Ashley Force-Hood’s Mustang for Charity

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ASHLEY FORCE HOOD’S RONALD MCDONALD HOUSE MUSTANG
TO BE FEATURED AT 48TH ANNUAL WORLD OF WHEELS

YORBA LINDA, CA (March 1, 2010) — Chicagoland’s largest custom car show will feature Ashley Force Hood’s Ronald McDonald House Charity themed NHRA Mustang Funny Car. O’Reilly’s Auto Parts and South Oak Dodge will present the 48th Annual World of Wheels, March 5-7 2010, at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, Illinois. Force Hood’s Mustang will be on display as part of the Chicago BrushMaster Kustom Kulture Art Auction with all proceeds going to Ronald McDonald House Charities of Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana. Fans will be able to get their photo taken beside the Mustang throughout the weekend and get an up close look at one of the fastest race cars in motor sports.

Ashley Force Hood campaigned the Ronald McDonald House Charities Mustang at two events (Seattle and Sonoma) during the 2009 Full Throttle Drag Racing Series. The attention the car generated for the Ronald McDonald House Charities is something Force Hood is proud to continue into 2010.

“I was thrilled to be able to help raise awareness and donations for the Ronald McDonald House Charities in Seattle and Sonoma. BrandSource, one of our major sponsors, is very involved with this organization and their president Bob Lawrence, started talking with us about getting involved in early 2009. We got really excited about all the opportunities to help so this program came together very quickly,” said Force Hood.

“The biggest thing for me was being able to race this amazing looking Ford Mustang. I knew it would draw a lot of attention and I wanted to turn that excitement into donations for Ronald McDonald House Charities. I have so many fans that are children I really want reach out to them and their families to encourage them to give to or volunteer with this great organization.”

In just two previous World of Wheels Custom Car shows, the Chicago BrushMasters have raised over $110,000.00 for the charity. The Kustom Kulture Auction will feature the work of over 100 automotive artists from across the nation. Items auctioned off will include gold leaf lettered, pin-striped and air brushed pieces of Kustom Kulture Art and Automotive Memorabilia.

Auctions will be conducted Friday at 7pm, Saturday at 4 pm and 7pm with a final auction held on Sunday at 4pm. Ronald McDonald himself will be appearing near the Ashley Force Hood Mustang display both Saturday and Sunday 4 pm to 5 pm.

Fans are encouraged to come out and help support Ronald McDonald House Charities in building the world’s largest Ronald McDonald House at 211 E. Grand Ave. in Chicago. At 14 stories, and 86 rooms, it will help keep families together during their child’s time of medical crisis.

The Donald E. Stephens Conventions Center is located at 5555 N. River Road in Rosemont, IL. Show Hours: Friday 3-10:30pm – Saturday 10am to 10:30pm and Sunday 10am to 7pm. Discount tickets can be purchased at any Chicagoland O’Reilly’s Auto Parts retailer. For more information call 708-361-2665.

For additional informationa about John Force Racing contact Dave Densmore, 214-244-0008 or Elon Werner, 214-244-1184.

FOLLOW JOHN FORCE RACING AT www.twitter.com/jfr_racing.com

12th ANNUAL JFR HOLIDAY CAR SHOW-Tons-o-toys!

Interview with Austin Coil about drag racing today Click to read it…

12th ANNUAL JFR HOLIDAY CAR SHOW A HUGE SUCCESS

(story starts below)

Press Release from John Force Racing:

12th ANNUAL JFR HOLIDAY CAR SHOW A HUGE SUCCESS

YORBA LINDA, CA (December 6, 2009) — Mother Nature and the people of Southern California cooperated to make the 12th annual John Force Racing Holiday Car Show one of the biggest in the events history. Ominous clouds made brief appearances over the 14-time champion’s shop but a comfortable breeze was the only weather variance all day as thousands of toys were dropped off making a mountain of memories for children this Christmas season. From 10 a.m. until well after 4 p.m. today toys, stuffed animals and games poured into the John Force Racing shop as fans filled the streets. Tens of thousands of people wandered through one of the largest collections of vintage cars, trucks and street rods.

In addition to the hundreds of car club vehicles a number of specialty vehicles were on display including the Force Borthers “Nightstalker,” Funny Car which returned to competition this year in a one-off event at Norwalk, Ohio, plus Jay Leno’s 1955 Buick Roadmaster custom, a $2 million Bugatti Veyron, a collection of “monster rods” built from Peterbilt trucks and an historic Amphicar designed for road or water.

“Today was awesome. It was all about the kids and I think our fans really came through. We are having tough economic times and I know there are a lot of kids out there who might not have a very good Christmas. I hope being able to donate all these toys to the CHiPs Toy Drive will help. I want to thank all our sponsors for stepping up and helping out especially Tom McKernan and the Auto Club,” said John Force.

“I know Craig Hoelzel really worked hard on this as well as all his volunteers. I want to thank everyone who helped out to make this happen from the bottom of my heart. My hand is just about worn out from signing autographs but it is what we do and I love spending time with the fans. We have a lot of really good friends that come out every year so it is good to see everyone. I want to especially thank Tom McEwen, Jack Beckman and Cory McClenathan. Cory Mac flew straight from Germany to be here.”

Fans were treated to music by the M.O. S. Project, Adria Force Hight’s band, as well as a number of other musical acts. In-N-Out burgers were available all afternoon and fans enjoyed the burgers.

Ron Capps’ Top Five Most Influential Funny Cars

Back for 2009 with Don Shumacher Racing, Ron Capps is in his fifth full season with Shoe’s team driving the NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge Charger R/T for the 2nd time and of course, his crew chief is long time friend, Ed “Ace” McCulloch.

Born in San Luis Obispo Capps has always been a So-Cal guy and now lives with his wife and their daughter and son in Carlsbad, CA. With a B.S. in Software Engineering from Santa Clara college, Capps joined the NHRA super-team of Don Schumacher Racing, in 2005 to drive the Brut-sponsored Dodge Charger Funny Car. With Schumacher, he’s won eight national events and finshed 2nd in 2005, 3rd in 2006, and 4th in 2007. He’s hoping to turn that trend around for 2009

Capps joined DSR after driving for longtime friend and team owner Don Prudhomme. DSR is only the second Funny Car team for whom he’s driven since entering the nitro classes in 1995.

