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ENGLISHTOWN, N.J. – Ashley Force is hoping that the view is all that has changed for her at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park, site this week of the 38th annual Pro Care Rx SuperNationals, first of six races-in-six weeks for teams trying to race their way into the NHRA's “Countdown to the Championship.”
The 24-year-old Funny Car phenomenon, daughter of drag racing icon John Force, has a history of success at the New Jersey track where she won twice and was runner-up on two other occasions at the wheel of a Castrol-sponsored A/Fuel dragster whose rear-engine configuration gave her an unobstructed view down the racetrack.
Now, her sight line is obscured by the massive 8,000 horsepower, supercharged and fuel-injected engine that powers the Castrol GTX® Ford Mustang in which she is trying to become the first woman in Funny Car drag racing history to reach the final round of an NHRA tour event.
It's an entirely different perspective but one to which the former high school cheerleader quickly has adapted.
"You have to look around the injector and you have to watch the (guardwall) and the center line to know where you really are," she said. "It took me awhile, but after you hit the cones (which delineate the center stripe) and hit the wall, the lesson is pretty clear."
Despite those early stumbles, which, in reality, were minor, the graduate of Cal State-Fullerton has emerged as one of the real "feel good" stories of the 2007 racing season.
Paired with rookie crew chief Dean "Guido" Antonelli, she not only is a the leading contender for the Automobile Club of Southern California's "Road to the Future" award as the NHRA Rookie-of-the-Year, but also is a threat to earn one of the eight starting positions in the NHRA's new "Countdown" format.
Entering the SuperNationals, she is seventh in NHRA POWERade driver points on the strength of seven round wins and two trips to the semifinals. That's 10 positions ahead of her famous father and six ahead of Kenny Bernstein, drivers who between them have won 20 NHRA series titles and more than 180 races.
Nevertheless, the first woman to compete in the Funny Car class since the 2000 season is fully aware of her situation.
"There are a lot of good drivers right behind me including dad, so we don't have a lock (on a Top 8 position). There's still a lot of work to do, but I'm on a great team. Our strategy has been to take what the race track gives us.
"We don't go out there to try and set the ET (elapsed time) record," she said. "Our goal from the first qualifying run is to find a way to go down the track on race day and we've done pretty well. If the driver had done a little better job, we'd be in even better position.
"I know my lights (reaction times) haven't been that good, but now that I'm more comfortable in the car, that's something we're working on. It's just like when I was in Super Comp and A/Fuel. It took a little time for me to get good at it.
"But my team and crew chief have been great about not pushing me," she continued. "They have given me time to get used to the car before I start worrying about things like reaction time. They've told me, you have to be comfortable in the car before you can work on the smaller details.'
"If I can get better on my lights, I think we have a good package going into the summer races when the weather isn't going to allow many high speeds and quick ETs," Ashley said. "The weather is going to level the playing field and if you have a driver and a team that are working well together, like we are, I think you can win."
If she does reach the winners' circle, she would become the first woman in NHRA history to accomplish that feat in a nitro Funny Car. She already has gone as far as any other female Funny Car driver, losing in the semifinals at both Atlanta and Madison, Ill.
All of that has put her on the fast track to follow in the footsteps of brother-in-law Robert Hight. Currently second in Funny Car points in the Automobile Club of Southern California Ford, Hight was the 2005 winner of the Auto Club's Road to the Future Award. Ashley is the front-runner for the 2007 award.
Notable:
Racing in the Top Alcohol Dragster class, Ashley won regional points meets at Raceway Park in 2004 and 2005 and was No. 1 qualifier at the SuperNationals the same two years, earning runner-up honors in 2005.
Did you know
– When she beat her father in an all-Castrol GTX first round at the Summit Southern Nationals at Atlanta, Ga., on April 29, she not only made history as half of the first father-daughter match in pro sports history, she also became the first woman to beat John Force in his 31-year NHRA career.
– With her father, mother and sisters, Brittany and Courtney, Ashley is one of the stars of Driving Force, the real-life television series that just finished its second season on A&E Network.
– Along with Top Fuel driver Melanie Troxel and Pro Stock Motorcycle champion Angelle Sampey, Ashley was a guest Thursday on ABC-TV’s national “Good Morning, America” show.
