Josh Henry congratulates his dad after a win.
Racing is very much a family oriented sport. This is often seen in pit areas all over America as fathers, sons, brothers, wives, mothers and sisters maintain cars driven by one of the family members. And on occasion, more than one member of the same family may compete on the track as well as work on the cars behind the scenes.
During the early part of 2016, that has been especially true of one family in particular as the father and son combination of Skimp and Josh Henry have successfully steered their respective machines around the east Tennessee clay. And last Friday, the two Newport, Tenn. residents scored wins on the same night at the Volunteer Speedway in Bulls Gap, Tenn.
“It was a night I’ll never forget, that’s for sure,” son Josh recalled in an interview with InsideDirtRacing.com. “It’s a night that you don’t see often for a father and son to win on the same night. To be honest, it might not ever happen again. It’s really great to see him be able to go out an be as good as he has been for someone that hasn’t raced in ten years.”
Skimp Henry shared the sentiments of his son as he recounted the events of that late April evening.
“I’ve been racing since I was 14-years-old and that was the first time that me and my boy had ever done that,” the proud dad declared. “When I built a car this winter, we were just hoping we could do that. We finally got it done, and in my opinion, it was the best night in racing that I’ve ever had. I don’t know exactly how he feels, but for me to see him win and then me luck up and get one was special.”
The elder Henry raced for many years until his health failed him a decade ago. At that time, he stepped aside to not only seek healing but to mentor his son in the sport both have come to love and enjoy. And having been out of the driver’s seat for so long has created some special challenges upon the veteran racer’s return.
“I had all that surgery and had my colon taken out and it’s really hard just to get back in shape,” Skimp explained. “As of right now, my physical health is the big thing. Just trying to get back into shape to drive a 20 or 25 lap race is something I’m having to work on.”
But recover he has as the father has been tearing up the track in his newly built Street Stock(Modified Street) car. Victory Lane has become almost like a second address for the professional trucker after having won five races in five starts at 411 Motor Speedway and Volunteer Speedway.
“It’s been great,” Josh said of his dad’s rejuvenation. “I always remember watching him as a kid an seeing him win. But after being out if it so long I wouldn’t have thought he would have come straight out of the gate setting track records an going 5-for-5 so far. It’s been great to see and I’m proud of him”
Skimp Henry has become accustomed to Victory Lane in 2016(NV-US Photo)
According to the father, the secret to his immediate success upon his return is no real secret at all.
“I think the key to success is in the preparation, just like it is in any form of racing,” he said. “We’ve raced for 35 years and with me trying to teach my boy how to race over the last eight or ten years has made me understand more of what I need to do. Watching him and teaching him, it seems like I pick up easier now than I used to because I’m taking time to teach him.”
So why did Skimp, who nicknamed his son Punkin while he was still in his mother’s womb, decide to climb back into a car after such a prolonged absence?
“I was getting older, I’m 51 now, and I was sick for a long time,” the patriarch pointed out. “But four years ago they fixed me and I just got to feeling better and you know how it is with the rivalry. Punkin would say “Dad, you can’t do this” and “Dad, you can’t do that”. I just decided to show him what I could do.”
Josh Henry’s Late Model efforts are the main focus of his father.
But in the end, Skimp realizes that his Late Model driving son is still the primary focus of the family’s racing exploits.
“I’d rather run last ten times and him win once,” he insisted. “All of our racing is around him anyway. I wanted to do it again just for the fun of it. When he won his race, my night was made whether I won or lost. Everything we do is for him.”
