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Jorgensen, Langham Stare Down Championship Dreams as Pro Trucks Track Title on Line in Season Finale

By Chuck Corder

Taylor Jorgensen has made quite the splash in her rookie Pro Trucks campaign at Five Flags Speedway.

Yet despite her three wins and a runner-up finish through five races, the 20-year-old Georgian still has had to navigate rough waters thanks to a close rival.

Veteran Howard Langham, 49, has kept her honest by being the model of consistency. The Mobile-area driver hasn’t finished lower than sixth and boasts three podium finishes, including a pair of seconds.

Jorgensen leads Langham by a slim seven points heading into the 40-lap Pro Trucks season finale Saturday at Five Flags.

“It’s a little nerve wracking,� Jorgensen said of maintaining her championship cushion. “(Langham has) been the most consistent all season. He has been right there, knocking on the door with a bunch of top-three finishes.

“It has made my drive to win even more extreme than it already was. Honestly, of course I want to win (Saturday’s) race, but the championship means the most to me. If I can finish ahead of the (No.) 1 car (Langham), that’d be awesome. If not, the championship will be well-deserved for him as well.�

Also, racing for a championship Saturday will be the Allen Turner Hyundai Pro Late Models, which will battle it out in the Allen Turner Tuneup 100. The Dock on Pensacola Beach Sportsmen (25 laps) and Butler U-Pull-It Bombers (20) will battle in their penultimate race before the Night of Champions next Saturday night, Sept. 24.

Gates open at 4 p.m. Saturday. Admission is $15 for adults; $12 for seniors, military and students; $5 for children ages 6 to 11; free for kids 5 and under.

It won’t take a miracle Saturday for Langham to pull off the upset and come away with the track championship. All he needs is to either finish four spots ahead of Jorgensen during the 40 lapper or, first, make up some ground during qualifying and then still beat her to the flagstand.

The winner of any race, regardless of division, at the famed half-mile asphalt oval is awarded 50 points. Second earns 48 and the points continue to descend by intervals of two throughout the field.

Langham could easily make up that gap with his polished driving skills. There’s also the possibility of accidents, a reality that happened back in June when Jorgensen finished 12th, easily her worst result.

“Any other time, she’s been spot on and consistent,� Langham said. “You can’t knock her for what she’s been able to accomplish. She’s done a heckuva job, especially considering it’s her first year driving a truck, and it’s her first year in Pensacola.

“Hats off to her. If we can somehow sneak out with (the title), that’d be icing on the cake for us.�

With Saturday’s finale being the last race before the 49th annual Snowball Derby arrives in December, there is an expectation based on past seasons to see drivers that haven’t raced at Pensacola’s high banks all year or in their careers, period.

If history repeats itself, it can throw more variables into Jorgensen’s celebration plans.

“I’ve considered it — the new faces and new trucks will see out there,� she said. “I’m just going to take my time, and pace myself. Hopefully we can get up front, so we don’t get involved in any trouble.

“My goal is to not let that happen, though. I’ll give space where space is needed, but also get in front of trucks when the time’s right. Hopefully, it’s a clean race. That’s what we need for a championship.�

Langham knows all about winning championships at Five Flags.

An engineering technician with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Langham has been coming to Pensacola off and on since 1998, and reached the mountaintop in 2005 when he won the Super Stocks edition of the Snowball Derby.

“I’ve always enjoyed running Pensacola, sometimes more than running Mobile,� he said. “It’s a finesse track. It didn’t matter the horsepower or the tires you had, to finesse a car you have to keep it straight. It puts it more in the driver’s hands. That’s my style of racing. Not wide open every lap. I just try to maintain.�

Langham has had no issues with maintaining this year, a 180-degree turn from a few years ago when he thought his racing days had long past him by.

He had stepped aside. That was until oldest son Jonathan Langham, currently a Sportsmen driver at Five Flags, traded a Modified for a Pro Truck.

Howard Langham took a look at it and quickly felt the power of racing tug at him once again.

“I’m a pretty big boy; I’m not small person,� he said. “I looked down at that truck, and thought, that thing fits me. I told Jonathan, ‘You need to climb out and find you something else to drive.’

“That broke his heart, I’m sure. But once I got in it and started driving, I got competitive. That made his day to see me having fun. It brought back some good times.�

He’s hoping for some more come Saturday. Jorgensen, on the other hand, hopes to play the role of heel.

While the young driver is effusive with her praise for Langham and respects his driving style, the desire to hoist a championship trophy and earn a Hoosier Tire jacket that comes at the postseason awards banquet.

“He’s just been a great competitor and a complete gentleman on the track,� Jorgensen said. “I’m excited to go out there and finish strong and go out as champions. It’s one of my biggest races so far. I’m really excited because I know I have a team behind me that can make it happen. We’ve just gotta stay strong.�

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