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4-7-2010 Play day at GHR is this weekend and I’m very excited to get back in the car. The weather is looking better and the track should be nice and wet. The new schedule is now up and I can’t wait for all the racing I will get to do this year. We will be visiting multiple tracks including Grays Harbor Raceway, Skagit Speedway, Sunset Speedway, Willamette Speedway, and Cottage Grove Speedway. 3-1-10 I am very excited for the upcoming season at GHR. With all the new cars being added to the mix, the competition shall be a lot of fun. We are working on putting the car back together after tearing it apart for some deserved maintenance. April 3rd is our first play day and April 17th is the season opener. I can’t wait to get back in the car. See you all in about a month. Allison Journey #4 Midget
AS SEEN IN THURSTON HIGH SCHOOL'S NEWSPAPER: "Journey Races to the Big Times"
One of the great things about high school is that you never know if the person next to you will end up being a bum or a millionaire, a gas-pumper of the star of NASCAR. Of course, in some cases it’s pretty obvious who will end up somewhere big. You know, those people who have spirit, dedication, and passion written all over them. Allison Journey is one of these.
Journey grew up watching her dad race Sprint cars, which are high-powered race cars designed mainly for the purpose of running on circular dirt or paved tracks. When she was nine years old, she was ready to start her own career. Her first car was a Quarter Midget, a kind of miniature race-car designed for drivers as young as five years old. Even though the closest race track is in Washington, a good three or four hours away, Journey pursued racing with a passion that has earned her recognition and honors nationwide.
The homepage of Journey’s website displays a long photo of awards, trophies, and medals like a colorful banner. She has won five national titles with her quarter midget, and a vast array of smaller prizes.
Chasing down a racecar dream isn’t easy, though, as Journey well knows. She spends a hefty proportion of her week preparing for races in some way, whether it be physical training, finding sponsors, or mental preparation. Racing can also be dangerous.
“She’s gotten in some pretty good wrecks that have sent her to the hospital,” her mom Lora says. But Journey isn’t the type to let that stop her. When she isn’t training or keeping up with sponsors, Journey is highly involved in student life at Thurston. She holds the titles of president of the DECA club and yearbook editor, and she loves dancing with colorguard and playing for the girls’ lacrosse team. On top of all this, she also manages to keep up a clean 4.0 GPA.
Journey raced Quarter midgets until last year, when she moved up to the Ford Focus Midget, a bigger and more sleek-looking car. Her success in this car has been at least as good as in the Quarter midget, and has attracted the notice of some prominent names in the racing business.
In January, Journey will be making frequent trips to Sacramento, to participate in Ron Sutton’s winner’s Circle racing career development program. This is a fast-paced course that picks up promising young drivers from around the country and grooms and polishes them until they are up to professional standards. Foundations like NASCAR often pick up drivers from this curriculum. Out of about 700 applicants, only 36 were chosen to be tested further, and after that, only nine drivers were actually accepted. Congratulations Allison!