DIFFERENT VIEW FOR ASHLEY IN RETURN TO RACEWAY PARK
Rookie Hopes to Translate Top Alcohol Success into Funny Car Win
ENGLISHTOWN, N.J. – Ashley Force is hoping that the view is all that has changed for her at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park, site this week of the 38th annual Pro Care Rx SuperNationals, first of six races-in-six weeks for teams trying to race their way into the NHRA's “Countdown to the Championship.”
The 24-year-old Funny Car phenomenon, daughter of drag racing icon John Force, has a history of success at the New Jersey track where she won twice and was runner-up on two other occasions at the wheel of a Castrol-sponsored A/Fuel dragster whose rear-engine configuration gave her an unobstructed view down the racetrack.
Now, her sight line is obscured by the massive 8,000 horsepower, supercharged and fuel-injected engine that powers the Castrol GTX® Ford Mustang in which she is trying to become the first woman in Funny Car drag racing history to reach the final round of an NHRA tour event.
It's an entirely different perspective but one to which the former high school cheerleader quickly has adapted.
"You have to look around the injector and you have to watch the (guardwall) and the center line to know where you really are," she said. "It took me awhile, but after you hit the cones (which delineate the center stripe) and hit the wall, the lesson is pretty clear."
Despite those early stumbles, which, in reality, were minor, the graduate of Cal State-Fullerton has emerged as one of the real "feel good" stories of the 2007 racing season.
Paired with rookie crew chief Dean "Guido" Antonelli, she not only is a the leading contender for the Automobile Club of Southern California's "Road to the Future" award as the NHRA Rookie-of-the-Year, but also is a threat to earn one of the eight starting positions in the NHRA's new "Countdown" format.
Entering the SuperNationals, she is seventh in NHRA POWERade driver points on the strength of seven round wins and two trips to the semifinals. That's 10 positions ahead of her famous father and six ahead of Kenny Bernstein, drivers who between them have won 20 NHRA series titles and more than 180 races.
Nevertheless, the first woman to compete in the Funny Car class since the 2000 season is fully aware of her situation.
"There are a lot of good drivers right behind me including dad, so we don't have a lock (on a Top 8 position). There's still a lot of work to do, but I'm on a great team. Our strategy has been to take what the race track gives us.
"We don't go out there to try and set the ET (elapsed time) record," she said. "Our goal from the first qualifying run is to find a way to go down the track on race day and we've done pretty well. If the driver had done a little better job, we'd be in even better position.
"I know my lights (reaction times) haven't been that good, but now that I'm more comfortable in the car, that's something we're working on. It's just like when I was in Super Comp and A/Fuel. It took a little time for me to get good at it.
"But my team and crew chief have been great about not pushing me," she continued. "They have given me time to get used to the car before I start worrying about things like reaction time. They've told me, you have to be comfortable in the car before you can work on the smaller details.'
"If I can get better on my lights, I think we have a good package going into the summer races when the weather isn't going to allow many high speeds and quick ETs," Ashley said. "The weather is going to level the playing field and if you have a driver and a team that are working well together, like we are, I think you can win."
If she does reach the winners' circle, she would become the first woman in NHRA history to accomplish that feat in a nitro Funny Car. She already has gone as far as any other female Funny Car driver, losing in the semifinals at both Atlanta and Madison, Ill.
All of that has put her on the fast track to follow in the footsteps of brother-in-law Robert Hight. Currently second in Funny Car points in the Automobile Club of Southern California Ford, Hight was the 2005 winner of the Auto Club's Road to the Future Award. Ashley is the front-runner for the 2007 award.
Notable:
Racing in the Top Alcohol Dragster class, Ashley won regional points meets at Raceway Park in 2004 and 2005 and was No. 1 qualifier at the SuperNationals the same two years, earning runner-up honors in 2005.
Did you know
– When she beat her father in an all-Castrol GTX first round at the Summit Southern Nationals at Atlanta, Ga., on April 29, she not only made history as half of the first father-daughter match in pro sports history, she also became the first woman to beat John Force in his 31-year NHRA career.
– With her father, mother and sisters, Brittany and Courtney, Ashley is one of the stars of Driving Force, the real-life television series that just finished its second season on A&E Network.
– Along with Top Fuel driver Melanie Troxel and Pro Stock Motorcycle champion Angelle Sampey, Ashley was a guest Thursday on ABC-TV’s national “Good Morning, America” show.
