born in 1980, so it has always been a major part of my life. I had one of the first Junior Dragsters in the country when the class started. From there I went to racing street stuff at Piedmont Dragway, which my dad owned at the time. He would drive the car to the track for me and I would race it. Later I got into dragsters, running local bracket stuff. I got my head beat-in a couple of times but it was a good way to learn the ropes. There’s nothing like seat time to get the experience you need to become a better driver and a competitive racer.

“Eventually my dad and I teamed up and went IHRA racing,” Harris said. He drove a Top Sportsman car and I ran in Top Dragster and Quick Rod. We did that between 2001 and 2007 and had some success. I won a divisional championship two years in a row and won some national events, including the big race at Norwalk.”

As is the case with so many racers, the need for speed gripped young Jason tighter and tighter until he had to make the next move up the ladder.

“In 2008 I got into door cars, first in Top Sportsman, and eventually I progressed into heads-up racing. I ran in the Big Dog series at Piedmont before moving on to the ADRL.”

Now firmly ensconced in the Pro Modified world, Jason is making quite a name for himself in the PDRA ranks behind the wheel of his dynamic red Firebird. The car itself has a unique backstory, as Harris revealed.

“My crew chief, Robert Hayes, built the car in our front yard back in 2010. He literally built it from the ground up, and when he was finished I took over and wired it. It’s what I like to call a back-yard car. We originally tried to build it as light as we could, but we ended up having to change things later, and it took us a couple of years to get it to where it is today.”

The car, called ‘Warbird’ by its owner, is solidly motivated by a Pat Musi Racing Engines 903-cubic-inch, fuel-injected nitrous motor topped by new Pat Musi billet heads and stuffed with Diamond pistons and GRP rods. Out back there’s a YWO lock-up Bruno transmission by Todd Tutterow and a Neal Chance converter. Down below, Hoosier tires are responsible for gripping the track on those record-setting runs.

Jason is extremely grateful to the people and companies that have backed and supported him through the years.

“I have to say that Hoosier has been with me for years, even in my bracket day,” he said. “I like working with them because it didn’t matter if you drove a Super Stock car, a Pro Mod or a Top Fueler they stood behind you. I can’t say enough about Hoosier, and people like Diamond Pistons, who gave me break years ago because they saw I was running against big-name teams on a tight budget. The people at Diamond are great and will do anything they can to help a customer out.”

Jason’s newest backer is Kuwait-based DRAG 965, owned by Sheikh Mohammad Al Sabah.

“My crew chief Robert went to the Middle East this past winter to take in some Arab Drag Racing League racing and became pretty good friends with Sheikh Mohammad Al Sabah. About halfway through the season the Sheikh contacted us and said that he was impressed by what we were doing and said that he wanted to give us a little bit of help.

“We took him up on his offer and now we have a real good sponsorship relationship with him,” Harris said. “He flat-out loves racing, no matter if it’s just two bicycles going down the road. He is into drag cars, drag bikes, drift cars, road race cars and a whole lot more. We are proud to carry the DRAG 965 logo on our race car.

“I’m not a guy who has had a lot of sponsorship in the past – I’d get a little something here and there. We’d basically run the car on what we win at the track during the year, so words can’t express how thankful we are for everyone who has stepped up to back our team.

“Luckily we have done real well this year, going to six finals in six races and winning five of them,” Harris said. “That makes everyone look good, especially DRAG 965, Hoosier and Diamond Pistons, as well as our other supporters. I feel like when I go to the track now I can help my sponsors out, repay them for the faith they have in me. They took a chance on a poor old country boy and now I feel that I’m paying them some dividends.

“This season has been amazing so far,” Jason said when asked for his take on the first six races on the schedule. “Counting the last ADRL race at Rockingham last year I have 30 round wins and three losses. We’ve just been on fire – I don’t know what else to say. I drove good when I needed to and the car has pulled me out when I didn’t drive so good. We’ve been consistent and qualified in the top 4 at every race if not number 1.

“I can’t give Robert enough credit – he’s a hell of a crew chief,” Jason said. “We have a good relationship. I tell him what I think, he tells me what he thinks, and we race as a team. We try to race as smart as possible. We try to race the car that is next to us. If I think they will run a 3.87 then I say that we need to run a 3.85. Sure, we have hurt some parts, and I’ll be the first to tell you that if we need to burn a piston to win a race then that’s what we’re going to do. My guys are willing to fix it between rounds; we’re not afraid of work and we’ll get it done.

“If I could never go to another race I feel that we have accomplished something that has never been done in the Pro Mod world, and I’m very proud of everyone involved,” Harris said.
“I have to thank all of my sponsors and backers for their amazing generosity and help, as well as my dad, my wife Crystal, my daughter Hailey and son Jase, who will be coming along in November.
“I also have to thank everyone in the drag racing community,” Harris said. “We’re all good friends and strong competitors. We have fun at the track, and if it wasn’t fun we wouldn’t do it.”

Photo Credits: Gary Rowe / RaceWorks.com / PDRA66.com
Article: Brian Wood