So look for Journey’s face in a few years while you’re cruising ESPN. She’s not the type to let you down. Written By Kaitlyn Gee The Pony Express Website 9-26-09 It is a great feeling when you go into a race knowing that you have nothing to lose, because you are the underdog. Racing in the Northwest Wingless Championships at Cottage Grove Speedway on Saturday gave me that feeling, I was defiantly thought of as the underdog. Bringing my 170hp Ford Focus to run against 320hp Fontana’s at a place that is commonly known to have a tacky track was a challenge, but it was one I was up for. I had been waiting to race the Grove since I was about 8 years old. Being back to the track I grew up at defiantly brought back lots of memories. The track its self is a lot of fun and one of my favorites to race at now. Having the support of friends and family was a major plus also, for I would not be where I am today without them. The weather was perfect at about 80 degrees and the track started off very tacky but eventually dried out, in my favor. Hot laps started at about 6:15, and went pretty well. The track was a little wet and slimy but hooked up. That is when it shows how underpowered we were. I qualified 9th out of 15, which set me up to start 5th in the heat (not to bad). I had a good start moving to 4th coming out of turn 2, following 3rd place on the next lap I moved to the outside passing for 3rd in turn 3. The heat went green, white, checkered for all 8 laps and I finished 3rd out of 8 cars. After the top 4 cars from both heats drew a pill for their starting spots, leaving me the outside 2nd row starting position. After a great first start the officials called it back, then on the second try the front row cars got it right. I moved to 3rd going in to 1, but not enough power to stay there, I fell back in to 4th coming out of turn 2. Running mainly the high side, trying a couple of different lines, for the next 11 plus laps with 5th place not having any luck trying to pass me and the rest of the field a straight away behind. That when 5th place decided he doesnt have the ability to use his extra 150hp power to drive around me, he will just push me out of the way, which sent me spinning in the middle of 1 and 2. Now things are not so good, with my right front control arm pulled loose from the spindle during the contact, giving me about 3" of toe in or out depending on what the tire wanted to do at any given time and starting in the back i had a lot of ground to make up. During the last 12 plus laps, I tried high, low, middle and finly settled on the high side to pass a few cars and finish in 8th. Overall it was a pretty good night knowing that I can compete well with the Northwest Wingless. Thank you to Jeff Bell, Hondo, and Jack for all your help and Ken for letting us run the car. I also wanted to wish Travis Rutz a safe and fast recovery, you are in the hearts of all the racers in the northwest, and we are all praying for you. “Success means doing the best we can with what we have. Success is the doing, not the getting; in the trying, not the triumph. Success is a personal standard, reaching for the highest that is in us, becoming all that we can be.” Unknown. Allison Journey, #4 Midget
9-12-09 The last race of the season was defiantly the most nerve wracking race of the season. With our previous race rained out, it left only one race to decide the Championship. Less than 26 points out of first place and sitting in 4th I needed a great night. At this point one mistake could cost you the championship. The format for Saturday was a little different. The top 6 points leaders were automatically put in the trophy dash that would line you up for the main. The rest of the cars had to qualify for there starting position. I started 2nd row outside, with my biggest competition in front and beside me. Seth and I pulled into the lead right off the bat. I had 6 laps to pass. I made my first move on lap 3, I was close but just not close enough. I lost some ground but picked it back up by the next turn. I tried 2 more times and gave it my all but ended up finishing 2nd.The night went really slow and it seamed like for ever before we were asked to line up at the starting line. I started outside front row, the best seat in the house (Seth’s favorite too). I got the early lead coming out of turn 2 and took off as if I were racing for a million bucks. I held on to the lead for about 10 laps with 2nd, 3rd and 4th place knocking at my door. With out more traction, my favorite high line was not going to do it, I could not hold them off any longer. They were going to get around me. I dropped back to second for a couple of laps then third and finely 4th where I finished the remainder of the race. I would like to congratulate Seth Hespe for wining the point’s championship, you are an awesome competitor. Overall I am very happy with how the season