DI Roundtable: NPK Stars Discuss Competing at Upcoming Drag Illustrated Winter Series
The Drag Illustrated Winter Series kicks off at Bradenton Motorsports Park with the historic Snowbird Outlaw Nationals on December 6-8, 2024, followed by the U.S. Street Nationals on January 24-26, 2025, and culminates with the World Series of Pro Mod from February 27 to March 1, 2025.
This year, joining the elite field of Pro Mod teams will be a number of top stars from the popular series No Prep Kings. Kye Kelley, Scott Taylor, Robin Roberts, Jim Howe, and Jimmy Taylor will all be making their series debut in Bradenton.
With just two weeks until the action kicks off at the Snowbirds, these five gentlemen sat down with Drag Illustrated to discuss what it will be like transitioning into the world of Pro Mod, and what they’re most excited about heading into the first event of the Winter Series.
Each of you are well-known drivers in No Prep Kings. What went into your decision to race Pro Mod, and specifically the Winter Series?
Jim Howe: For me, it’s just a matter of competing with the best in the industry. I feel like the No Prep Kings racers have shown that we aren’t the low-hanging fruit that so many thought we were. I believe that on an equal playing field, anybody in NPK can compete at the top in Pro Mod. We’re going one step further at this first race. I’m bringing my NPK car and we’re going to see how we stack up. I believe there’s something to be said for bringing a steel roof and quarter car to the first one. We’ve been high 60’s in NPK trim, so I think we can run with them. I might be made a fool out of, but at least we’ll be there trying.
Jimmy Taylor: I’ve always wanted to run Pro Mod, and run against that caliber of guys. I really enjoy No Prep Kings, but I just feel like it’s more competitive in Pro Mod. I honestly think it’s the elite class. I want to race against the best in the world – Stevie Jackson, Todd Tutterow, Mark Micke – and I think that’s where they’re at.
Robin Roberts, David Hilner photo
Robin Roberts: When this started, I thought, ‘That looks like a lot of fun.’ That’s what interests me the most – I love racing and I want to have fun doing it. If I see something that I think will be fun, I want to go do it. I love what’s been put together here, I love the format, and I think it’s gonna be a blast.
Kye Kelley: I went over to the PDRA just to test my car, and we had a good time. I kind of realized my steel-bodied car could halfway compete in that class. I know Pro Boost is supposed to be the fastest class in the world, so I’m just kind of dabbling into that side of racing.
Scott Taylor: The advertisements I’ve seen from Wes [Buck] and Drag Illustrated definitely caught my attention. And American Pride Golf Carts, they’ve been on board with us for a few years and (owner Paul Hayden) comes from a Pro Mod background. We’ve had a great relationship and he’s from Florida, so I think it will be a great fit. We’re all super excited about this deal.
Season 7 of NPK saw the highest level of competition yet in the series. Looking ahead to Bradenton, how do you see the competition stacking up with over 60 of the best Pro Mod teams in the world on the property?
ST: There’s no doubt, we’re coming to race with some of the best racers in the world. We’re not coming in thinking it’s going to be easy or that we’re going to win our first event, but what we are going to do is show up and be prepared to be one of the most competitive cars on the property. I refuse to be a class filler. We’re not coming to be a class filler, but we also know how difficult it’s going to be to win a race too.
RR: On the surface, it looks like it’ll be NPK times five. In NPK, we’re all separated by such a small number. I don’t expect anything different here. One through 64 should all be separated by a tenth at most, at least in capability. It’s going to be super tight, and it’s going to be intense. That’s what I’m looking forward to; that’s part of the fun.
Jim Howe, Danny Stogner photo
JT: I definitely have to bring my A-game to be competitive. Like I said, I think that’s the best class of guys in the world. When you go [to Winter Series], you’ve got over 60 cars that are liable to be in the winner’s circle at the end of the night. You’re talking about people that have been doing this their whole life. There’s not one duck in this series. It doesn’t matter who you draw, you better bring your A-game or they’ll load you on the trailer.
JH: Well, that’s what we want. I don’t like kicking puppies. We want to come and race with the best and cement our program as one of them. And this is a perfect opportunity to be able to do that. What Drag Illustrated and Wes have done is allow that, and in a perfect world, I’d like to see us be able to show that we are a force to be reckoned with regardless of what surface we’re on or who else is competing. I’ve said it for years, if there’s somebody out there that’s faster, I want them to come race with us because I need to be taking notes.
KK: I like racing against the best in the world. I love driving against guys like Travis Harvey that you know is going to cut a good light. I’m really looking forward to it.
As we all know, the main goal when any driver shows up is to win the event. But aside from that, what are some realistic goals or expectations you all have?
RR: For me, with this being our first foray into Pro Mod, my goal is to learn. We’re going to be intent about learning, especially in the first race where we’re going to run the NPK car. We run our own program, do all our own tuning, so we’ll need to adjust a little bit. We’re just going to learn how to make these things go, and that’s the other part of the fun. I love the competition; but to me, learning something new, gaining knowledge, and watching this team we’ve put together be able to grow through it too…I don’t even know if they know what’s coming.
KK: It just seems like everybody has kind of looked at us our entire TV career as outlaw street racers – dumbasses, really. We enjoy coming over and proving to people that we can race with the best, drive with the best, cut a light with the best, and that our equipment is just as good as theirs. I showed a lot of people at PDRA that our cars are a lot faster than they thought we were. I know my car’s got a lot more left in it, so in my heart I feel like I can compete with them in the car I got.
