As the @NHRA celebrates the Nitro generation for 2012, many know the fabric of the sport has been the interaction drivers have with their fans. Spending time with their favorite driver means alot to them no matter their age. One of the most fan friendly drivers on the NHRA full throttle circuit is Parts plus HQ Top fuel drivers Clay Millican. Clay understands what the fans mean to the sport. Along with having won 6 top fuel championships, Millican is one of the best driving talents out there. I along with my good friend Jason Carey (@StrokerAcekid) were able to sit in on a conference call and interview Clay from his shop in Drummonds Tenn. To Clay, any fan is important to him:

"For me, it started about the time I was born, and I dont mean that I had fans from the time I was born." Stated Clay "I grew up in a lil bitty grocery store and it was very important in my upbringing that everybody who walked thru that door was our V.I.P. He continued "I was able to eat, you know thats how mom and daddy made their living. So from a very early on I was raised to treat everyone with respect, and the world would be a better place if everyone acted that way''

When the sensation of going to a sporting event for the first time in ones life, the excitement level goes sky high. For Clay and his father traveling to any motorsports event whether it was sprint cars, nascar or tractor pulls, it seemed like second nature. But one drag race in particular stuck out in Clay's mind:

"I vividly remember going to Lakeland Dragway near Memphis, and I saw Big Daddy Don Garlits match race against Ron Bucher (worlds fastest big block chevy)" Clay said " From that moment on that was it. I knew right then I wanted to drive one of these cars, and I knew I wanted to drive a top fuel car"

The pressures of running any team in racing can become very hectic, and lots of drivers have several ways of relieving the stress and tension of the long season that lasts for 23 races. For Millican, he loves to work at the shop to relax and unwind along with playing golf in his spare time.

"I stay here at the shop real late at night" Clay stated "I love working on my kids' mx stuff, and we won the national title and that was alot of fun for me" Im new to golf, im 2 years into it." Millican added "I got invited to a tournament by Justin Timberlake's parents at his golf course in Memphis. I made sure to learn about golf, and its only 15 minutes away from the shop so I go there alot"

In today's world, heroes mean alot to anyone no matter their age from one's childhood up to their adulthood. They can shape our lives into what we dream of. Clay credits 2 heroes for having helped shape his career.

"Obvoiusly, my daddy is #1 on the list. he taught me so much about driving" Clay told us "To be honest with you, no question about it; without him I wouldn't be doing what I do now. Mom and daddy did all they could to help me go racing" The Tennesee native continued "Another one of my heroes is Richard Petty. I always thought the way he reached people, that was someone to model yourself after. John Force is another of my heroes, he means so much to the sport of drag racing. I especially miss Kenny Bernstein being out there. As far as i'm concerned, he is the model of what a professional drag racer should be"

Ask any drag racer usually their favorite race track is the one where they have won the most at. Or its where the fans are smiling and enjoying themselves. The choice for Clay was clear what his favorite track is:

"Norwalk, OH. It comes from the top. The Bader family who owns the race track there are all about putting on a show for the fans" Millican exclaimed "The owner Bill bader Sr. greets the fans, helps parks the cars, cleans up the race track after a race, always has coffee and donuts for al the teams. From there, it has gone right thru the family with their children"

As most fans have seen, the top fuel class has become ultra competitive with races decided by thousandths of a second. Teams have been running astronomical times and incredible speeds. Certain teams are at disadvantages. My dear friend Jason Carey asked Clay what he felt was the biggest obstical in getting his first wally:

"We need to have more laps by getting more round wins in competition. Obvoiusly it's on us to do it" Said Millican "At Englishtown, it was a prime example. We've got young crew chiefs in Justin Crosslin and Mike Domagala tuning us to our quickest run to 1000ft (A 3.80). Clay Added "There's a tremendous amount of supercharger development going on that costs near 300k. And we've rented time to develop our supercharger. When our young guys continue, this team is only going to get better"

So far the 2012 season is 9 races in to its 23 race schedule and there have been plenty of surprises. The performances of Morgan Lucas and his race team, and the continued dominance in Top Fuel by Don Schumacher racing. However one surprise has shocked alot of people including Millican:

"Alan Johnson (Al Anabi crew chief) having not won a race so far this year. I mean that has really shocked me"

But in any motorsports, rivalries are everywhere. Its formed part of the fabric that is the NHRA. Muldowney Vs. Kalitta, Snake Vs. Mongoose. There are racers who have a friendly rivalry when going up against one another, and my good friend jason asked Clay if there was a particular driver he either liked or disliked to run up against out on the track:

"I love racing against Larry Dixon. Him and i have this ultra competitive thing going that we rarely speak about. But I just love racing agaisnt him" Clay told Jason " I also enjoy running against Bruce Litton in the IHRA. He's been the guy i've staged against the most. Its always fun running with him"

From the begining, racing machines have had some of the best paint jobs ever seen. Even so, the helmets of drivers are starting to catch the eye of those attending any event. Most racers give an artist a general idea of what they would like on the design of their helmet which is exactly the way Clay likes to have his done:

" A company is washington state designs my helmets" Said Clay "They ask me what do I want and I say i'd like it to look like it came from the 60's era of drag racing. I love to collect helmets, put them in my office and in the lobby of the race shop. i also like to display my firesuits in my shop much the way John Force does in his"

When a new season begins, teams love to set goals. Fans of NHRA drag racing feel the same way about their favorite teams or drivers because they want to see them do well for the upcoming tour. For fans of Clay Millican and the parts plus team, he states fans can look forward to good times:

"Hopefully our fans can look forward to more win lights. We look forward to entertaining our fans" Clay said  "We look forward to Justin and Mike and everybody on this team making this car haul butt and getting that first NHRA Wally. " Millican chuckled when adding "It always makes me laugh when fans asks me when i'm going to win. You can't make it happen, it will happen in its own time"