Derek Henson earned a win on May 1 in the super stock class at Double X Speedway in California, Missouri. His two-year-old daughter Bristol eagerly joined him in victory lane.
“Bristol loves racing,” Henson, of Russellville, Missouri, said. “She has been in my arms in victory lane since she was born in 2020. She was three months old when I first celebrated with her at Lake Ozark Speedway [in Eldon, Missouri].”
Henson’s wife, Nicole, woke up a napping Bristol and four-month-old brother Pacen, to tell them that their father had won the feature. Henson understands the value of growing up with family in racing. He began his career in go-karts as a child. Henson and his younger brother, Cole, moved up the ranks to drive super late models. Derek drove a late model for one year. That’s when Bristol experienced her first taste of victory.
“She saw the fist pumps and ‘number one’ hand signs from that win on,” said Henson. “She’s getting them down and taking off with it. Soon her and her brother will be learning how to drive — probably in karts like my brother and I did.”
Henson settled down in the super stocks since it allowed him to juggle family life and racing life. He typically races once a weekend — either Saturdays at Lake Ozark Speedway or Sundays at Double X Speedway.
“It’s hit or miss which night we will race,” Henson said. “We have to do family stuff, too. The little ones can get burned out on racing, just like some adults do. We can pick a night to race and still have the other weekend day for family activities other than racing.”
Nevertheless, Derek Henson and his family, including Bristol, consider racing the highlight of their weekend — especially when that involves a trip to victory lane.
“Bristol was all excited to get another trophy and flag,” said Henson. “Of course, she’s named after Bristol Motor Speedway. Her brother’s name is ‘pace’ with an ‘n.’ They’re born into racing, so they were given racing names.”
Mike Adaskaveg has written hundreds of stories since the website’s inception. This year marks his 54th year of covering auto racing. Adaskaveg got his start working for track photographer Lloyd Burnham at Connecticut’s Stafford Motor Speedway in 1970. Since then, he’s been a columnist, writer, and photographer, in racing and in mainstream media, for several outlets, including the Journal Inquirer, Boston Herald, Stock Car Racing, and Speedway Illustrated. Among Adaskaveg’s many awards are the 1992 Eastern Motorsport Press Association (EMPA) Ace Lane Photographer of the Year and the 2019 National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) George Cunningham Writer of the Year.