Since 1995 Capps has collected 25 wins in 54 final rounds, in both Top Fuel and Funny Car. He’s been close, but has never won it all after claiming that crown, finishing as Funny Car runner-up in 1998, 2000 and 2005. He’s hoping his ongoing commitment to Don Schumacher will offer him the best opportunity to achieve his goal. With Nitro running through his veins, here’s Ron Capps Top 5 most influential Funny Cars…

Ron Capps Top 5 Funny Cars

Great Helmet Auction: Let The Bidding Begin!

Professional Racers Owners Organization’s (PRO) “Great Helmet Auction”

INDIANAPOLIS, In. – On June 6, 2009, PRO’s Great Helmet Auction will go live on eBay! This 10-day auction (ends June 15th) features autographed helmets, most worn during NHRA Drag Racing competition, by stars of the sport including:
Jack Beckman
Brandon Bernstein
Kenny Bernstein
Antron Brown
Ron Capps
V. Gaines
Mike Edwards
Ashley Force-Hood
John Force
Matt Hagan
Robert Hight
Allen Johnson
Warren Johnson
Doug Kalitta
Ron Krisher
Cory McClenathan
Mike Neff
Tony Schumacher
Bob Vandergriff Jr.
Tim Wilkerson

For a full description of these driver’s helmets, including their history, photographs and a link to each helmet on eBay, visit www.GreatHelmetAuction.com.
Mark your calendars now with the following dates:
June 6 – The Great Helmet Auction begins on eBay.
June 15 – Last day to bid and win!
June 16 – Helmet winners announced.
Winning bids benefit PRO, an organization that provides services and other benefits to professional drag racing team owners and drivers, with a portion of proceeds to benefit Racers for Christ (Team RFC), which has serviced NHRA for over 25 years.

Ashley Force Hood Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive

MyRideisMe.com is a big fan of John Force and John Force Racing.  Combine that with the idea that we’ll help worthy causes and this is a win-win.

This food drive is Saturday,  May 9th, so help out any way you can.

John Force Racing Press Release:

ASHLEY FORCE HOOD ASKS FANS TO JOIN HER AND STAMP OUT HUNGER
YORBA LINDA, CA (May 7, 2009) — NHRA Funny Car superstar and 2007 Automobile Club of Southern California Road to the Future winner Ashley Force Hood would like fans to join her in helping “Stamp Out Hunger.” Please join her in the fight to end hunger on Saturday, May 9, 2009, by leaving non-perishable food donations in a bag next to your mailbox for your letter carrier. Stamp Out Hunger is the nation’s largest single-day food drive. Last year, over 73 million pounds of food were donated to food banks.
“I found info about the Stamp Out Hunger event in a magazine a few days ago and jotted it down in my organizer since it’s such a simple thing to do and yet a very important cause. When I got to work I emailed it to a couple of close friends and then realized I should just send it out to every person I’m in contact with so I hit pretty much my whole email list which includes racers, family and friends from all over the country,” said Force Hood. “It’s a small act of kindness but when a lot of people do a small act it makes a big impact on those in need.”

In addition to Saturday’s national program Ashley Force Hood as well as John Force Racing are partnering with the Orange County Food Bank on a monthly basis with their wildly popular Cruise Night Car Show events.
“John Force Racing is also involved with the Orange County Food Bank during our Cruise Night Car Shows at our shop in Yorba Linda. People from all different places and backgrounds come together for some fun and donate to one common cause while they’re at it.”

The first John Force Racing Cruise Night Car Show brought in 550 cans of food for the OC Food Bank. The next event is scheduled for Saturday, May 30th from 4 p.m. – 7 p.m. and the goal is to greatly exceed the April events total.
The Stamp Out Hunger event was created by the National Association of Letter Carriers, in conjunction with Feeding America, and is sponsored by Campbell Soup Company and the United States Postal Service.
Learn more at www.HelpStampOutHunger.com . Learn more about John Force Racing Cruise Night Car Shows at www.johnforceracing.com and click on JFR events.

Somebody tell us about the cruise night. Good? Bad? Nice cars? John’s a riot?? Let us know…

John Force Racing’s Charity Cruise Night Schedule

YORBA LINDA, CA (April 2, 2009) — John Force Racing, headquartered in Yorba Linda, Calif., will be expanding its tradition of giving back to the community beginning April 25th when the first of seven John Force Cruise Night Car Shows will be held.

Participants and spectators at the John Force Cruise Night Car Shows are being encouraged to bring a can of food that will be donated to the Orange County Food Bank. For each can donated a raffle ticket will be distributed good for a chance to win a 52″ Sanyo Flat Screen TV. If participants bring one can of food they get one ticket if they bring twenty cans of food they get twenty tickets or chances to win. The raffle will be held on Halloween at the final John Force Cruise Night Car Show of the season.

“In December we have built up a tradition of giving toys to kids in need with the John Force Holiday Car Show that benefits the California Highway Patrol’s “CHiP’s for Kids” program. During these tough economic times we felt that we needed to do something for our community right now, and tying in with our fans at the John Force Cruise Night Car Shows just seemed like a perfect fit. Our goal is to collect as many cans of food as we can, and help make an impact on the community.

We are asking everyone to get involved whether they are a participant or a spectator,” said Craig Hoelzel, John Force Racing – Director of Special Promotions & Car Show Manager.

“The Orange County Food Bank is excited to team up with John Force Racing. The needs of the community are growing during these tough times and we really need the food,” said Kristin Kvesic, Orange County Food Bank.

A special award will be presented at each Cruise Night for the “Most Food Given.” Cruise Night Car Shows will be held from 4 p.m. until 7 p.m. at the John Force RaceStation. At each Cruise Night Car Show there will be family fun, food and entertainment for all ages.

