NHRA Shawn Langdon Diary: Following drag racing a lifetime hobby

For the past few days, this newspaper has been so nice to let me recoect with some of my friends from when I lived in Mira Loma and went to Jurupa Valley High School.

I’ve told you how important my dad, Chad, and mom, Debbie, have been to helping me to get to where I am today and that’s someone who will drive Don Schumacher Racing’s Red Fuel/Sandvik Coromant Top Fuel dragster in the first day of 2016 championship eliminations at my home track in Pomona.

It’s fuy to think back that the first thing I’d do after school on Friday was go to the mailbox and grab our copy of National Dragster then memorize the results and stats from all the Pro and Sportsman classes. My dad raced as a Sportsman and that gave us a lot to talk about.

As a kid, I loved the numbers side of it. I think that’s why math was my favorite subject in high school and it helped me when I started to bracket race after Jack Brand gave me my first chance to drive a Super Comp dragster.

I loved racing in general but I really loved Top Fuel because I’d come out to Pomona and those drivers were bigger than life. I’d get autographs from alcohol drivers on up to Top Fuel; Pro Stock everything. I’d get every driver’s autograph and hang them on the wall of my room. Mom would hate it because before the Winteationals every year she’d have to patch the wall from all the pinholes I put in it.

I’d set up dragstrips in the living room and have about 100 Hot Wheels in the staging lanes and run them off until I had a champion.

As you’ve probably leaed from me by now drag racing has always been it for me and that’s what my passion is. You have to have passion to be great at whatever you do. That’s what gives you the drive to succeed. Having that passion is what can separate you from the rest of the field.

I’m going for my third straight Pomona win today and there’s no one out there that wants it more than me.

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