18-year old 2009 Blizzard Series Champ Takes Title After Strong 4th Position Qualifying; Caps “Learning Year” in NASCAR by Achieving Lifelong Victory Lane Derby Dream

Pensacola, FL (December 7, 2010) – Young NASCAR driver Johanna Long, 18, was beaming ear to ear last night in Victory Lane after a grueling 332 lap duel for the finish at the 43rd Annual Snowball Derby – nicknamed the “Superbowl of Short Track Racing” for Super Late Models. After years of driving on her home track in Pensacola and winning the prestigious 2009 Blizzard Series Championship, she only had one more aspiration – to become the Snowball Derby Champion. Wheeling the No. 10 Panhandle
Paving & Grading entry through 14 cautions and several lead changes, Long brought it home with expert driving & impressive pit strategy in a dramatic 5-lap green flag finish to take the checker under the lights Sunday night. Taking the Snowball Derby title makes Long only the second female ever (and youngest female) to add the prestigious title to her resume – joining Tammy Jo Kirk, 1994 winner.

Her strong qualifying run in the No. 10 Panhandle Paving & Grading entry of 16.420 seconds placed her 4th on the starting grid in her third appearance at the Snowball Derby. Plus, after a strong lead-lap finish in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway just two weeks prior, she was in positive spirits and ready to log the miles with trusted crew chief Kevin “Cowboy” Starland and a combination of her NASCAR and family-run Super Late Model Pensacola crew. Posting solid practice runs & a 12th place finish the day prior in the Snowflake 100 while working through tough wind conditions and cool temps, the Blizzard Series Champion was ready for the night’s challenging 300 lap race.

Competition between the top 10 competitors started on lap 1 at the 2pmCT start. In early jockeying for position, Long rallied between fourth and 1st position during the first 38 laps – trading track position with the No. 1 car of NASCAR Champion Mike Garvey until the day’s first of fourteen caution flags was thrown for a wreck in turn four. After relaying to the crew on needed adjustments, Long was able to keep a cool head and a top 10 spot in the field until the first pit of the day on lap 87 during the second caution. Rolling off p12 from the first pit after taking four tires, fuel and a wedge adjustment, the team reconvened on pit and fuel strategy for the remaining 213 long laps – knowing the sun was quickly going behind the turn 4 stands.

Following an impressive front five for the next forty laps, to include race favorites Chase Elliott and Ross Kenseth, Long once again held her own to take down cars and laps one by one – gaining ground to p5 by lap 145. Knowing they had to stretch lap tires to at least lap 190 under green, Starland, Long and spotter Mike Herman, Jr. made the call to watch the race leaders and stay conservative in the pack middle. After four cautions within 30 laps and a massive wreck in turn 1 on lap 176 that resulted in a red flag for the field, the team knew it was time to come in on the next caution lap. The veteran pit crew was able to push Long through a tricky, tight pit stall with cars directly in front and behind, to come out in first position on the restart at lap 192. Battling for 38 laps with the No. 25 of Ross Kenseth for the top position, Long narrowly escaped a scuffle between the 83 and 1 cars at lap 230 to field another caution of the day. On lap 247 Long restarted in fourth position and jockeyed to third by lap 275. Knowing the team desperately needed tires, as Long was digging hard to wheel through a field with fresh tires in the top 5 – they waited to see if another caution flag would be thrown.

Falling to p7 in the field, Long finally got her wish with six laps to go – coming in for fresh tires and a fuel cap off that helped her motor through the extra laps in the race. In a dramatic finish under Snowball Derby rules, five non-consecutive green flag laps must be driven for the checker. Long wheeled past the top six cars, taking them down one at a time & again narrowly escaping two crashes. Passing the No. 7 car of Landon Cassill to take the lead with two to go, and per her spotter, Mike Herman – “drive
the two laps you’ve driven here a million times. This is your race!” Under the lights, she made history as she took the checkered flag – becoming the second female to ever win, and the youngest female in track history to take the title. She joins impressive ranks of winners, to include Steven Wallace and Kyle Busch.

Competing at some of the NCWTS schedule’s toughest speedways earlier in the season, Long has completed seven starts, with three top-20 finishes and top 20 qualifying grid starts at all races started. She hopes to race for a full Rookie season in 2011.

“What a night, what a weekend, what a year, ” said Long of her achievement. “This is what I’ve dreamed of ever since I became a racer. It is my family’s dream, and I couldn’t have done it with my dad, my mom and sisters, my aunts and uncles and grandparents – all of whom were supporting us in the paddock tonight. I’m speechless, and it’s the best Christmas present I could ever get. My nephew Gage was born today as well, so we are joking that if we weren’t a racing family before – wow – we really are now! After a long learning year in the Truck Series, it was awesome to come back to my home track and get this done. I can’t wait to see what’s next.”

MEDIA CONTACT, JOHANNA LONG & PANHANDLE MOTORSPORTS:
Demi Knight Clark, Girl Friday PR & Marketing
demi@girlfridaypr.com
803.389.7153
Facebook: Demi Knight Clark