Top 10 finishers in each class were also recognized and received a monetary
award and trophy. Several other notable drivers and partners were honored during
the awards banquet as well, which included dinner, fellowship and concluded with
dancing.
Appropriately, Jason Harris earned Pro Driver of the Year. Going to every
final of the eight PDRA events contested this year, winning six of those and
coming in 972 points ahead of his closest competitor, Harris clearly swept Pro
Nitrous from start to finish this inaugural season. Top Sportsman Champ Dan
Ferguson earned Sportsman Driver of the Year by beating the odds as a
first-generation, self-funded racer beating the best of the best in the
ultra-tough Top Sportsman category.
Rookie of the Year for professional classes was Lizzy Musi, who made the move
from Top Sportsman to Pro Nitrous seamlessly this season. She captured her first
professional victory at Virginia and finished third in Pro Nitrous points.
Sportsman Rookie of the Year was young gun Kyle Dvorak. A product of the Junior
Dragster ranks, Dvorak is quickly making a name for himself in the PDRA,
finishing third in Top Dragster in just his first season in full size car.
PDRA’s ‘Good Guy of the Year’ Award recognizes the individual that goes above
and beyond to help fellow racers. Although many PDRA competitors fit the bill
for this award, the clear winner this season was Pro Boost racer Larry
Higginbotthan, whose friendly demeanor and quickness to lend a hand makes him
stand out as a true ‘good guy’ of the sport.
An equally special award, the Heart of the PDRA Award, goes to a person who
truly represents the heart of what the PDRA stands for. Andrew Tanner fields two
Junior Dragsters, driven by his children Preston and Alexis. The Tanners
traveled over 19,000 miles to attend this season’s events. Andrew Tanner was
always smiling this season, no matter how many miles he’d driven or what
situation he found himself in. He received the Heart of the PDRA Award for
epitomizing the human side of the PDRA.
It’s no surprise that Keith Haney and Todd Martin of Tulsa Raceway Park were
awarded Promoters of the Year for the outstanding work they continually do to
promote each of their events. Track of the Year went to Virginia Motorsports
Park. Track Manager, Alan Carpenter, accepted the award on behalf of the
facility.
“We had an excellent program tonight and everyone truly enjoyed our time
together,” said Series Director, Bob Harris. “Our first full season is in the
record books now, and we are very happy with what we accomplished as a new
organization.
“A very special thank you to everyone who prayed for Tommy Franklin after he
became ill after the event. It was very moving,” added Bob Harris, speaking to
the scary moment of the Awards Banquet when Pro Nitrous racer and co-owner Tommy
Franklin suffered a mild stroke. Thankfully, Tommy is on the mend for a complete
recovery.
“We look forward to great racing within the PDRA Series for many years to
come, and we are hard at work preparing for our 2015 season,” Harris concluded.
“A great group of people came together to make the PDRA series successful.”
For more on the world’s premier eighth mile drag racing organization visit
www.pdra660.com.
