JACKSON HUMANIC IS TEENAGE SENSATION IN TRI-CITY SPEEDWAY PRO STOCKS
by Brian Spaid

August 11, 2006 

   This Sunday night, Tri-City Speedway may be hosting Kids Night, but at least one teenager is not interested in bike races anymore.

   Jackson Humanic of Titusville is the 13-year-old son of Pro Stock car owners Ken and Chris Humanic. In 2004, Gerry Bruce of Franklin won five feature races and the track championship for the Humanics.  This season, Bruce and the Humanics started a different venture in the USAR Hooters Pro Cup Series. Even with the decision to move to asphalt racing, their title-winning Pro Stock still sat in the garage. That is, until young Humanic was tabbed for the ride.

   “I really wanted to drive our Pro Stock,” said Humanic. “I’ve always wanted to drive Pro Stocks.”

   So, Ken Humanic contacted track owners Mike Graham and Roger Crick about the chances of Jackson Humanic racing the Chevrolet No. 17 in 2006.

   “We don’t make decisions like this lightly,” said Graham. “We are not opposed to young drivers because they are the future of our sport. But we will only allow teenage drivers to compete at Tri-City if they have demonstrated a significant amount of racing experience.”

   For five seasons, Jackson Humanic competed in go karts at tracks such as Pine Hill Speedway in Shippenville, Slippery Rock Speedway, Selinsgrove Speedway, Race 1 Raceway in DuBois, and Double A Speedway in Utica. Humanic won 11 races at that level. He also gained vast knowledge working with his father on race car setups for Bruce since their Pro Stock team started in late 2003.

   With the appropriate parental waiver signed, Humanic started his Pro Stock career in a practice session on the Venango County half-mile oval on April 29.

   “The first couple of races were a little nerve-wracking in a full-size car,” said Humanic, who turns 14 on Aug. 19. “Once I got going, it’s been a lot of fun. The biggest thing to learn about the Pro Stocks is throttle control. In go karts, you have no throttle control. In the Pro Stocks, you have to learn it. You also have to learn how to use the brakes when racing.”

   Humanic also found that the speed difference was much different in the Pro Stocks compared to the lightweight go karts.

   “I expected the Pro Stock to be faster, and it really isn’t. The speed sensation is different. In the go kart, you’re in a lighter race car going 50 mph on an eighth-mile track. The Pro Stock has faster speed, but it is heavier on a larger track. It makes the car setup much more important.”

   Of course, it helps that Humanic has the 2005 track champion in his pit area to teach him the ropes.

   “Gerry’s been helping me a lot. He tells me when I’m doing something wrong or what I need to do to improve.”

   Bruce still drives the car in the Detroit Iron Pro Stock Series races, and collected a feature win in Humanic’s car on July 16. Bruce’s efforts helped move the teenage sensation into the top five in the Pro Stock point chase. Even so, Humanic has already started to make a name for himself at Tri-City. On June 18, in his fourth night of competition, Humanic won his first heat race. He followed that victory with another heat race win on July 9.

   “I was really surprised when I won that first heat race,” said Humanic. “It just came to me. I think we can get better and do some adjustments to the car.  Everyone got faster in the offseason and we need to make some improvements to our team to get us back up front consistently.”

   The other Pro Stock drivers have apparently accepted the young racer among their ranks too.

   “I pretty much know the other drivers because I’ve worked with my dad and Gerry for the last few years,” said Humanic, who is home schooled. “They talk to me. I just want to earn their respect on the race track.”

   With some rapid success at the early stages of his oval track career, Humanic seems to have the talent to move up in the sport’s ranks. It seems natural given that his father’s team, KH Racing, runs on the USAR Hooters Cup Pro Series.

   “I want to win a few races in the Pro Stocks, and I eventually want to move to asphalt racing,” said Humanic. “You’re allowed to race on the Hooters Pro Cup Series when you’re 15. So, as long as dad and Gerry are O.K. with it, I’d like to give it a shot in the next couple of years.”

   Young racers have to start somewhere. Even Jeff Gordon raced a sprint car at Tri-City in 1985 at age 14. For Humanic, the Pro Stocks at Tri-City may only be the beginning.