2009 John Force Car Show Schedule All John Force Cruise Night Car Shows will be held at:

John Force RaceStation
22722 Old Canal Road
Yorba Linda, CA 92887

For More Info: www.JohnForceRacing.com or (714) 921-1651

Schedule: (All shows are from 4PM to 7PM)

• April 25
• May 30
• June 27
• July 25
• August 29
• September 26
• October 31

New Technology Keeping Nitro Funny Car Pilots Safe

Couresty of Ford Media and PCGCambell

Two years ago this month, the drag racing community lost John Force Racing Mustang driver Eric Medlen in a tragic Funny Car testing accident. In the aftermath of that accident, John Force Racing and Ford Racing banded together to form The Eric Medlen Project, with an eye on finding and improving safety innovations for the sport. Along with the NHRA, John Force Racing and Ford Racing have instituted a series of safety measures ranging from significant Funny Car chassis modifications to the instillation of the Ford Blue Box (crash data recorder) on all nitro cars. This important work continues and This Week In Ford Racing recently caught up with 14 time Funny Car World Champion John Force and with Pat DiMarco, Ford Racing Vehicle Dynamics and Electronics Supervisor, for an update on The Eric Medlen Project and ongoing safety developments.

JOHN FORCE – GTX Castrol Mustang– CAN YOU GIVE US AN UPDATE ON THE ERIC MEDLEN PROJECT?
“Our shop is out here in California, 50,000 square foot, but most of the race teams are out in Indy, the Ford Motor program is in Indy, the Eric Medlen project is in Indy, everything now is housed under 50,000 square foot. You can see everything that we have developed working with NHRA, working with Ford Motor Company and their technicians. You can go there because we built a virtual reality tour and you can walk through and see it, what we’ve done. If you don’t want to believe us you can read the documentation that Ford has provided us that you can walk through it and get an education. When we do our car shows that’s where we are going to educate the people, to show them what we created from the crash of Eric, the loss of Eric something has to come out of that, and it has, a better and safer race car and it will still run for the title.”

THE 1,000-FOOT ASIDE, WHAT’S THE BIGGEST CHANGE YOU’VE SEEN IN THIS SPORT SINCE YOU’VE COME INTO IT?
“You know, in the sport, the biggest change was the technology of computers. That you can get the data after the car had made a run, that is, over my career of over 30 years. That was big, but to see the change to what made this car run faster. Now, the computer couldn’t run anything but it could to tell the crew chief what the fuel pump was doing, what the blower was doing, everything it was doing they could make that happen. So the computer was important, but the one thing we did wrong in the 50 years of our sport, as much safety as we evolved with, one of the biggest changes I believe is what we did with Ford Motor Company and NHRA. We evolved the chassis.

The chassis, if you look at the car I drove 30 years ago, was the same car that Eric and I crashed in ’07, and the new chassis evolved from a four-rail to a six-rail where the driver’s cockpit that protected the driver with the tub around him, and we got that through the Ford technicians and all of those guys were able to study those cars. This has been an on-going process since March of ’07, since we lost Eric, and all of ’08 and it’s not going to stop. We’re working on helmets with the impact and testing, all of that stuff is going to continue to grow. But Ford came up and got the idea to put a black box, we call it the blue box. They paid for it, it was put in by Delphi but it was put into every car. Ford said put it in the GM cars, put it in the Toyota, put in the MOPARS, let’s find out what happens when something goes wrong, and that is a big change. We’ve always been about horsepower, well, now, safety and that’s the biggest change in the sport.”

PAT DIMARCO, Ford Racing Vehicle Dynamics and Electronics Supervisor — IT HAS BEEN TWO YEARS SINCE THE PASSING OF JOHN FORCE RACING DRIVER ERIC MEDLEN IN A TESTING ACCIDENT FOLLOWING THE GAINESVILLE NHRA EVENT. THAT ACCIDENT REALLY TRIGGERED A NUMBER OF JOINT SAFETY INITIATIVES BETWEEN NHRA, FORD RACING AND JOHN FORCE RACING, MOST NOTABLY THE ERIC MEDLEN PROJECT.
“Yes, and I’d go as far as saying the NHRA has been involved in these safety initiatives as well. [The NHRA] has implemented a lot of things that we have started: the Ford Blue Box program, as well as the chassis changes, were all a combination of our work, John Force Racing and NHRA. Last year was the Blue Box implementation for all nitro cars, as well as the new chassis design. This year, we’re also moving forward with some of our production car technology and personnel. We’re modeling the occupant within the computer to simulate accidents similar to Eric’s, as well as a crash similar to Scott Kalitta’s. We can evaluate anything that the body can touch, as well as any vibrations that are put into the body on the computer, as well as a physical test, that’s being replicated as well.”

UP TO THIS POINT, THE CHASSIS CHANGES HAVE COME FROM EVALUATING NOT ONLY THE ACCIDENT WITH ERIC, BUT ALSO THE SIGNIFICANT ACCIDENT JOHN FORCE HAD AT DALLAS AND LOOKING AT WAYS TO REINFORCE THE CHASSIS. YOU’RE SAYING THERE ARE ADDITIONAL INOVATAIONS THAT CAN BE FOUND IN THE CRASHES?
“Definitely. Maybe not so much in the chassis itself, but innovations in the padding, the helmets, the surrounding areas and what the driver can physically touch. That is where we will be looking at for improvements. It’s things like that where the occupant model will help us evaluate.”

TAKE US THROUGH THE EVOLUTION OF THIS PROJECT AND HOW IT’S GONE STEP BY STEP.
“After Eric’s accident, the first thing we looked at was the area surrounding the driver’s head, which was the cause of Eric’s injuries. By widening the surround and putting more padding in there, it helped reduce some of the loads on the driver’s head during a similar accident. Those changes were instrumental in saving John Force’s life in his crash at Dallas. The next step was to look at the chassis and why it broke, and John’s chassis broke in the same places that Eric’s chassis broke. That allowed us to focus on looking at those hot spots and how to remove them from the chassis. Or, in the case that we have now, they’re completely out of the chassis for a torsional event that was seen in Eric and John’s accidents. In order to do all that, we needed data, and the Blue Box data that is running in all of the Nitro cars now was very instrumental in gathering data for all the chassis that have cracked on the track. The data collected from the boxes also helped us reproduce the accident from Scott Kalitta last year.”

