That’s what I want some of
my fans to understand. I’m doing a lot
of work in between rounds sometime.
There’s not hardly any drivers doing
what I do. So if I get in the car and
I'm a couple hundredths late, it’s not
because I’m 61 years old. It’s because
I’m plum exhausted from the work in
between rounds.”
Smith hasn’t had problems turning on
the win lights throughout the years,
however. Most recently, Smith took his
IDG-backed ‘69 Camaro to the winner’s
circle at the PDRA Spring Nationals at
Rockingham Dragway. While Smith has
focused on the NHRA tour for the last
few years, this PDRA event was less
than two hours from his King, North
Carolina home, and an open weekend in
his schedule made the perfect
opportunity for him to take on some of
the top nitrous competitors in the
country. After another decent showing
at the Cajun Nationals a month later,
Smith sits third in Pro Nitrous points
and is looking to make a Championship
run in both series. It seemed to be
fate for Smith to attend PDRA events
this season, as he explains:
“These last few races really worked
out [with our travel schedule]. We ran
Houston the week before Louisiana.
Then I had to go to the trailer place
to have my trailer worked on for two
days. That was only an hour and a half
from the track at Shreveport. So I
said, ‘Shoot, we’re just going to stay
and race.’ Now we’re up to third in
the points. I go to Bickel’s and pick
up a brand new car the Tuesday before
the St. Louis race, so we’ll already
be right there. So I told Chad we’re
definitely going to run these races
unless we get knocked way out of the
points. My sponsor is in NHRA, but if
we can keep running and have a chance
to win the PDRA Championship then
we’re going to keep running it.
“I like running the PDRA. The biggest
thing is I like nitrous cars running
against nitrous cars. This deal we got
in NHRA, they can’t seem to keep the
rules competitive. It seems like
somebody’s always got an advantage.
It’s a hassle all the time trying to
outrun somebody that you don’t even
know if you’re capable of outrunning.
Four races in a row the turbo cars
could outrun all of us by four or five
hundredths. Why haven’t they changed
the rules? It only took one race for
them to change it on the nitrous cars.
That’s what we’re all ticked off
about. I just like running against
somebody that I'm supposed to be
running against - that if they outrun
me then I need to go back to work.”
In the three events contested so far
in PDRA’s sophomore season, Pro
Nitrous has seen three different
winners, a testament to the class’
parity.
Because Smith doesn’t have a large
crew, he perhaps appreciates the
support he does have more than most,
pointing to his sponsor, Industrial
Distributing Group (IDG), and Hester
as keys to his success. “I wouldn’t be
doing this without IDG. They are my
main backer. Chad’s been with me going
on five years now. It’s nobody but me
and him. It’s a lot of work for both
of us to do all this and run both of
these deals. It’s hard to find
somebody that will work that much, but
Chad’s been a very good employee of
mine for the last five years.
“Naturally you’d like to have more
help, but then it costs more money and
I still think that the driver needs to
have a hand in what’s going on. I won
a lot of my championships back in the
80s. I did a lot of my own work then.
Warren Johnson did a lot of his own
work. Bob Glidden did a lot of his own
work. Lee Shepherd was the same way.
You get up there and win and the
driver gets all the glory. The driver
really ain’t doing a lot of work
anymore. I don’t like that. Some of
these drivers need to work a little
harder for what they get. To be able
to hold that steering wheel and get
the glory, you need to do a little
work.
“I’m just glad I can still hold my
own,” Smith continued. “It’s good
racing. They play some games. I play
some games. Sometimes it works in my
favor and sometimes it doesn’t. That’s
part of it. That’s the biggest thing I
think you got to understand: you’re
not going to win every time. You just
have to go up there and do the best
you can. When you’ve won nine
championships, two in the last two
years, you’ve got a target on your
back as big as a tobacco barn. When
you’ve got that target on you, all
they want to do is go out there and
beat Rickie Smith. I’m not bitching
about it. I’m just saying I have to
stay on my toes every round because
everybody I run wants to have the best
light and make their best run. That
keeps me having to pay attention all
the time. I’m just thankful that God
has let me do what I do.”
ABOUT THE PDRA
Based in Pittsboro, North Carolina,
the Professional Drag Racers
Association is the top sanctioning
body in the United States for the
sport of eighth-mile drag racing. The
PDRA’s professional categories include
Pro Extreme, Pro Nitrous, Pro Boost,
and Pro Extreme Motorcycle along with
Top Sportsman, Top Dragster, Pro Jr.
Dragster, and Top Jr. Dragster. The
2015 PDRA schedule consists of ten
national events. For more on the
world’s premier eighth mile drag
racing organization visit
www.pdra660.com.
Follow the PDRA:
Facebook,
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Instagram,
YouTube.
Photo: Gary Rowe / RaceWorks.com /
PDRA660.com
PRESS CONTACT: Lisa Collier
Professional Drag Racers Association
lisa@pdra660.com
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