamand had a good deal withOldsmobile, so we built a SuperStock Achieva. What was so coolabout my relationship withOldsmobile was that I always hadthe first new cars. Everyone elsewas still racing the Calais, andwe had the first Achieva; Iactually had three or four of them.I would build them, run them for awhile, then sell them. I had a newone all the time. I was sort oftheir golden child. Luckily, I wasable to win some races for them,which was always a big deal.”(Above left) “This Grand Am, the first one built for Super Stock, is one of my favorite race cars. I first ranit in Winnebago colors, then, when I went to work for Jegs in 1996, we painted it yellow and black. I wonsix national events with this car in 1996: Seattle, Sonoma, Memphis, Englishtown, Houston, andGainesville. Later on, when I went to work for Arnie Martel, he paid a lot of money to get that car back,and I won a couple more times. All told, I think I won 12 or 13 national events in this car.” (Above right)“I ran this Super Stock truck in 1999; it is the worst vehicle I’ve ever raced, bar none. It was uncomfortableto sit in, the visibility was bad, and if the wind was blowing, it was just about impossible to pick a dial.I only raced it one year and didn’t have much success with it. I was in the final round in Pomona and redlightedagainst Bo Butner. It was sold shortly after that.” (Below left) “I was racing with Arnie Martel in2000 and won my first Comp race at the U.S. Nationals with this D/A Camaro. My Pro Stock experiencereally helped when we built this car. I also had the help of a lot of smart people to keep me pointed inthe right direction. This car wasreally fast, and I was alsorunner-up with it in Memphis,but it wasn’t a big favorite ofmine because it was hard forsomeone my size to get in andout of. I was pretty crampedwhen I was driving it.”“While I was racing with HaroldStout, he encouraged me tobuild a dragster, which madesense because I had a trailerthat would haul two cars. So weordered this dragster (above)from Kurt Damron. I won a lot ofbracket races with it, then wewent to Denver in 1995 and wonnot only in Super Comp but alsoin Super Stock. I remembercalling Harold that night andtelling him that I’d won SuperStock. He wasn’t too surprised;then I told him that I won SuperComp, too, and he couldn’tbelieve it. I think I went on tofinish No. 8 in the world thatyear, which was a pretty bigaccomplishment. (Left) That’sme and Willie Evans, mylongtime crew chief, in thewinner’s circle in Denver.”“Of all the cars I’ve raced, this C/A Grand Am is my favorite. I won seven races with it, and it’s the most fun carI’ve ever driven. It was built to fit me, and it had a stick shift and was fast enough so that I was usually doing thechasing. I finished fifth in 2001 and probably would have won the championship, except I got into an accident atthe Division 1 race in Numidia, Pa. It took about a month to get it back, then I went to Indy and qualified No. 2. Ialso doubled with this car and my Super Stock Grand Am in Memphis in 2002, which was a big highlight for me.”“This is the Grand Am that I won the Comp championship within 2005. It was built by Vic Custer at EasTexas Race Cars. Whenthe car was built, I had him put steel floors in it so I could racein Super Stock and Comp. I won three national events in SuperStock and another three or four in Comp. Obviously, I had a lotof help from my team owners, Jim and Bo Butner.”“My current Comp car is a newEasTexas-built Cobalt that wedebuted in April. This car is atotally new design. I gave Vicsome ideas, and he builtsomething special. We had afew issues with it at first, but Ican already tell it’s going to bea really good car. It’s alreadythree-hundredths quicker inthe first 60 feet than our oldcar. I think it’s a step up fromall of the other Super Modifiedcars out there now.”June 15, 2007 ✦ 57