WHAT’S THE NEXT STEP? WHAT DO YOU SEE ON THE HORIZON FOR THIS INITIATIVE?
“There’s various production car technologies that can be applied going forward. Although nothing is finalized, there could be things like automatic shut offs, seat belt pretensioners, air bags around the head … just about anything that’s already in the production car. We are working closely with the Ford safety office to see what we can physically put in the car, as well as what’s feasible from a racer’s standpoint with the NHRA.”

WHAT COMES OUT OF THIS PROGRAM THAT CAN GO BACK INTO PRODUCTION CARS?
“We’re pushing the limits on the models that we’re using from the standpoint of the head and the brain models. Production cars don’t usually look at vibration as significant as we’re seeing in the Funny Cars, so they’re evaluating their models using our data to improve our production car safety as well. That’s important for the racers, as well as for our consumers.”

Funny Car Chief Austin Coil on Drag Racing Today

If you’re a fan of NHRA drag racing, then there’s a great chance you’re a fan of John Force Racing and his team. As a Ford fan, (don’t forget, Pop’s was a Ford Mechanic for 25 years) I’ve been following Force for as long as I can remember so when I got the chance to interview co-crew chief Austin Coil, I jumped at it.

Meeting with Austin Coil in the small town the John Force Racing trucks make was awesome. Cruising past the beast Force pilots down the strip as his crew finished prepping for Saturday at the Firebird Race, then stepping into the trailer you often see on TV was unreal. I carefully tried to keep my grin from extending past my ears as I sat down with Coil.

Without his trademark toothpick, Coil smiled alot and seemed to be winding down from Friday’s session that saw all of John Force Racing cars in the top half of the field. Coil’s easy going manner and obvious passion for racing and technology made this interview a breeze. I just had to keep up…

WHAT’S CHANGED THE MOST ABOUT FUNNY CARS SINCE YOU’VE BEEN RUNNING THEM?
Everything! In the last few years, there’s been an extraordinary push for safety and these cars are tremendously safer then just a few years ago… and it’s a damn good thing cause we’ve lost a few of our brothers and it was necessary. John Force Racing has spearheaded a lot of this and Ford was instrumental in making those changes.

(When thinking about safety equipment…)
These race cars are really archaic compared to what’s on the road now. If you drive your Ford Flex in the rain and snow and ice there’s all kinds of electronic wizardry to protect you, let alone what’s being developed. Up until this campaign started (2009’s Full Throttle Season) we’re not allowed to run anything to protect you.

Currently, we have an electronic shut off system that can sense if we blow the blower off or it can sense a burning pistons or if the fire bottles have been activated and it automatically turns off the fuel and pull the chutes in case the driver isn’t able.

One of the questions I wanted to ask Austin was about a safety system that could remotely turn off the fuel and pull the chutes. He said that a team was planning a test of a system exactly like that at the Firebird Race. Testing during race day might a bad idea, but with today’s economy and the existing ban on testing during the season, there’s no other choice.

Things have to be tested during the race, but for the majority of people who were gonna race, they’d use their test days on something that’s going to help them win.

WHAT ABOUT NEW TECHNOLOGIES LIKE DIRECT INJECTION? (Injecting fuel directly into the cylinder instead of before the intake valve.)

No, it’s not allowed…
Everything new is prohibited unless it becomes approved. We’ve been racing under a moratorium for about 4 or 5 years now to prevent any technological break-thrus to help control cost. And the Association (NHRA) is vehemently against any type of closed-loop controls. It would be pretty simple to have clutch and/or engine controls that would sense tire spin and keep cars from smoking the tires or prevent tire shake, I mean, your Ford Flex has got it, so why can’t our race cars? Well, cause it’s not legal. It does add some drama and excitement to the sport, but by the same token, it keeps there from being as many side by side races as there could be. I don’t claim to know what makes the best show and the best popularity and the most likelihood that our vocation will be as successful as it could be throughout the years and the Association believes it’s better that even the best cars don’t go down the track all the time to give the underdog a better chance of winning once in a great while. Maybe they’re right, I don’t know.

THAT WOULD SEEM TO HURT THE BEST FUNDED TEAMS LIKE YOURS.

You know, our team is certainly very well funded, but everyone is feeling the crunch of the economy so you gotta be careful you don’t waste any money and it probably wasn’t like that a few years ago. You know, a number of years ago Force used to have meetings will the crew chiefs to figure out how we could spend the money we have effectively to increase our chances of winning. Now, we have meetings about how we’re going to survive this economic crunch because all of the income we had in the past years is not there now. We’re still in pretty good shape and all our major sponsors are all strong and with us and things look pretty good, but there’s lots of little affiliates that added the gravy to the team’s finances that have fallen by the way side.

AFTER DRAG RACING FOR 25 YEARS, YOU STILL LOVE IT?

Yea! Yunno, Its’ what I do. I’m 63 years old now, I’m not likely to pick a new career! I’ve been running a race car, soley for a living since 1968. I ran my own team for 18-19 years before I tied up with John, so that’s what I do. I don’t know nothing else. I make a really good living and I’m glad it all worked out!

With the Direct Injection or other engine TQ technology, the injectors wouldn’t stand up to the 15k lbs of cylinder pressure (we measured it!) and the volume of fuel needed would be prohibited. Many cars run 100 gal/min fuel pumps. Just idling on the starting line, waiting to go, the typical fuel car uses 5.25 gal/min… better not let it idle too long or you’ll be out of gas!

A FEW YEARS AGO, JOHN FORCE RACING DOMINATED. WITH ALL DUE RESPECT, HAVE YOU GUYS SLIPPED A LITTLE OR HAS EVERYONE ELSE CAUGHT UP?

You know, the biggest method that caused us to win over all the years… if you look back in time we’d win 10-12-13 races per year just with John’s car alone, not to mention the team cars, but the way we did that is we’d create something that everyone else didn’t have that was an advantage to get down the track more consistently… or just plain be faster! And every year, NHRA has made rules against something… the Association really dislikes any one guy winning all the time. Essentially, they’re out to get’cha! And I don’t blame them. The idea is to levels the playing field. When you go to the races knowing Force is gonna win, you’re not as likely to draw as many spectators as you might if the fans are wondering if Force is gonna beat Capps. At any rate, they continue to make rules and now there’re so damned many rules, your hands are tied in almost every aspect.

