Peppers make racing a family affair

Brian Pepper’s quest for his first season championship at Yakima Speedway this summer involved two formidable challenges — neither of which was his young age — and one domestic tug-of-war.

The Fall Classic at the Yakima Speedway will be a family affair when Mike Pepper, left, races against his son Brian in the Super Stocks class. Brian finished first while his dad finished second in the speedway. (GORDON KING/Yakima Herald-Republic)

First, he had to catch the man who set a torrid early pace, winning the Apple Cup’s Super Stocks event and the Speedway’s first three points races.

Then, once that was overcome — barely, he had to protect a sliver of a lead over that same driver in the season finale, which started with the two separated by seven little points.

Brian’s father, Mike, advised his 19-year-old son of the pitfalls in such a delicate situation.

“We talked a lot about it and it came down to being smart. Be aggressive but don’t go for everything,” Brian said. “It would be a horrible way to lose the championship — making a big mistake in the last race.”

Sound advice and very generous, considering it was Mike who was directly on Brian’s rear bumper.

“It was such a nerve-wracking thing at the end, worrying about the points,” Mike said. “I had pieces of scrap paper all over the house figuring out the different ways it could end up. We were definitely enjoying it, but when that (final) race was over it was such a sigh a relief.”

Brian got his hard-earned prize two weeks ago, finishing second in the finale to close out the 11-race season with 678 points. Mike completed the family sweep with 665 points and defending champion Buck Noel Jr. was third with 659.

With all the pressure of that tight three-car race, the Peppers haven’t been able to relax and truly celebrate their rare feat. But that will all change this weekend in the 21st annual Fall Classic, where they will again compete head-to-head but under completely different circumstances.

“We just get to go out and race and not worry about points. What a relief that is,” Brian said. “I love it because the field is big and there are cars from all over. It’s a weekend to just have fun.”

The Peppers will race in Street Stocks, one of four divisions in the Northwest’s final racing event of the season. The 75-lap Streets main is scheduled to directly precede Sunday’s 200-lap Late Model main event.

It was a year ago when Brian Pepper got his breakout win and gave notice for the ensuing season, winning the Fall Classic just a couple months after his graduation from East Valley High School.

“That was just a crazy race and a lucky one for us,” Brian said. “We qualified eighth, they inverted the top eight and we started on the poll. Then we led the whole race, which never happens. It was just crazy.”

Crazy maybe to lead the entire race, but not that surprising this was the car to do it. In the 2006 Fall Classic, Brian’s 1978 Chevy Camero was a double winner with Mike Hill taking the Hobby Stocks race and Rich Peters capturing the Street Stocks event.

With a fourth-place finish in Super Stocks during a partial ‘07 season in that hot car, Brian’s focus this summer was on the full campaign and a points title. The Peppers converted Brian’s former Hobby Stocks machine to Super Stocks and Mike drove that car.

“We converted that car to be a back-up if Brian needed it. I never dreamed the car would be that good,” Mike said. “After I won the first three races, we started thinking it could be a good year for both of us.”

As the season drew near its end, the father-son duel managed to keep from sliding off the track and into the dirt. Or into a wall.

“There were never any hard feelings. We just had a lot of fun,” Mike said. “I never backed off. I always told myself if I could beat him I was going to do it. Once we saw there was a chance we could finish 1-2, we knew we couldn’t be foolish enough to take each other out. We had that agreement — at least I did.”

The Peppers are considering a step up for Brian next year, possibly to the Late Model class. But for now there’s still some family celebrating to do.

“It was such a cool father-son thing all season. We were always up front together,” Brian said. “We were competing for every win and going as hard as we could. But he was always there as my dad, as my teammate.”