This past weekend marked the inaugural New England Nationals in Epping New Hampshire and Team Mopar driver Allen Johnson was able to claim the first Pro Stock title handed out at the new venue.
The Dodge Avengers got out of the gate strong with Jeg Coughlin taking the top qualifying spot with Allen Johnson coming in a close 2nd. The other two Dodge competitors in the field – V Gaines and Vincent Nobile qualified in the 7th and 8th spots, respectively. In round 1, Coughlin had the bye since only 15 cars entered the field while Nobile beat Rodger Brogdon and Allen Johnson beat John Gaydosh Jr. V Gaines pulled an awful light in round 1 and that allowed Tom Martino to advanced to the second round. In round 2, Coughlin pulled a smoking fast reaction time and put down a solid run to beat Nobile while Allen Johnson got the easy win over Martino who broke early in the run. In round 3, Coughlin pulled down a stunning 0.001 but it was all for not when he ran into traction issues, giving the easy win to Shane Gray. In the other side of the final four, Allen Johnson laid the smackdown to Mike Edwards to advance to the finals. In the final round, Johnson squared off against Gray and while the Gray Motorsports Camaro posted a better ET and a quicker MPH, Johnson’s starting line advantage gave him the big win.
On the year, Johnson finds himself in 2nd place, 124 points out of the lead. Jeg Coughlin is 3rd, Vincent Nobile is 7th and V Gaines rounds out the top ten.
Unfortunately, things didn’t go so well for the Dodge drivers over in the Funny Car ladder. There were six drivers in the field piloting Dodge Chargers with Matt Hagan being the quickest of them in qualifying as he grabbed the second spot – falling just 0.006 short of the top position that was claimed by John Force. However, Hagan was knocked out in the first round by fellow Mopar driver and 15th place qualifier Blake Alexander when Hagan ran into problems on the top end of the track. Johnny Gray also lost in the first round but Jeff Arrend, Ron Capps, Jack Beckman and Alexander all moved onto the second round. Capps beat Del Worsham and Beckman beat Alexander while Jeff Arend lost to John Force. This sent Capps to take on John Force while Beckman would take on John’s daughter, Courtney Force. Unfortunately for Team Mopar, both of the Force Mustangs posted strong runs and set up a father-daughter final that would be won by Courtney.
On the season, Matt Hagan still hangs onto the top spot with Johnny Grey in the 3rd spot, Jack Beckman in the 6th spot and Ron Capps sits 7th.
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
