March 10, 2010 Issue of Dirt Modified Magazine
Used with Permission

In the past 15 years, Johnny Saathoff of Beatrice, Nebraska, has been called many names. His kids call him Dad. Workers at Jet Racing know him as the boss. IMCA Modified drivers see him as one tough competitor. As a youngster, 2009 IMCA Modified National Champion Dylan Smith idolized Saathoff. He is talented, flamboyant, and somewhat controversial. He has been called champion so many times he has to check his website to see just how many. And he is one of a rare breed, with a nickname everyone recognizes - The Jet.

If ever a driver's resume had Hall of Fame stamped all over it, it is Saathoff's. He won his first IMCA Modified race in 1995, and since then, has added 300 more IMCA A-feature victories to his total. He took home 30 or more feature trophies for four years in a row, starting in 1996, including an IMCA record 39 wins in 1999. He held that record until 2004, and his 301 feature wins is second all-time for IMCA Modifieds. He has won 20 or more features seven times since 1996 and laid claim to 17 point championships at seven different tracks. Saathoff was the dominant force in turn of the century IMCA Modified racing, winning National Championships in 1996, 1997, 1998, and 1999.

But Saathoff was a winning driver before he ever climbed into an IMCA Modified. In his 30th year of racing, Saathoff began his career in 1980 at his hometown, Beatrice Speedway, driving a 1972 Chevy Nova Late Model Sportsman. He garnered a win in his rookie season and before long, a nickname, too. Saathoff got into racing because of his Dad, Elmer, and the young Saathoff acquired seat time racing around his father's salvage yard. One day family friend, Dallas Parde, said to him, "Johnny, you sure are jetting around." Football fans may remember the University of Nebraska's Heisman Trophy winner Johnny "The Jet" Rodgers, who was still quite popular in Nebraska in the early '80s. Saathoff immediately became Johnny "The Jet" Saathoff, or simply "Jet". Among his memorabilia, Saathoff has an autograph from Rodgers, who signed it "The REAL Johnny "The Jet" Johnny Rodgers."