Brandi Jade Thomas, Pioneer Press
The last person to launch Tiffany Johnson at the starting line and first to welcome her back to pit alley is father Lonnie - mechanic, manager and social director for Team Tiffany.
A gearhead who grew up around drag racing royalty, the 47-year-old Fridley native is bald, with grease under his fingernails as thick as the polish on his teenage daughter’s.
They bicker like an old, married couple about strategy, engine parts or the nuisance of Tiffany’s overactive cell phone. But theirs is an unbreakable bond forged by a passion for drag racing and fueled by summer weekends at the track.
In her first full season racing super sleds, Tiffany Johnson is enjoying a breakout season as a 16-year-old on the National Hot Rod Association circuit, turning heads at Upper Midwest tracks with her skills and charm.
She is one of the top drivers in her regional class, which includes motorcycles and converted snowmobiles. In May, Tiffany won a title race in Iowa, took third at Brainerd International Raceway and finished runner-up at Grove Creek Raceway over Memorial Day weekend.