And then, in the last couple years, we’ve spent the majority of our time focusing on keeping our drivers alive and healthy and even the rest of the sport whether they like it or not. Everything you do to a race car to make it safer makes it slower. If you’re the one initiating all of that, for a period of time you’re running all that safety equipment before it’s required and you’re determined to run it cause you don’t want to see another Eric Medlen or John Force incident, and so you do those things. And many of the racers out there are not as concerned, they just believe in destiny where I tend to believe you can control your own destiny. The Association has worked well with us and many of the safety things that have come along are being required, more every year, and it’s getting closer to being a level playing field.

But for instance, right now, our cars are 50 lbs heavier then legal weight. We have every titanium, magnesium, carbon fiber, light-weight component that money can buy! But because our cars have a number of safety features that everyone else is not yet required to have, they’re heavier. That’s a little disadvantage. That’s certainly not everything, the biggest thing is, as I said, innovation has been stymied by the rules so the only way you can be faster than everyone else is to be better at every-single-facet of the hundreds of points of running the car and that’s very hard. The way we played it in the past decade is we’d create something that everyone else didn’t have that actually mattered and put it to use and waltz through the field. All those days are gone now cause they actually have rules on everything where they didn’t 10 years ago. You used to have the freedom to create a lot new things.

WHAT HAVE THEY RECENTLY TAKEN AWAY?

It’s not that they’ve taken anything away, they just prevent new technology. Eventually, everything leaks out to where you will not have anything in drag racing that everyone doesn’t know about in a couple years. For example, we did development on supercharges a number of years ago where we improved them 10% over the winter. It’s all legal, to go further is easy but not legal! (he said with a smile) The pro-mod guys run blowers similar to ours but they were allowed to move ahead where we were forced to stop. For a year, no one knew what we had, but now everybody has it, if they want it, its out there you can buy it, that was the most recent development.

Going back 15 years ago, no one had any adjustable timing controls on their motors… you just set the timing when you started the motor and that’s how it’d run down the race track. Well, we developed a system with air cylinders that you could move the timing around. To have it and to learn how to use it was a real big thing. Within a couple years everyone had it and then it became electronic and got better and now the box that controls the timing is state of the art where you draw maps and put it in there and not only can you have it, everyone has to have it, it’s part of the required ignition system. Years ago when we all had like 5 amp magnetos. Well if you can figure out how to build a 10amp magneto, you’d have an advantage. Well, not any more, you must run a non-modified MSD ignition system of this part number period, if you’re not you’re cheating. They’re very good and in a way it’s kind of a nice thing, but MSD says, ‘boy, we could make one twice that powerful!’ NHRA says, ‘No you can’t we don’t want anything better.’

So it goes on and on and on to where the potential development is halted by the Association as it is in NASCAR. They have the brakes on virtually everything. Just ask any of’m… those Cars of Tomorrow ain’t any-wheres near as quick around the race track as they used to be, but they all gotta run’m, and you know what? When they crash, they don’t die. So it’s a good thing and we’re undergoing all that. But it’s not as conducive to having a situation where you can dominate the way it was 10 years ago.

DO YOU SEE DRAG RACING GOING TO A ‘CARS OF TOMORROW’ LIKE NASCAR?
I do see that. We’re undergoing constant development on building better, safer chassis with driver’s tubs and compartments. The cars we have here have tubs in them but they’re not a total driver’s capsule. The next iteration will probably be a total driver’s capsule to where even if the chassis were to break apart the driver would still be protected.
KIND OF LIKE A NITRO BOAT?
Something like that… but all that adds weight, weight adds the problem that you have to stop it at the other end, so there’s lots of problems with all that development. The cars we have right now, we believe, are 4-7 times safer then the car that John crashed at Dallas two years ago. We’re hoping that’s safe enough, but you never know. We’re doing all we can.

Special thanks to Elon Werner – JFR Public Relations – for the interview. Best of luck to all the John Force Racing Team for 2009!

Follow John Force Racing at www.twitter.com/jfr_racing

Ford Drag Racing News: Force Looks Ahead at Pomona

Courtesy of Ford Media and PCGCambell

John Force, driver of the Castrol Edge Ford Mustang Funny Car, heads into this weekend’s 2009 Kragen O’Reilly NHRA Winternationals in Pomona, Calif., with four career victories in the season-opening event. Force, who has a record 126 career victories and 14 championships, reflects on his team’s 2008 accomplishments and looks ahead to this year.

JOHN FORCE – GTX Castrol Mustang – CAN YOU CONTRAST WHERE THE TEAM IS RIGHT NOW TO WHERE IT WAS A YEAR AGO THIS TIME? “Well, we’re in the middle of change right now. That’s what our new president Obama has been coming in and screaming and that’s what I have been hearing, you know, from all of the automakers, but Ford started change, we went back years ago. You know we knew this was coming; we are trying to get right and what I’m taking to my race team is I’m not going to wait for the opening race to figure out how to run on a budget – we saw this six months ago coming. We have got to cut back everywhere to make this thing in this economy work.”

CAN YOU REVIEW THE 2008 SEASON? YOU WON, YOUR DAUGHTER ASHLEY WON, AND ROBERT HIGHT WAS IN THE CHAMPIONSHIP RACE UNTIL THE VERY END. “Most importantly is the technology that we learned. We worked with NHRA and naturally with Ford to build a better race car because we lost Eric Medlen. It was very critical that we came out of that slump that we went into not just physically but mentally, and as we evolve through that and race technology is going continue. Ford is building a three-year program ahead with us to work with their technicians to build better, safer race cars. All that ends up in the Fords that you drive today, any of the Ford brand. So whether it’s the Lincoln or it’s the Flex, or Mercury, it doesn’t matter. Everything we do from NASCAR to drag racing to all that motorsports are involved in ends up on the street. So we have to evolve that. But we didn’t win the championship, but my driver Mike Neff in a Ford Mustang ended up rookie of the year and in the top 10. Ashley finished her season in the top five. I finished seventh coming out of a catastrophic accident with broken arms and legs. And Robert Hight didn’t get the title but he was right up in the top. So we got no complaints, and we’re learning to run on a budget.”

