Saw in the Richmond paper today where local racer Chris Johnson had swept Twin 50-lap Modified races at Richmond's Southside Speedway this weekend, at the same track where his dad, Eddie Johnson and grandfather, Cal Johnson made a name for themselves. Certainly not the name recognition of the Pettys or the Earnhardts, but for some years now, all around the country, some of us old enough to remember have been seeing the grandchildren of drivers we used to watch racing and sometimes even winning. At Richmond's Southside, Brandon Hendrick raced where his dad Roy and grandfather Ray had preceded him. I first met Chris Johnson's grandfather, Cal in 1990 when we inducted all drivers who had ever competed on the half-mile Richmond dirt track in the Fall NASCAR State Fair National Championship Modified races into the "STRAWBERRY HILL MOD SQUAD."
Cal Johnson was very quiet and soft spoken. What I remember most is that he was a Washington Redskins fan. In the early 50s, Cal had a radio installed in his modified so he could listen to Redskins games on Sunday afternoon when he raced at the Richmond Fairgrounds.
It was a simpler time.
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"Any Day is Good for Stock Car Racing"
updated by @dave-fulton: 12/05/16 04:02:07PM