Employee Kenny Lee and his Twisted Motorsports team claim title at 2026 Rocky Mountain Nationals
He was flipping through channels as a kid when the sport of drag racing caught his eye.
Ever since then, Kenny Lee has been keenly interested in the high-octane showcase that lasts mere seconds across a quarter-mile strip.
“I love it,” said Lee, who does wellhead repairs for our aftermarket services team in Edmonton.
When Lee’s son Kaden was about 10 years old, he began taking him to the track almost every Saturday, aside from the days it rained.
A friend then introduced Lee and Kaden to the owner of a car who invited them to be guest crew members. Lee kept in touch with the owner, him and Kaden got a shot to be full time the next season, and the father and son have been doing it together ever since.
All the responsibilities
“When we get to the track, we unload the cars out of the trailer, set up the tools and stuff, then put the cars up on jack stands,” said Lee as he began listing off the numerous responsibilities that come with being a crew member. “We check and set the valve lash while the engine’s cold, pack the chutes, fuel up, and spin it over for oil pressure. Then about an hour and a half to two hours before our run, we warm the cars up and test to make sure all the mechanicals work, like brakes and forward and reverse gears, and we check the timing at that point. Once they’re warmed up, we refuel and check and set the valve lash again while it’s hot.”
From there, it’s go time. “The race cars get pulled to the staging lanes, and while we wait, I put the starter on, and we’re constantly checking tire pressure,” Lee explained. “The driver suits up, we strap him into the funny car, and the chute pins and fire extinguisher pins get pulled. Once we’re under the tower, I fire up the car and pull off the starter, the body gets lowered, and then it’s the burnout. After the car pre-stages, the driver bumps in to light up the Christmas tree, and six seconds later he’s crossing the finish line at over 200 miles an hour. Then we head to the top end, pull the car back to the pits, and the whole cycle starts all over again, minus the warm-up.”
A peek under the hood as final preparations are made before screaming down the strip. Crew members such as Lee and his son Kaden carry out a long list of tasks to ensure things go smoothly for the under eight seconds dragsters typically take to travel the quarter mile.
For Lee, one job stands above the rest: “One of my most important jobs is running the starter to fire up the funny car, both for the warm-up and when it’s under the tower and it’s time to race.”
According to Lee, as everybody involved with the sport apparently says, if you love drag racing and watching it — don’t become part of it, because you never get to actually watch the races with how busy you are, which includes interacting with all the fans.
But for Lee, interacting with those fans is one of the best parts of the job.
“We have fans from all ages come in and we sit them all in the cars,” said Lee. “They take pictures, the younger kids, their eyes light up, big grin on their face.”
Getting Twisted
For the first five years of their crew career Lee and his son Kaden were helping out another team before the owner of the alcohol blown funny car sold it.
Needing a new squad, the pair landed at Twisted Motorsports, where they’ve been for the past three seasons.
Twisted Motorsports runs three vehicles, an alcohol blown funny car, a two-seat dragster, and a long wheelbase alcohol blown rear engine dragster.
At the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) sanctioned Rocky Mountain Nationals at RAD Torque Raceway in Edmonton, Lee and Kaden and their Twisted Motorsports team came away with the top prize for their long wheelbase alcohol blown rear engine dragster in the Pro 6.90 class, which sees vehicles compete to run as close to 6.90 seconds as possible without going over.
“It’s like being on cloud nine,” said Lee about taking home the coveted and prestigious NHRA Wally trophy. “There’s no better feeling than working hard and being in that winner’s circle.”
Kenny Lee and his son Kaden, third and fourth in from the right respectively with the younger Lee in the back, pose with the rest of the Twisted Motorsports team following their huge win at Rocky Mountain Nationals.
Special moment
Making the win that much sweeter for Lee was being able to share it with his son.
Especially since 22-year-old Kaden, like most young adults, has his own things to do and the two don’t spend as much time together as they used to.
“So we have this at least I guess, right?” joked Lee. “I like the time spent with him.”
Lee and Kaden frame the Stream-Flo logo on one of the Twisted Motorsports dragsters.
Hoping for a long-term partnership
This season was the first season Stream-Flo sponsored Lee and his Twisted Motorsports race team, and it’s something he’s extremely grateful for.
“It means the world that Stream-Flo believes in and is willing to support their employees,” said Lee. “It gives me a chance to spend time with my son.”
Lee is hoping it turns into a long-term partnership, with lots of opportunities for people to come to the track next season and even take a ride down the strip in their two-seat dragster, which reaches speeds of over 240 km/h.
The wellhead repairman also envisions taking the sponsored dragsters out to oil shows and other events Stream-Flo is involved in to help further raise the profile of our company.
With thousands of people attending the races in person and even more catching them online, Lee says Stream-Flo gains great exposure from having its logo emblazoned on the cars.
Coming together
As he reflects on their big win at Rocky Mountain Nationals, Lee says there’s one big parallel between what he does at work and outside of it with Twisted Motorsports.
Much like a dragster is greater than the sum of its parts, it has to do with all the people it takes for success to happen.
“We’re a team here and we’re a team there,” said Lee. “It’s never about one single person either here or at the racetrack, so it’s just all about teamwork.”
Which, as we all know, makes the dream work.
A Wally winning dream in this case.