ONE THING YOU LEFT OUT FROM LAST YEAR, YOU WERE INDUCTED INTO THE HALL OF FAME. “Yeah, it was really exciting to go to Detroit and be right with my sponsors and be there to accept that honor for all the years that I’ve worked, but it really is a credit to not just myself but to my 70 employees that work night and day, the multi-car team, the four teams that we have to make that happen and right now, it’s all about the future and it’s all about change. We’ve got to learn to go after that championship, that’s what we want. The NHRA Full Throttle Championship, that’s what we live for, that’s what it’s about and along the road safety and there’s a new thing that’s been added, it’s not just winning, it’s not just safety, but it’s how to run on a budget and we’re going to learn how to do that.”

HOW IS THE ERIC MEDLEN PROJECT COMING ALONG? “Our shop is out here in California, 50,000 square foot, but most of the race teams are out in Indy, the Ford Motor program is in Indy, the Eric Medlen project is in Indy, everything now is housed under 50,000 square foot. You can see everything that we have developed working with NHRA, working with PRO and working with Ford Motor Company and their technicians. You can go there because we built a virtual reality tour and you can walk through and see it, what we’ve done. If you don’t want to believe us you can read the documentation that Ford has provided us that you can walk through it and get an education. When we do our car shows that’s where we are going to educate the people, to show them what we created from the crash of Eric, the loss of Eric something has to come out of that, and it has, a better and safer race car and it will still run for the title. So at the end of the day, Indy is our new deal because it’s cost effective to live in the middle of the country to make all of the NHRA races that are scattered all over.”

YOU TALKED ABOUT THE FORD ENGINE AND THE BOSS ENGINE PROGRAM. WHAT IS THE UPDATE ON THAT? “Well, last year we finished the season with the all-Ford Motor, understand it comes under the NHRA rules like a NASCAR spec motor, but there are rules that come into play, but we have been able to develop it from the supercharger to the heads that we run, it’s an all-Ford motor. We had it in two cars last year, and then it went into my car at the end of the year. We will start Pomona with all four Mustangs running the new engine.”

LOOKING AHEAD IN 2009 AT THE FUNNY CAR DIVISION, YOUR DRIVER ROBERT HIGHT HAS SAID HE THINKS IT’S THE MOST COMPETITIVE DIVISION WITHIN THE NHRA. WHAT IS YOUR OUTLOOK FOR CLASS OF 2009? “ Well we’re going out for the championship and not just with Ford Funny Cars but there’s two other teams that have evolved under the Motorcraft brand. You’ve got the Tasca family and Tim Wilkerson, they’ve teamed up, so there’s six Ford cars on the NHRA circuit. It’s going to make us strong, even though we’re separate teams and we can’t share technology. NHRA has a four-team rule, but Tasca, they are a family, they introduced me to Ford and we’re excited about going after the other brands, whether it’s Toyota, I know there are some other automakers that we never thought would look at NHRA drag racing but are looking to bring teams in, so we’ve got a fight on our hands.”

LAST YEAR, ASHLEY AND YOU WERE ASKED TO PARTICIPATE IN A NEW FORD RACING PROMOTION KNOWN AS THE “I’M DRIVING ONE” CAMPAIGN WHERE YOU GOT TO DRIVE VARIOUS FORD AND LINCOLN CARS AND TRUCKS AND THEN BLOG ABOUT IT. “Yeah, they took Ashley, Robert, Mike Neff and myself to Salt Lake, we went to a number of the Ford training camps and they were able to drive some of the new product. My daughter came back and said, ‘Wait until you drive these other Ford products like the Flex, it’s really awesome.’ In fact, on the road this year our team is using seven Ford Flexes. In the past we have run Excursions, but this year we are making the change to the Flex. Now, what does that mean to me? A different brand, no, the Flex, I think it gets like 22 miles to the gallon on the road and that is a huge cost savings for me running a multi-car team over the course of a year traveling hundreds of thousands of miles. That is a lot of money in this economy. Drive a Flex, it makes sense.”

SO OFF THE TRACK JOHN FORCE RACING IS DRIVING THE FORD FLEX? “And that’s what I’m going to be driving on the street. The idea is, I always drive a Ford or a Lincoln, but this year I’m going to be in the Flex and I’ll tell you why. I never thought about gas before, but I sure did in ’08. So I want to be focused on the car that will give me the best gas mileage, and that’s the Flex. Now, Ashley – she loves that Ford Mustang convertible, but I’m going to be in a Flex.”

LOOKING BACK OVER THE SECOND HALF OF LAST YEAR, THE BIG CHANGE CAME WITH THE 1,000-FOOT RUNS. YOUR THOUGHTS? “Couldn’t have been a better decision by NHRA. Number one, we’re still filling the grandstands, the people are packing in, half of them don’t know the difference between 1,000-foot or 1320. 1320s are heritage, the quarter mile, all of my records that I’ve set over the years, and I’ve had as many or more than anybody. Maybe that they don’t have the meaning that they did, but there are new records to be set in that new Ford Mustang and they’re going to start with me because that’s what I’m going after, so is Ashley , Robert, and so is Mike Neff.”

THE 1,000-FOOT ASIDE, WHAT’S THE BIGGEST CHANGE YOU’VE SEEN IN THIS SPORT SINCE YOU’VE COME INTO IT? “You know, in the sport, the biggest change was the technology of computers. That you can get the data after the car had made a run, that is, over my career of over 30 years. That was big, but to see the change to what made this car run faster. Now, the computer couldn’t run anything but it could to tell the crew chief what the fuel pump was doing, what the blower was doing, everything it was doing they could make that happen. So the computer was important, but the one thing we did wrong in the 50 years of our sport, as much safety as we evolved with, one of the biggest changeS I believe is what we did with Ford Motor Company and NHRA. We evolved the chassis. The chassis, if you look at the car I drove 30 years ago, was the same car that Eric and I crashed in in ’07, and the new chassis evolved from a four-rail to a six-rail where the driver’s cockpit that protected the driver with the tub around him, and we got that through the Ford technicians and all of those guys were able to study those cars. This has been an on-going process since March of ’07, since we lost Eric, and all of ’08 and it’s not going to stop. We’re working on helmets with the impact and testing, all of that stuff is going to continue to grow. But Ford came up and got the idea to put a black box, we call it the blue box. They paid for it, it was put in by Delphi but it was put into every car. Ford said put it in the GM cars, put it in the Toyota, put in the MOPARS, let’s find out what happens when something goes wrong, and that is a big change. We’ve always been about horsepower, well, now, safety and that’s the biggest change in the sport.”