went, I could not have asked for anything more (except for the championship). My fans have been fantastic and I wouldn’t be racing if it wasn’t for them. Also I would like to thank my pit crew, Ken, Kevin and Dad. Finally my sponsors have been wonderful and I would like to thank all of them; Ken Sherwood Motorsports, People Helping Horses, Eatonville Collision, Bellandi Signs, Journey Built Homes and Simpson race products. I am looking forward to another fantastic year. We will be running the Salem fair grounds indoor races this year and We just found out that Cottage Grove (the track that I have waited to race at) is racing on the 26th of this month. Hopefully we will see you there. Thank you to everybody once again.Allison Journey, #4 Midget 8-30-09Saturday was kind of a weird day, not only because the sprint cars weren’t running but because it was raining in the end of August. I expected the liquid sun shine in May but not in August. Everything fell in to place though as the rain quit right as the pit meeting started. The extra bit of water helped the track to a point but was possibly too much. Hey I’m not complaining, it was defiantly a nice change to the usual. The track started out crystal smooth, but as time went on big ruts started to emerge leaving a low grove and a super high grove. I qualified 3rd fast out of 12 cars, leaving me to start 5th in the heat. With a stacked heat I settled in to third after the start, eyeing the second place car. It was only a matter of a couple of laps and I was in second. Unfortunately I didn’t have enough time to catch the leader but I was defiantly gaining on him. With a pill draw of 4 for the invert, I was pretty happy because that would allow me to start outside front row, the best spot on the grid. The track didn’t get any smother but I started to figure it out. On the start I got the jump on the pole car and pulled out in front with no problem. After leading 15 laps by a full straight I caught 2 lap cars at the same time, one was high and the other was low. I took a gamble which cost me the lead and 2nd. I fell in to third with 3 laps to go there was a yellow. On the restart the 1st place car went low and 2nd went high, I decided to go low also. Unfortunately it got me nowhere but made for a really nice photo finish between the top three, with me finishing in 3rd. Overall we had a great night and I raced my butt off and I’m looking forward to racing with the outlaws on Monday. Allison Journey #4 8-30-09 Saturday was kind of a weird day, not only because the sprint cars weren’t running but because it was raining in the end of August. I expected the liquid sun shine in May but not in August. Everything fell in to place though as the rain quit right as the pit meeting started. The extra bit of water helped the track to a point but was possibly too much. Hey I’m not complaining, it was defiantly a nice change to the usual. The track started out crystal smooth, but as time went on big ruts started to emerge leaving a low grove and a super high grove. I qualified 3rd fast out of 12 cars, leaving me to start 5th in the heat. With a stacked heat I settled in to third after the start, eyeing the second place car. It was only a matter of a couple of laps and I was in second. Unfortunately I didn’t have enough time to catch the leader but I was defiantly gaining on him. With a pill draw of 4 for the invert, I was pretty happy because that would allow me to start outside front row, the best spot on the grid. The track didn’t get any smother but I started to figure it out. On the start I got the jump on the pole car and pulled out in front with no problem. After leading 15 laps by a full straight I caught 2 lap cars at the same time, one was high and the other was low. I took a gamble which cost me the lead and 2nd. I fell in to third with 3 laps to go there was a yellow. On the restart the 1st place car went low and 2nd went high, I decided to go low also. Unfortunately it got me nowhere but made for a really nice photo finish between the top three, with me finishing in 3rd. Overall we had a great night and I raced my butt off and I’m looking forward to racing with the outlaws on Monday. Allison Journey #4 8-23-09 Saturday at Grays Harbor started out like any other race night with pill draws at 3pm and pit meeting at 4:45pm but after that, things went hay wire with people thinking couda, shouda, woulda about track prep. When it was time to go out for packing the sprints and modifieds were there but there wasn’t anything to pack. The track looked like a rough gravel road that hadn’t been watered in weeks but there seemed to be moisture under the top 2 inches of dry clumpy dirt. After being told to get in our cars and then told it was going to be a while three separate times, the track was finely ready at 7pm. A hour and a half behind schedule. I was defiantly happy the track officials