Herm Johnson

Who is Herm Johnson?

Herm Johnson, is a former driver in the CART Championship Car series. He raced in 7 seasons, with 35 career starts, including the 1984 Indianapolis 500. He also raced at Indy in 1982, but the race was not part of CART that year. He finished in the top ten 8 times, with his best finish in 6th position in 1982 at Atlanta.

In 1976, Johnson won the SCCA National Championship at Road Atlanta and was the 1977 USAC Super Vee Champion. Johnson's father suffered a fatal heart attack, just days before the 1982 Indianapolis 500. Also during this race, Rick Mears bumped into the back of his car on a lap 183 pit stop. For his next race Johnson, who runs a business painting helmets, trimmed the back edge of his rear wing with the message "Rick...if you can read this, you're too close."

Johnson suffered a serious crash in practice for the 1986 Indianapolis 500. Johnson suffered injuries to his back and neck, and the crash effectively ended his Indycar career.

Herm currently resides in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, running his custom painting business, 'Just Herm Designs'.