YOU MENTIONED THE BLUE BOX IS DATA, BUT YOU ALSO MENTIONED THE INFLUX OF COMPUTERS INTO IT. HOW MUCH OF AN ADVANTAGE IS IT TO BE A FOUR-CAR TEAM AGAINST WO-CAR TEAMS? “Well, number one, there was a lot of people that complained about a multi-car team but I didn’t create the concept. There were two-car teams before me, but at the end of the day you can share that technology. If the driver makes a run, then we are allowed to see that run and learn from it, so that can give you an advantage. But sometimes it can confuse you and that’s why downstairs and at the shops in Indy we’ve gone back to basics. We’ve gone back to our roots, that’s our theme. One, we’re going to learn how to run on a budget, two we’re going to learn that you don’t have to test all year to win championships and spend buku bucks because we were beaten by teams that didn’t have the budget that I had. So, NHRA has leveled the playing field, you can only take one motor to the starting line, but at the end of the day the multi-car teams, they gave drivers the chance that never got the chance, not just through John Force Racing but through Prudhomme, back though Schumacher, back through Bernstein, back through Kalitta. All of the teams had multi-car teams because of the competitive advantage and that helped fill the field. So, NHRA will have full fields this year and I’m excited about that.”

AND IT’S SIGNIFICANT THAT NHRA FUNNY CAR CLASS IS GOING TO HAVE A FULL FIELD IN THESE TOUGH ECONOMIC TIMES. YOU MENTIONED EARLIER THAT THIS SPORT HAS ALWAYS LEARNED TO OPERATE ON A BUDGET. “This sport has. And if you look around here, yeah, I got a car museum that’s kind of cool, but it’s all the stuff that I raced and a few cars that Ford Motor Company gave me. You know what I’m saying. In our economy we’ve all got to learn change. Better listen to Obama. Whether you like him or not, you’re for him or against him, he’s our President, we need to follow him. We need to change. We listen to all of our sponsors, whether it’s AAA, Brand Source or Ford Motor Company. We’ve got to learn within a budget, and I’m going to do that here at John Force Racing.”

YOU GOT TO DRIVE A COBRA JET AFTER THE LAST RACE. YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE 2008 40TH ANNIVERSARY COBRA JET? “This car is unbelievable; I drove it. This car is a race ready drag car that you can take to NHRA tech the minute it is delivered to you. It even comes with drag slicks with stuff that I didn’t think Ford could do, so Ford is thinking out of the box. That’s what’s really exciting about it. This car is a 10-second car. I drove it, I raced Tasca in Pomona last fall in it. It’s got the big motor, it’s got the transmission, the gear ratio, the big tire, the aero-dynamics, everything to give you a car that can kick some butt. So there is big change there. Ford is thinking, but beyond that, think about this, they have asked me to go to the Barrett-Jackson auction to sell this car for charity. I thought I was going as a celebrity – I liked that. Then they tell me that there’s a few other cars there they want me to sell, so now I’m a car salesman, proud to be, so I’ve said it already: get into a Ford and Drive One.”

WHAT ACCOMPLISHMENT THROUGHOUT YOUR CAREER ARE YOU MOST PROUD OF? “I’ve got 14 championships, 15 as a team owner, I’ve got ET records, I’ve got speed records, I’ve been giving everything you can imagine from the Hall of Fame to whatever. I think my biggest accomplishment, well there are two. One of them is being a team owner because at the end of the day you got to lead your troops. Like Vince Lombardi said, ‘No man is an island.’ Vince didn’t say that, who said that? Teddy Roosevelt? Okay, but at the end of the day, my biggest accomplishment, because I knew that when I was on top the fans loved me, but when I was down and everybody thought I would never come back and race, the fans were still supporting me. You know what I mean, whether I drove again or not, they were telling me that they still loved me, and that was the energy that brought me back. The fans are what keeps us going, they buy our brands, they buy our products, and they’re why the sponsors give us money. At the end of the day, they love me, they love my daughter, they love Robert, they love Mike Neff, they love my team and that’s what I love about it. And the fans are my biggest accomplishment of my life, because in the end the money will be gone and in the end if the fans still love you. Understand, I’m a blue-collared guy, I am the backbone of America, I live in the middle of that. You know, I’ve met with Presidents and spoke and sometimes I’ve embarrassed myself and I can talk to the guy who drives the trash truck because at the end of the day we’re all doing a job and this is at a time in our economy where the backbone of our economy is the working man and the working lady and I’m part of that and that’s why the fans relate to John Force Racing and our drivers because we’re just like them. We’re just trying to make a living, feed our children and go to college. And if you haven’t noticed, we are in a tough economy, but I’m going to listen to Ford and I’m going to learn from them and I’m going to change my operation. And I’m going to listen to all of my sponsors don’t get me wrong, but at the end of the day, I’m going to figure out how to survive and we can. That’s the bottom line.”

Ford Drag Racing News: Tasca, Wilkerson & Their Mustangs

Couresty of Ford Media and PCGCambell

Bob Tasca III, driver of the Motorcraft/Quick Lane Shelby Mustang Funny Car, enters his second season at the Kragen O’Reilly NHRA Winternationals this weekend in Pomona. Tasca talks about the importance of off-season testing, racing in Pomona with sophomore eyes and the return of the Mustang Cobra Jet to competition.

