AWRENCE, DAVE HOENIG/FLAT TRAK FOTOS AND ANDREA WILSON
NATURALTHE
Jake Johnson is the
2010 AMA Grand
National Champion
Jake Johnson is about as level headed of a racer as you’ll ever find. Catch up with him in the pits after a race and you’ll be
hard pressed to tell if he finished first
or 15th. Johnson just seems to love the
thrill of the race. As long as he gave it
his best he’s having a good time, and
in the big picture Johnson’s final result
almost seems secondary.
And training? Jared Mees once
joked as he and JR Schnabel sat on
the back of the grid shaking their head
at Johnson, who was positioned on the
front row in spite of his distinct lack of
physical prowess. “Here we train like
Olympians, eat all the right foods and
race every chance we get and here
Jake gets up off the couch and kicks
our butt,” Mees laughed. The thinly
built Johnson admits that training is not
his strong suit. Yet in spite of his seem-
ingly nonchalant approach to racing,
“Jersey Jake,” as his fans call him, gets
results.
