SWJDS DRIVER SPOTLIGHT

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Emmaly Miller has been racing Junior Dragsters for four years. She was first introduced to the sport through her dad’s side of the family, who have been involved in drag racing for over 35 years. With racing in her blood, it was only natural for her to follow in their footsteps. Both her dad and grandfather are racers as well, making it a true family tradition.

Emmaly currently competes in the Southwest Junior Dragster Series and Southeast Junior Series, typically racing in the 13+ Age Group, 7.90 Index, and All Run Big Money classes. As this is her final season in Junior Dragsters, she also has plans to move up into her full-size dragster soon.

 Tate Hildebrandt has been drag racing for four years, ever since his grandpa, Kevin Theobald and dad, Jason Hildebrandt introduced him to the sport. Racing runs in the family, as both his grandpa and dad are also racers themselves. Tate started out racing in the 8.90 class and has since moved up into 7.90. He primarily competes in the Southwest Jr. Dragster Series and considers Houston Raceway Park, Xtreme Raceway Park, and Pine Valley Raceway his home tracks. This past year, Tate raced at 13 different tracks over 25 weekends, including prestigious events like the NHRA Western Conference Finals at Bandimere and the NHRA Eastern Conference Finals in Bristol. 

 Cayson Walker started Junior Drag Racing a little over 3 years ago. Introduced to the sport by watching his mother race, Cayson was captivated and eager to follow in her footsteps. Racing runs deep in Cayson’s family. Alongside Cayson, his twin brother and mother are racers themselves, creating a tight-knit racing family.  In the fiercely competitive arena of Junior Drag Racing, Cayson competes in the 8.90 Index and 10-12 Age Group Junior classes. He is a regular competitor at the Southwest Junior Dragster Series and Texas Bracket Series. He also enjoys traveling to other races around his home state of Texas. 

 Regan Picha started racing Junior Dragsters four years ago after being introduced to sport by his Dad. He currently competes in the 8.90 Junior Dragster class within the NHRA Division 4 and IHRA Summit Super Series. He also enjoys following the SouthWest Jr. Super Series schedule in and around the state of Texas. This past year, he raced the NHRA Western Conference Finals and hopes to attend the Bristol Eastern Conference Finals this coming year. Regan also shares the love of drag racing with his younger sister, Ellison, who also races Junior Dragsters. 

 Dawson ‘D-Pain’ Rogers entered the world of Junior Dragster racing four years ago and has since developed into a tough competitor. His journey into the sport began when his Dad started taking him to the race track, sparking a passion that has only grown since. Racing runs in the family, with both his Dad and his sister, Addysan, sharing the same love for the track. Dawson typically competes in the 8.90 class within the Southwest Jr Dragster Series and also travels to various races throughout the season. While Pine Valley Raceway serves as Dawson’s home track, he races all over the country, spanning from Las Vegas to Bristol, Tennessee.

 Colton Farley has been involved in drag racing for nearly four years, with his journey beginning in July 2019 when he acquired his first car. He swiftly made his debut in the Southwest Junior Dragster Series in September of the same year, where he showcased his talent by winning the last two SWJDS 11.90 index races, securing a 3rd place finish in points despite attending only three races.

His introduction to the sport came through his good friend Shelby Hall, who ignited his passion for drag racing. While Colton’s father had previously raced and was in the process of getting back into racing after reclaiming his 67 Mustang, he decided to put his own racing endeavors on hold to support Colton’s drag racing career.

Landon Emmons of Emmons Motorsports Racing has been racing Junior Dragsters for four years now, having started back in 2020 at the age of 11. Introduced to the sport through his family, Landon’s upbringing revolved around the thrill of racing, with his father, alongside uncles Terry, Jerry, and Gary, as well as his older brother Will, all actively participating in the sport of drag racing.  Currently, Landon competes in the 13-17 age group at racetracks throughout his home state of Texas. Additionally, he has plans to start running Stock Eliminator this year.

Kash Green Wilkinson is a remarkably talented Junior Dragster driver, who, over the past year and a half, has been fearlessly competing in races across Texas. Since none of his family members race, it was the TV Show, Street Outlaws, that ignited Kash’s passion for drag racing. DragChamp’s own, Gary Don Free played a pivotal role, generously offering advice and support to kickstart Kash’s journey in the Junior Dragster program. His home tracks are Xtreme Raceway Park and Pine Valley Raceway where he runs the 8.90 class. Kash has also competed in the Southwest Jr. Dragster Series that races throughout the state of Texas and beyond.

 Carter Poplawski is going into his third season of racing Junior Dragsters this year. He was introduced to the sport of drag racing by watching his Uncle David race his Super Comp Dragster and his Cousin Parker race his Junior Dragster.

In 2021, he was crowned as the Southwest Jr. Dragster Series 10-12 Year Old Champion and the Xtreme Bracket Series Jr Mod Champion.