Ahten Looking Forward to a Long Weekend in Phoenix

CHANDLER, AZ – Johnny Ahten rolled into Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park for the NHRA Pacific Division opener with a sense of relief. Gone was the stress of daily life. Not a care in the world. All he has to do is assemble and run his racecar without a full crew, battle tire shake, lost cylinder combustion and face a contingent of racers that include a previous world champion. It all makes for a relaxing weekend at the drags.

“We might be a little short-handed, but we are a feisty group,” said Ahten. “A couple of our guys couldn’t make it here this weekend but being a small team we will get the job done. We like running here at Phoenix. It’s a great track and we are looking to go fast.”

The opening Winternationals at Pomona was just a few short weeks ago, but much had to be done in the weeks preceding this Regional race. Parts and pieces have been replaced and repaired and crew chief Al Ahten and racing partner Howard Katano have a game plan in mind.

“We have reviewed the data from Pomona and we made some changes in the valvetrain that we believe will allow us to step on it harder and keep the parts in place,” added Ahten. “It’s the challenge that makes it exciting. We are looking for consistency, and that takes time and effort. This weekend we are going continue to tweak the tune-up and make the Island Renovations / Combust Filters dragster go down the whole quarter mile. Finding the sweet spot this car wants is our mission.”
Riding onboard with Johnny Ahten will once again be highlighted associate sponsors DJ Safety and EPHA Inc. Nothing would make Johnny Ahten happier that working all the way through Sunday – because that’s what drag racers do.