NHRA: 3-time Pro Stock champ Jason Line to retire after '20 -- NBC Sports

Veteran NHRA drag racer and three-time Pro Stock champion Jason Line surprised the drag racing community Wednesday, announcing the 2020 season will be his last as a driver.

Line is calling his final season before retiring the “Finish Line Tour.” NHRA’s National Dragster broke the news Wednesday morning.

The upcoming season will hold significant meaning to Line for 50 reasons, so to speak:

* This is the 50th anniversary of the Pro Stock class in NHRA competition.

* Line turned 50 years old last July.

* Line has amassed 50 national event wins in his Pro Stock career, his most recent triumph coming last season to kick off the six-race 2019 NHRA Countdown to the Championship playoffs at Maple Grove Raceway in Reading, Pennsylvania.

The timing – and numbers – just seemed to be right for Line, who drives for Ken Black Racing (KB Racing) and pilots the Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaro — to call it quits.

Pro Stock driver Jason Line in action during the 2019 season. Photo: NHRA

However, Line made it very clear in comments to National Dragster that while he will be stepping away from behind the wheel, he will not be stepping away from the sport.

According to National Dragster, Line intends to continue working for Mooresville, North Carolina-based KB Racing, building and tuning Pro Stock and Sportsman class race motors for the team and its customers.

After a stint at Joe Gibbs Racing’s NASCAR operation as chief dynamometer engine specialist beginning in 1998, Line joined KB Racing in 2003 in a similar role during the week and as a Pro Stock racer on the weekends.

“It’s been a good run, and I’ve really enjoyed driving a Pro Stock car for Ken Black and Summit Racing,” Line told National Dragster. “I’m not leaving Pro Stock — I’m just going to be working for wins for KB Racing from a different kind of seat.”

Line won Pro Stock championships in 2006, 2011 and 2016. He finished fourth last season. Line also won the 1993 Stock Eliminator sportsman class national championship before turning pro in 2003 and went on to win Pro Stock rookie of the year and earn his first of his eventual 50 national event wins in 2004.

“I’m very grateful to (teammate and four-time Pro Stock champ) Greg Anderson and (KB Racing team owners) Ken and Judy Black for giving me the opportunity to drive for so long for the best team in drag racing,” Line told National Dragster. “Driving a Pro Stock car was for sure a dream of mine as a kid, and winning a Pro Stock championship was something you always hope you’ll achieve but never really imagine will happen.

“I love this class, and it has been a privilege and an honor to be part of it for so long and be able to do so well.”

"It's been a good run, and I've really enjoyed driving a Pro Stock car for Ken Black and Summit Racing,” Line said. “I'm not leaving Pro Stock—I'm just going to be working for wins for KB Racing from a different kind of seat." @NHRA #TheFinishLineTour #ProStock #TeamSummit https://t.co/Mj35ZpdKQS

— Jason Line (@JasonLine_PS) January 15, 2020

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Vicki Golden has earned a career worthy of a thousand stories and 805 Beer tells at least one of them, as “Inverted Perspective” premiered March 30 on the company’s website and YouTube channel.

Golden did more to break the glass ceiling in SuperMotocross than she ever thought possible. She knows this because riders have never felt the need to explain any of her accomplishments with the disclaimer, “for a girl”.

At this point in Golden’s career, she’s been the first woman to finish top 10 in AMA Arenacross Lites, the first woman to qualify in the Fast 40 in Monster Energy AMA Supercross and the first woman to compete in freestyle Moto X competition, earning a bronze medal by doing so.

Her love for moto came from childhood while she watched her dad and brother ride. By seven she was on her bike and making waves throughout Southern California.

Golden, 30, is still madly in love with the sport and has no plans on moving away but her career is already one to talk about. 805 Beer’s film series wanted to do exactly that.

“I’m taken aback by it all,” Golden told NBC Sports about the documentary. “It’s just crazy to see your story, it’s one thing to live your life and battle everything that comes about but it’s another to just sit there and talk about it.”

805 approached Golden about the feature by asking, “Do you even realize that what you do, and your story is special?”

Golden took the question as a blank canvas to map out the highs and lows of her career and life.

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The title “Inverted Perspective” came from a brainstorming session with Dominick Russo and it highlights Golden’s outlook on the sport of SuperMotocross and her life in general.

“My whole life, my whole career was thinking differently and looking at things that shouldn’t be done and aren’t there, while being able to make a place for myself, where no one thought there should be a place,” Golden said. “It’s inspiring someone to think in different ways. It sums up my life.”

*Vicki Golden is not “fast for a girl”; she’s just fast. – 805 Beer*

While Golden is no stranger to the spotlight, this was the first time she’s been fully involved with the storytelling and creation of a feature about herself.

“It’s not like a full new experience,” Golden said. “Obviously, you get your standard questions about your upbringing and accomplishments, but I’ve never really put into perspective things that happened in my past with my dad and putting that to light. Also, certain other things that maybe got overlooked in previous interviews or films. I wanted to touch on these and Dom wanted to create a story. It’s just cool to see it come to light, it’s a nearly impossible thing to tell somebody’s life story in 40 minutes.”

Golden’s father was left paralyzed after an ATV accident, robbing him the opportunity to ride again. This happened a few months before the father-daughter duo was set to compete in the Loretta Lynn’s Amateur Nationals when Vicki was 12. While she might have been unable to grasp the severity at the time, it’s something she carries with her. Golden continues to ride in his honor.

Years later, an accident in 2018 nearly sidelined the then 25-year-old Vicki when a freestyle accident almost resulted in the amputation of her lower leg.

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Golden 805 Beer — *Vicki Golden has ridden a variety of disciplines in SuperMotocross, which gives her a unique perspective. – 805 Beer*

“Inverted Perspective” highlights her father’s diligence in helping Vicki continue with her career and the kindness and strength he carried while fighting his own battle.

“My dad was the entire reason that I started riding in the first place,” Golden said. “So, to honor his memory and to honor what we went through and how hard he pushed to keep our dream alive and keep everything going – in that sense then, it was really special to be able to honor him and talk about him.”

The 40-minute feature was filmed entirely in black and white, a stark contrast from the oversaturated world of motocross where the brighter the suit the easier it is for fans to find their rider and follow him in the race. By filming in monochrome Russo and Golden had the chance to focus on the race and track from a different perspective.

“It was cool to be able to film it differently,” Golden said. “It created a challenge in the sense of what was going to be more visually impactful for the film.

“I couldn’t be here without the companies that back me but at the same time, it’s not like the logos or colors disappeared, it’s just different lights shed on different spots. It’s just a cool way to do it and to take color away and still be impactful. When you think of black and white, you think of old school, the OG way of doing things.”

NHRA: 3-time Pro Stock champ Jason Line to retire after 2020 season

Vicki Golden and 805 Beer tell a unique story from an Inverted Perspective

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