John Waters displayed a wealth of emotions after scoring the Rush Dirt Late Model Series feature victory at Bradford Speedway in Pennsylvania. He eked out the win after an epic battle with Logan Roberson. (For more on Roberson, read “Logan Roberson Wins His First Touring Title”.)
“It was a very intense race — I was up on the wheel,” Waters, 40, of Whitesville, New York, said. “Any time you can get past Logan Roberson, it’s a good race.”
After starting seventh in the feature, Waters quickly moved up through the field. He chased Roberson throughout the feature. As Waters followed Roberson, he detected a possible weakness.
“I saw his left elephant ear [aka front fender] slipping underneath his tire,” said Waters. “He kept getting a little push. It allowed me to stay along with him.”
However, to make the pass, Waters needed some luck to fall his way.
“He was having trouble with his restarts — I knew that was the only place where I could get past him,” said Waters. “With five to go, we got underneath him a couple of times [but couldn’t make the pass]. So, we kept waiting and waiting.”
Caution came out on lap 27. Opportunity came — and Waters was prepared.
“We made the pass on the restart and went on to win,” Waters said. “We caught the luck, and it was pretty exciting.”
While John Waters has many wins, he struggled a few years ago. He switched chassis brands to match the one raced by his teammate Steve Lebarron, of Troupsburg, New York. Waters moved into a car from Black Diamond Racecars by Chub Frank, which turned his program around.
“We could compare notes together,” said Waters of the advantages to running the same car as his teammate. “[Plus, Chub Frank] still has that old-school mentality. He keeps it simple. Since I brought it out of the box, my worst finish has been fourth.”
The Outside Groove Executive Editor has covered motorsports since 2000. His many awards include the 2019 Eastern Motorsport Press Association (EMPA) Jim Hunter Writer of the Year and the 2013 Russ Catlin Award for Excellence in Motorsports Journalism.
