Grassroots racing is the true backbone of drag racing; without it there would be no consistent support for local tracks. While it’s great to see the big show NHRA nitro cars, or a massive no prep race, the bracket racers and small local series are what keeps the lights on at most tracks. After a pair of national series pulled out of National Trail Raceway in Ohio, there was a vacuum in the Midwest for many racers. In 2008, John and Ben Holt started their own local series, the John Holt Nitrous Shootout Series to give regional heads-up racers a place to compete and fill the void.

Before the John Holt Nitrous Shootout Series started, National Trail Raceway hosted several different events that a variety of racers participated in. “In 2007 there were two NSCA races, and one NMCA race at National Trail Raceway.  The NCSA folded up and NMCA took their race away, so it left quite a few racers without any events at their local track,” Ben says.

After the devastating loss of both series, the Holts’ sat down and came up with the plan to start their series. They approached the track management and presented a plan where they would supply the rules and purse money, so all the track had to do was give them a place to race. “We knew the rules package would have to be kept simple, because the track wouldn’t really be able to handle a complex race with complex tech. At the time most of the local racers were running nitrous combos, so the demand was pretty obvious,” Ben explains.

The John Holt Nitrous Shootout Series has been going strong for the past eight years as a monthly series, drawing racers from all over the Midwest. Car counts have always been strong for each event, and the racers love the opportunity to come race on a track that has been prepped for the level of power they’re trying to put down. Fans enjoy the great show that includes four-second passes with big ‘gorilla’ nitrous flames coming out of the headers, and great side-by-side racing.

In a time where we’re seeing more tracks closing than opening, this kind of series helps to keep local heads-up racing interest strong, brings more racers out, and puts more fans in the stands at the track.