January 2018 Member Spotlight – Jolynn Franke

January 2018 Member Spotlight – Jolynn Franke

Obligatory questions:

Name (yours not the car’s): 
Jolynn Franke

Car(s) presently owned (and their name?):
’04 Dodge SRT 4 (I tend to waffle between calling her babe and b*+@#, and then apologizing to her for calling her a b*+@#).

Years Owned:
Almost 14, since new.

 

 

Modifications (i.e.interior/exterior, engine, chassis):
Mopar cold air intake, rear sway bar, front and rear strut tower bars, poly-urethane motor mount inserts.

How long have you been racing, and what types of racing do you do?
I’ve been racing since 2005, including drag racing and autocross. I’ve done some track days at Oregon Raceway Park, but no actual track racing.

How did you get into autocross?
An ex-coworker of mine invited me to an autocross in Salem back in 2005 after finding out I was into that sort of thing. I quickly realized that it was way more fun than going in a straight line for 14 seconds at a time.

How do you get focused before/during an event?
I usually only walk a course once because it forces me to look ahead as I’m driving it. Then I continually remind myself to look ahead as I’m waiting in grid, at the starting line, and as I’m driving.

What future plans do you have for your racing career (new car, new mods, new types of racing, etc.)?
Because of the borderline unhealthy emotional attachment I have to my car (it’s a long story), I will likely keep it and keep racing it until one of us kicks the bucket. So, next on my list for her is a set of adjustable dampers followed by coil over sleeves. I plan to stick with autocross as well. Chump car/Lemons racing has also been calling to me for several years now, but that would require a monetary and time commitment that has been out of my reach so far. Maybe someday… Oh! Also, I really want to do the Gambler 500!

 

 

Outside of racing:

Where are you from, and how did you end up in Oregon/Washington?
I was born in Medford, but have lived in Salem since I was three. So, I am a native Oregonian.

Do you have a favorite hobby outside of racing?
Outside of racing I enjoy going to car shows and car museums and visiting Oregon’s amazing vineyards and breweries.

What is/are your favorite food(s)?
Italian, pulled pork, and sushi.

The favorite car that you have owned?
My SRT (see above reference to unhealthy emotional attachment).

Your dream car(s)?
1963 Corvette and a Porsche 356 Speedster (for cruising), Porsche 911 GT3 RS (for racing), 1930s Packard (for Sundays)

Fact(s) that you are dying to share about you?
I went to automotive school and worked in a body shop for about three years before I discovered that I really only like working on my own car.
My dad is the one that got me into cars and racing. One of my favorite things to do is to go to car shows and museums with him. Just when I think I’ve heard about all the cars he’s owned or had experiences with, we come across something that sparks another memory for him.

Meaning of life:

If you could be any animal in the world, what animal would you be, and why?
I would be a dog, because then I would still be able to go for rides in cars and feel the wind on my face.

What was the best thing before sliced bread?
The invention of the wheel.

We hacked into your computer and downloaded your music list. I don’t want to be the one to spill your most embarrassing song, so why don’t you tell people what we found?
I may or may not have some Paula Abdul on my music list…