Father's Day at the race way: Dad and daughter bond on the drag strip

PALMER – Monte Soper and his daughter, Riley, will spend Father’s Day at a place where they both love to be.

On the racetrack.

Monte is an accomplished drag racer, crowned Alaska Raceway Park season champion several times. Has won divisional races, and competed twice in the drag racing World Finals in Memphis. This knack for racing success is something that he has already passed down to 9-year-old Riley.

This is Riley’s first year in the Junior Dragster division, which is exclusively for youngsters age 7 to 17, and won her first race. That was at the First Points race on May 17, and since then she has already added to her trophy collection, earning another first-place finish as well as a second.

The fact that the two are so good at drag racing is no accident, as they share a common love for the contest of the sport.

“I like the fact that drag racing teaches her about competition, sportsmanship and how to be a good winner or loser,” Monte said.

Getting Riley started wasn’t a very difficult process, either.

“Her first pass down the track she went 15 miles an hour, a little teary eyed,” Monte said. “By the second pass I couldn’t get her out of the car.”

Though the two drive almost completely different cars, Monte in a ’68 Chevrolet Camaro with a 700 horsepower engine, and Riley using a junior dragster, Monte is still able to impart advice to his daughter.

“She’s a good listener – she’s actually learned a lot in such a short time, it’s pretty amazing really,” Monte said.

Riley’s introduction to racing hasn’t been a one-sided lesson, however. Monte does all of the engine work on his own car, and Riley’s dragster has provided a new challenge for his mechanic skills.

“I’m new to these little motors, but I have been learning a lot myself, they’re actually a lot more work than my race car is,” Monte said.

But all of that effort is completely worth it for a father who is visibly excited to pass down not only his favorite pastime, but a family tradition as well.

Monte’s dad, Chris, raced back in the 1960s and 70s, and introduced him to the sport only when he was a lot older than Riley is now.

“When I was in high school he got me into it,” Monte said. “Back when I started there was no Junior Dragster class, so you had to be 16 to start racing.”

That’s not the only drag racing blood that’s flowing through Riley’s veins. Her great-grandfather on her mom’s side is Lee Nelson, the man who essentially started ARP in the early 60s. He leased the land and helped build the racetrack, which was called Polar Dragway when it first opened.

Riley also looks forward to competing against her younger brother, Colt. At the age of 4, Colt has a while to go before he’s behind the wheel of a dragster, but he’ll have his work cut out for him. Riley is not only already a winning racer, but she also can’t wait to compete on a higher level.

“I want to get in a faster car,” she said.

Her dad was also confident in her potential.

“She might be ripping my Camaro down the track in six or seven years,” he said.

Contact Kaden Weaver at 352-2270 or kaden.weaver@frontiersman.com