From The Tower By Bob Frey January 26, 2006 It’s A Miracle. There was a lot of excitement this past weekend in Las Vegas, and I’m not talking about the Miss America Pageant. In the drag racing world the center of attention at this time of the year is on the test sessions and the first one of 2006 was held at the Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. With all of the professional cars in attendance, and with John Force’s sensational run of 4.673, you may think that that was the highlight of the event, but it wasn’t. In fact, the highlight of the weekend may have been a car and a driver that went virtually unnoticed by most of the fans and all of the press at the track. For me the story of this first test session of the year was a guy who hadn’t driven a race car in almost three years. A guy who was once given about a year to live. For me the highlight of the weekend was just seeing John Geyer at all let alone seeing him at the wheel of a race car. For most of the 1990’s John Geyer was one of the best drivers in the sportsman ranks. Behind the wheel of a variety of cars, the likeable driver from Santa Barbara, California won five national events and went to three other final rounds. He also won seven divisional races in a dozen final round appearances. His most memorable national event may have been the 1997 Winternationals when he wheeled Tom Lemon’s alcohol funny car to a final round berth against Frank Manzo. And, while he didn’t win, he did serve notice that he could drive almost any car in any class and get it to the final round against the best competition in the country. At that ’97 race he gave car owner Tom Lemon his best national event showing to date and he made the final round after getting his alcohol license just a month before the event. But all of that seems like along time ago for John Geyer because about three years ago he was diagnosed with astrocytoma, a severe form of brain cancer, and given about a year to live. “They basically told me to get my things in order,” he said between runs at the Strip. “But I wouldn’t accept that.” And so, for this racer who had beaten so many competitors on the track, the biggest challenge of his life was about to begin off of the track. Unlike a lot of patients who have any form of cancer, John Geyer didn’t have any symptoms at all prior to his diagnosis. In fact, were it not for a racing accident, he may never have discovered the disease at all, at least not in time to save himself. “I was racing my sprint carat Ventura Speedway. It was the night before Mother’s Day in 2003 and it was the first time out with my new car and truck and I was really excited. But then I crashed it and I was knocked out and I had a seizure and they decided that I had to go to the hospital to be checked out,” he said. He spent a few days in the hospital where they took some brain scans and found something troubling. “They saw something and thought that I must have had a stroke when I was younger. When I told them I didn’t they looked again and found the tumor.” The tumor was so large and so close to the cortex of his brain that the doctors told him they couldn’t operate and they didn’t give him much chance of survival. “I really didn’t like the attitude of the first doctors,” he said. “They were so negative and I just wouldn’t accept that. I knew that I could beat this and I knew I had to find another doctor, one who was a little more optimistic and patient friendly.” John eventually went to the U.CL.A. medical center but not before a lot of searching, research and learning more about his situation. “I looked at everything, including alternative procedures and medicines from all over the world,” he said. “When I went to U.C.L.A. the people there were very upbeat and supportive.” After meeting with the doctors John began six and half weeks of chemotherapy and radiation and that began the road to recovery. One thing that was a constant with all of the doctors that John saw was that there would be no surgery, only radiation and chemotherapy treatments. Before he began taking a product called “mannatech,” John spent most of his days in bed. But immediately after taking this supplement, and combined with better eating habits, his energy and health improved dramatically. “I’m currently on “Team Mannatech,” he said. “It’s a group of professional athletes who have been diagnosed with a variety of problems and we all take the product. It has helped all of us tremendously.” Today he says that he is in remission although the tumor still exists. “They tell me that there are still living cells in the tumor although there is no cell splitting, or mitosis. There are good cells along with the bad cells and the tumor is shirking each time they check on it. It’s big enough that it will probably never go away completely but it’s not getting worse.” And as if John’s problems weren’t enough for one family to face, while all of this was going on, John’s wife, Hope, learned that she had a malignant melanoma that had to be taken care of. “Hope was five months pregnant when I was diagnosed and then she learned about her situation. It was tough.” Now there’s an understatement, but through it all John said that he has become a better person, a better husband and father. “I’ve been able to spend time with my son and my wife and that’s something that I’m really grateful for. I think this ordeal has made me a better person.” The one thing that John said he missed most while going through the recovery process was racing. “I couldn’t even go to a race while I was sick because I knew that I couldn’t race and that was tough.” For a guy who has been going to the track since he was about two years old, it’s easy to see how he could miss not being able to participate in the sport that he loves so much. “My dad took me to the races when I was young and it’s because of his love of racing that I got into it. I began racing as soon as I got my license at fifteen and a half years old,” he said. His career began behind the wheel of a 1934 Ford that he used to race in the Super Street class at a lot of the nostalgia races. “I used to race and get beat by Mendy Fry a lot,” he added. “About the only time I could win was when she wasn’t there.” In 1989 he got a street roaster from Paul Harris and began his career in the Competition Eliminator class. From there he campaigned a series of cars in the econo-dragster class and another street roadster before stepping up to the alcohol funny car in 1997. That was followed by a stint in the “Motown Missile” Pro Stock car. “I’ve met a lot of great people in drag racing and I especially wanted to mention (the late) Tom Haner and his wife, Meredith. They were a big part of my racing career.” Between stints at the drag strip he was racing his sprint car and just about anything else that had wheels. “I love racing and that’s what I want to do.” Prior to the start of the 2006 season John decided to renew his license in the alky funny car class and he his grateful to Tom Lemon for giving him the chance. Tom, who has had drivers like Gary Scelzi and Frank Pedregon drive for him in the past, didn’t hesitate at the thought of putting John behind the wheel. “I had helped Tom and Rian Konno (Tom’s current driver) with the clutch and things like last that while I wasn’t driving and I can’t thank Tom enough for giving me the opportunity to renew my license.” And while the weekend didn’t go quite the way he planned, I don’t think it really matters to John. “I guess hitting the foam blocks twice wasn’t the best way to start my comeback,” he said. “But I know that it isn’t the end of the world.” Almost three years ago a lot of us in the drag racing world heard about John’s condition and couldn’t imagine that a young man, in the prime of his life, could be diagnosed with a life threatening disease. Today, as John puts it, “after a lot of treatment but even more prayer by a lot of people, some of whom I have never even met,” he looks and sounds as strong and healthy as he ever did. “It’s been a blessing, really. I’ve learned to be a better person and I’ve been able to spend time with my wife and my son and that’s really special.” Today he spends his time working out, getting himself into better physical condition and spending a little time with his dad at the family business, but he has his sights set on one thing. “I want to get back to racing because that’s what I love to do.” With the support of his wife and those in the racing community, it’s only a matter of time before John is back at the track racing and winning. Of course, in his real battle, he is already a champion.