decided not to cut any of the show. Hot laps were interesting as the car wasn’t firing on all 4 cylinders. After pulling back into the pits we found 3 miss firing plugs. Putting a fresh set of new ones in made a big difference, as we qualified 3rd, this set us up to start 3rd in the heat. The heat was 8 laps on an extremely ruff track. I tried to pull out in front on the start but there just wasn’t enough room and I had to settle back in to third. It took me 3 laps to get to second but by then the leader was half a straight stretch away already, so we ended up finishing 2nd. Surprisingly, the night moved along quite well. The ruts didn’t get any better in the main, if anything they got worse. I started 6th and pulled in to 4th quickly, with the top 3 not very far ahead of me, trying a high side move dropped me back to 5th right before the yellow. In the first corner after the restart I hit a rut going underneath for 4th and slid up getting sandwiched and dropped back to 7th. After a couple of laps I was in 6th and trying to catch 5th but unfortunately my time ran out and ended up finishing in 6th. We didn’t have a great night but the car came back in one piece so I can’t complain. We will defiantly be back in full force for next weekend and should light it up. I would just like to say thanks to all my loyal fans and family. Allison Journey #4 8-11-09 I would like to announce that I will no longer be running the #11x for Mike Morris as it has been sold to another race team. I would like to thank Mike for the opportunity to practice and race it a couple of times, it really taught me a lot and I am very great full. I wish the new race team the best of luck with an awesome car. Also I will not be running with the NW Wingless on the 15th as of right now but I am looking for a car to run on September 5th and October 3rd. I hope all the midgets do very well this weekend at Cottage Grove. See you all at GHR on the 22nd. Allison Journey #4 8-10-09 You’ll never know how intense late model races can truly get unless your part of a pit crew. This past weekend I had that chance to do just that and let me tell you when things go wrong frustration can take over. After working Friday morning, my dad and I took off in the motor home around noon to make the 3.5 hour journey to Tenino Washington. One of my good friends Austin “Hoss” Thom was racing the #99 Chevy Impala late model in the Miller 200 on Saturday and I was asked to help. The drive up was every irritating as it took 5 hours because of the horrendous traffic. When we finely got there I was put to work right away changing tires and writing down lap times for Hoss. After several hours of practice it was finally time to eat, man was I hungry. The next morning there was quite a bit of stuff to do. I helped with everything from measuring, changing, checking and mounting tires to fixing the body and fenders from a little mishap the night before. It was defiantly a lot to process when your use to dirt but was a heck of a lot of fun. Saturday nights practice started off well, making some changes and finding the cars sweet spot but in the last practice session of the day, the drive line broke, man that was a bummer. Everyone on Hoss’s team ran to meet the push truck and car at the trailer, with a few bad words and a quick meeting everyone had a job and started to get to work. Since the spare drive line was too long and no one of course had one that would fit, we decided the only option was to make one. After finding a shop to weld in and gathering all the parts it was time to get it done. We ended up shorting and welding it back together, after a lengthy process the drive line was read to put back in the car just in time to make qualifying. We did not qualify for the dash but at least got the car back on the track and that was the goal. There was a little bit of time to relax before the main but it didn’t come without its fair share of stress getting everything ready. Eventually strapping Hoss in to the car, putting our headsets on, making a few last minute changes and we were ready to go. With the warm up laps starting the car in front of us tagged the wall and stopped quickly with no room to go Hass brushed the wall and bent 2 wheels. Throughout the race there were quite a few major things to overcome but with the will there is a way. Our race ended early around lap 140 when 2 cars in front of us spun and we had nowhere to go. It was defiantly a bummer to not finish when you are doing so well, but that’s how the cookie crumbles and there’s always next time. I would like to thank Chris and Hoss Thom for letting me be a part of their team and I want to give Hoss major kudos for hanging in there and not giving up. Nice job bud! Allison Journey #4 7-18-09 First of all I would like to thank my sponsors, my fans and especially my pit crew! We truly had an awesome weekend and I couldn’t