ST: For the first outing, if we can qualify in the top half the field, I would be very happy. Like I say, Pro Mod teams coming to no prep would be just as hard for them as us coming to Pro Mod. It’s a different animal. There’s going to be a learning curve, we’re going to make mistakes. If we can get a round win, every single round will be a bonus. If we can pick up a win, that would be icing on the cake.
JT: I definitely want to qualify. That’s my biggest goal is to make that top 32 and get into the race. I feel like we’re up against the best and it’s gonna be tough. But after this first race, it’s going to let us know where we stand, and what we have to do to improve.
JH: For us, it’s really just to be there on race day. I’ve watched every World Series of Pro Mod, and I’ve watched every one of these races play out. You’ve got 65 bears that are trying to get in this field. Traditionally, you get some really fast runs when the conditions are right, but the race is ran in conditions like we race in regularly. So for us, it’s about not making mistakes and getting ourselves into the program. I feel like there’s a big statement to be made right there. Being the fastest on the grounds is great, but being the guy that’s the last one standing is way better.
A large portion of your fanbase is accustomed to seeing you not show times in NPK. How excited are you for the opportunity to light the scoreboards and show everyone just how fast you all are?
KK: I grew up as a grudge racer, so I was always real secretive about my times. So falling into the Street Outlaws brand was perfect for me. But now that I’ve raced and tuned against everybody that never turns clocks on, it makes it hard. It’s just a big guess on how fast we need to go. It’s gonna be nice to go and look at the scoreboards and see what the guy you drew actually ran before. I think that’ll be a little easier, and give people a chance to see how fast our cars really go.
Kye Kelley, Tara Bowker photo
ST: That’s one of my biggest things is wanting to light the scoreboard. I haven’t put a number on the board in a very long time, probably 10 years. There’s a ton of people out there that like to say we’re not fast, or that any of the guys that race in other sanctioning bodies could come over and walk all over us. And that’s just not the case. With no prep and grudge racing, the numbers are confidential, but I’m ready to share it with the world.
JH: It’s a double-edged sword. We have a chance to go out there and show what we’ve been saying all along – that we do run these numbers. I think we should show times, but I also respect the no-time world and what they’re trying to accomplish. I get it on both sides, but I want people to see how fast we go and I want to see how fast others go because I think that kind of separates the men from the boys.
RR: It’ll be interesting. It’s something we’ve never shown before. To be able to watch it and see the true numbers…it’s going to be just as interesting for us, because we’re not used to that kind of racing. I don’t know what the other guy did, I don’t know what the differences were in mph. We do a lot of guessing. It will be interesting for us to see those differences. I think in No Prep Kings it would be a distraction, but at the Winter Series it will be very interesting for us.
JT: I’m a fan of the clocks. I would love for them to do that in NPK. I know there’s a lot of people that don’t like the clocks, but I love for the fans to see the times. You wouldn’t believe how many people come up and say we can’t run a 4.00 in NPK. They just don’t have a clue. I’ve been 3.72 at 208 mph in a no prep car. I understand NPK’s side of it too, though, because if you’re a guy that can only run 4.00, you’re either going to get better or you’re going to leave the scene.
Final thoughts – with just a couple weeks left until the Snowbird Outlaw Nationals, what are you most excited about or looking forward to once the Winter Series begins?
JT: For me, it’s getting to see all the people that are into that type of racing. I’ve got a lot of friends that run Pro Mod. These are guys I’ve watched my whole life, and now I actually get to go out there and see where I stack up against them. I’m just excited to be there. I think what Wes is doing is going to be the next big thing. I believe it’s really going to take off, and I just want to get in on the ground floor of it.
RR: I’m looking forward to getting into competition with a whole new group of people, learning who they are, and building relationships like we have in No Prep Kings. I also think there’s a little bit of looking forward to showing how fast we can be in something like this.
KK: Just going fast, man; seeing how fast this car can really go. My ultimate goal is to get as close to the 3.50’s as we can. If I put a steel-bodied car in the 3.50’s, that’s gotta be some type of world record. That’s my goal, that’s my plan. Other than that, I’m gonna come down there and meet a whole different type of drag racing fans, mingle with them, and give them boys everything we’ve got.
ST: We’ve been on a fast-paced deal with NPK. There’s not a lot of classes there, so they’ve been pushing us pretty hard and I haven’t got to spend as much time with other teams, friends, and fans as much as I would like. I’m looking forward to talking with a lot of people there in Florida, meeting new people and seeing old friends; getting back into the sport we love, hanging out, talking a bit, and socializing. That’s what we’re really looking forward to.
JH: I’m most excited – and also a little nervous – about the opportunity to go out there. It’s not a big secret, we had a good year as far as how we finished in No Prep Kings, but I had probably one of the worst years I’ve ever had drag racing because we were faced with so many obstacles. So I’m excited about being past all that, going down there and actually racing and having a good time. I’m excited to go out there and race with these guys that I’ve held in high regard for years. Having a deal where we’re all going to come together on one stage is the most exciting thing I think we’ve seen in a long time.
This story was originally published on November 18, 2024.
The post DI Roundtable: NPK Stars Discuss Competing at Upcoming Drag Illustrated Winter Series first appeared on Drag Illustrated.