have done it without them. Friday night we started off pretty well as I qualified 3rd and finished 2nd in the heat race. I started on the pole of the main and got out front pretty quickly. On the first restart Seth gave me a run for my money but I did a slide job and regained my lead to finish 1st. I’ve been waiting a while to get my first win at GHR and it felt really good. Saturday we did just as well. I qualified 3rd and finished 3rd in the heat. After coming in from the heat we found an oil leak and got it fixed just in time for the main. I started 3rd in the main and found myself catching the leader but I happen to hit lap traffic at the wrong time and ended up finishing 2nd. Overall we had a great weekend. Now we have a couple of weeks off. But we will be in Cottage Grove to run with NW Wingless on the 15 of August. Allison Journey #4, #11x Midget 7-5-09 The 3rd and 4th was all about #11x. I had so much fun racing, quading, playing on the beach, camping, and touring the local towns. Coos Bay Speedway and the Oregon Double Shot series was very inviting and I am very thankful that they allowed me to race with them. There were nine midgets Friday night and I finished 2nd in the heat race and 7th in the main. Saturday we were more competitive and got the car to work a whole lot better. I finished 5th in the heat and 4ht in the main. Overall I was happy with how we did as this was our first race with the #11x. I can’t wait to run it again on August 15th at Cottage Grove speedway. Allison Journey #4, #11x Midget. 6-27-09 We are now half way through our series at GHR. After coming off of knee surgery I wasn’t sure how last Saturday was going to go but it all worked out and I had fun. The track was very ruff for qualifying, as everyone except for the fast time was in the 17 second range. I qualified 3rd out of 12 cars. I started 3rd in the heat and took the lead early and won by over half a lap. The main was 20 laps of hard racing as I started 4th but had a minor miss hap on the start and had to go to the back and make my way back up to the front. I ended up finishing 3rd with first and second place not too far away. I look forward to running at Coos Bay Speedway with the Morris Motorsports owned #11x on the 3rd and 4th of July. I’m pretty excited to run with a whole new group of drivers and see how I compare. We will be back at GHR on July 11th. Allison Journey #4, #11x Midget. 6-13-09 Saturday was Sunny 102.1 night at Grays Harbor Raceway. I qualified with a time of 15.7 seconds to secure fast time for the third time the season. I started 6th in the heat and after a restart took the lead to win the heat. With a zero invert I started one the pole of the main and lead 15 laps before I fell back and finished 4th. I am happy with the results and can’t wait till are next race in two weeks. Allison Journey #4, #11x Midget. 6-6-09 The NW Wingless show at Lebanon that was scheduled for Friday night was canceled due to weather. It really bummed me out because I was looking forward to running closer to home and finely getting to compete with the 11x, instead of just practicing. Saturday was fan appreciation night at GHR. After qualifying 2nd, all the cars were lined up on the front straightway for a 45min autograph session with the fans. It was pretty cool to see all the kids getting so excited and having fun because without the fans the drivers would not get to do what they love. After that we went straight in to the mains, with a quick hot lap session before. I started 7th as they inverted the top eight and finished 3rd. Overall it was a good night and track was prepped very well. See you all next weekend for another very exciting night. Allison Journey #4, #11x Midget. 5-26-09 The ford focus midgets were the support class for the ASCS last weekend at Grays Harbor Raceway. Saturday went all right as I qualified 4th, and finished 4th in the heat race. Starting 10th in the main it took some work but I finished 5th. Sunday started out pretty well as I clenched fast time on a very dry track. I finished 4th in my heat and made the 8 car invert for the main. After starting 8th I was up to 4th within a couple of laps and was looking ahead at picking off 3rd when I lost oil pressure and blew the inside of the exhaust out and on to the track. After leaving the track I came back on to try it again but luck was not with and I pulled off early, finishing in 12th. Overall it was a fun weekend but I hope my good luck comes back. See you all then. Allison Journey #4, #11x Midget 5-20-09 I am very excited for this up coming weekend. My team and I are going to take the 11x to Willamette speedway for practice on Friday. Then we will head up to Grays Harbor on Saturday for the two night show, as the midgets are the support class for the ASCS. It should be a very good show and many big names in sprint car racing will be there. Defiantly come check it out the races, see you all in the stands. Allison Journey #4, #11x Midget Grays Hrbor Raceway was featured in the Daily World newspaper on monday. http://www.thedailyworld.com/articles/2009/05/11/sports/doc4a08712883a50985022984.prt 5-10-09 This weekend was full of unpleasant things for many drivers, luckily for me I made it out in one piece and that’s more than I can say for some others. The rack was extremely ruff Saturday night and just being able to role your car in after the main event was an accomplishment. I qualified 3rd and took 4th in the heat race. The main started out ok, as everyone was racing together in a pack with passing limited because of big ruts that rattled our cars if we hit them. I searched the track all night to find a line and with only a couple of laps left I found my groove. After 25 laps and 1 wreck I ended up 7th. Hope the track is better in two weeks for our double headed. I wish everybody the best in fixing there cars. Allison Journey #4, #11x Midget. 4-25-09 I defiantly started the season out right at GHR this past weekend. I went in just hoping to feel like I accomplished something and I can out with a new insight on how I would like my season to go. There were 17 cars that started the night and 15 started in the main. Qualifying was quite nerve wracking in the beginning but now it’s not any big deal. Saturday I set fast time with a 15.950 and to follow that I won my heat race. I started 6th in the main and ended up finishing 4th. The car was great all night long and I have nothing to complain about. My team is great and for that, I thank them. I look forward to seeing everyone back in 2 weeks for another great race. Allison Journey #4, #11x Midget. 4-20-09 The season has started off with a bang as practice at GHR was great. I couldn’t have asked for any better weather or track after it went black late in the afternoon. With a couple of minor mishaps in the first practice session, the day went pretty well as the car responded to changes we made with ease. After practice this weekend I know that this season has the potential to be great. See you all in the stands Saterday night, it will be an awesome show. Allison Journey #4, #11x Midget 4-6-09 This past weekend I attended the NW Wingless membership meeting and BBQ. I had a fun time meeting some of the drivers I will be competing against this season and listening to the questions and concerns that were discussed at the meeting. Along with that I am now running the #11x Morris Motorsports, autocraft edmonds open midget in the 2009 NWW series. After getting acquainted with #11x I can say that I’m very excited to be running and can’t wait to get the car on the track. I just wanted to say thank you to Mike Morris for giving me the opportunity. Allison Journey #4, #11x Midget 3-27-09 I’m really excited to get the season started and can’t wait for play day at GHR. I just hope that the weather holds out. The car came back from the painters last week and is looking clean, black, shinny and sharp. With a new seat, tires and paint my team and I are ready to go racing. See you all in the stands on opening night. Allison Journey #4 Midget 3-9-09 Over the weekend I had the pleasure of helping out at the Portland Roadster show promoting Northwest Wingless series. I had a great time hanging out with many of the drivers, their crew and talking to interested fans about our racecars and the new series. I meet some really interesting people. Some even thought the cars were dune buggies, but I guess if you have never a sprint or midget before, what else would you think they were. There was plenty of stuff to do and see at the show. From cars, sculptures, to face panting for the kids, they had it all. I walked around and enjoyed the cars just as much as everyone else, picking out my favorite colors, makes, and models. Believe me there was quite a large selection of new and old cars. I was really surprised by the number of rat rods that were there. They don’t really appeal to me but they are really funny to look at. I love trying to figure out what they conjured up to help make it run. There ware also a couple of stockcars and some more midgets from WMRA and NOMA. All in all it was a lot of fun! Allison Journey #4 Midget 3-3-09 2009 has started off with a bang. Over the winter I ran an open midget at the indoor in Salem Oregon. It went pretty well, as my team and I mainly focused on getting the car to run. I had a lot of fun while running with quite a few of the Northwest Wingless Warrior drivers. After planning the upcoming racing I will be mainly running the Grays Harbor Raceway series, and hopefully throwing in some Northwest Wingless Warrior races also. I can’t wait to start the season and meet all the new drivers I’ll be competing against. Hope to see you’ll at the race!Allison Journey #4 Midget
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