Bob Tasca III – MOTORCRAFT/QUICK LANE SHELBY MUSTANG FUNNY CAR – HOW WAS THE PHOENIX TEST SESSION? “Phoenix is traditionally a difficult race track to go down this time of year. For whatever reason, it lends itself to cause tire shake. In our sport, tire shake is a huge challenge for crew chiefs with certain track conditions. It prevents you from going A-to-B and it will cause tire smoke. The car will shake and will end up smoking the tires. Going into Phoenix this year, I have a lot more confidence than I did going into it last year and our results proved pretty strong. When you look at the teams that were there, John Force Racing, the Schumacher camp, Del Worsham and other seasoned teams with a lot of data didn’t go down the race track at all on Friday. We made three full passes, we went a 4.15, and then we did another 4.15 and then a 4.16. We were the only car on Saturday to go down both afternoon sessions in the heat. And we were testing things. One of the things that we take advantage of is to try things that we don’t know will work, so even with some of the different things we were trying, our car went up and down the race track pretty consistently. There was 4.04 run and a 4.07 run, so there were a couple runs that were quicker than our run, but at the end of the day, if you can’t repeat it, you can’t win a race. You’ve got to win four rounds not one. The tune-up we were working on is just to get the car back-to-back with solid runs on a very tricky race track and we accomplished that. I was very happy with the data that we left Phoenix with. It’s going to give us a good springboard for when we come back to that race. What a lot of people don’t realize, most of what we learned in Phoenix won’t be applied at all in Pomona. A lot of people find that pretty surprising but these cars are that sensitive to the race surface and the corrected altitude, a lot of the set-up information is totally different when you go to the next track. That’s the exact case of Phoenix versus Pomona. The Pomona race will be a much more aggressive track. You’ll be able to put a lot more power on it. You’ll be able to go a lot faster than you will under most conditions at the Phoenix track. However, we’re back in Phoenix at the end of February. That’s when that data will really play an important role in how we perform at the Phoenix race. It’s good for the guys; we’ve got a couple of new guys on the team. It gives them an opportunity to get into full speed because you can practice in the shop but when the parts are 1100 degrees and things are smoking and people are flying around, there’s nothing like doing it in full speed. The guys performed flawlessly. Most of the guys came back, but there are three new guys. I was impressed with how the whole team performed. The Palm Beach test was the first time some of these worked together. Watching my crew chief, Chris Cunningham, work with Marc Denner, you can see their passion about racing and sharing so many ideas with one another. And that plays into the overall performance of the team. We left Phoenix way more confident than we did last year. I can’t wait to get to Pomona. This is really big time. Everyone has high expectations and you’re going into arguably one of the most important races of the year to be really set the tone for the season. We have high expectations for Pomona.”

HOW MANY RUNS DID YOU MAKE IN THE OFF-SEASON? “The testing for us started two days after Pomona ended. We left Pomona and went straight to Las Vegas. We made seven runs in Las Vegas. Then we went to Palm Beach where we made seven more runs. Then in Phoenix, we made eight runs. We made 24 runs and we haven’t even been to a national event yet. It just goes to show you how much more prepared we are going into this season versus last year. I don’t think I made 24 test runs all last year. The testing and off-season was such a confidence builder for the whole team. A lot of teams didn’t test and that was there choice. For us, testing is an important part of improving. With NHRA imposing some restrictions, they haven’t banned testing but they did announce restrictions on testing. They are limiting us to four test days in the 2009 season. We wanted to get as many days in as we could before that takes effect. The testing restrictions take effect at the Pomona race. I think we have a real good baseline to get the season kicked-off.”

POMONA IS ONE OF THE BIGGEST RACES OF THE YEAR. CAN YOU TALK ABOUT OPENING THE RACE SEASON AT THAT TRACK? “Pomona has a little different format. You run once on Thursday, once on Friday and twice on Saturday. Where typically, we run twice on Friday, twice on Saturday and then go into Sunday. Pomona is spread out. As a driver and as a team, you want to race. To go out on Thursday and hit the gas one time, then you have to wait until Friday, then you hit the gas one time, then you go into Saturday where you have the back-to-back runs. Our strategy is to get down the race track Thursday. It is very important that you hit the track; you go A-to-B, and not try to set the world on fire. You want to get the car qualified on the first day and get data that you can use on Friday. Then you can be more aggressive on Friday and on Saturday you’ll start to see conditions that you’re going to race on Sunday. For me, going into Pomona, with Tim Wilkerson, arguably the best race car on the circuit last year, to have that team alongside our team and the data that we can start to accumulate is amazing. We don’t have four qualifying runs anymore; we have eight because of the alliance. You can’t stress the importance of that kind of information. We have the same clutch. We have the same chassis. We have the same car body. We have different engine configurations. Chris and Mark are going to try some ideas that they think are going to work. Tim is going to try some things that he thinks will work. At the end of the day, the crew chiefs get together and they talk about what went right, what went wrong and that’s what I most looking forward to about Pomona and this whole season. I’m looking forward to having two triple-A caliber teams working together with two fast race cars to compete for the championship. I really feel that Tasca Racing and Wilkerson Racing together are a whole lot stronger than we are on our own. And that says a lot because Tim almost won the championship last year, on his own, and he has put a lot of value in this relationship. It will be an exciting race. It will be great to just get back together with the all the guys. You are really family with a lot of these teams, drivers, telecasters and everybody there: you’re around them so much. It’s almost an eternity to get back to Pomona. But it is right around the corner now.”

DO YOU HAVE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL JITTERS? “No, I have no jitters. I’m ready to go. Last year, for sure I did as a new driver. In the first year, I was just hoping I could stop the car because Pomona is one of the shortest tracks in the country. And the crew chiefs are telling you, ‘Get the shoots out early,’ and they’re talking about things that they need to talk to you about because you’ve never raced there before. But those are conversations that we don’t have anymore. Now we’re focused on a lot of other things. I think the jitters last year were true. This year the jitters are gone. I’m not worried about stopping it. I’m worried about going fast. We’ll get the car to stop, I’m sure of that. It’s a different type of jitters.”

THE FIRST COBRA JET DEBUTED IN 1968 WITH YOUR GRANDFATHER AS A DRIVER. THE MUSTANG COBRA JET RETURNS TO COMPETITION IN POMONA THIS WEEKEND IN THE SAME PAINT SCHEME HE RACED OVER 40 YEARS AGO. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO YOU? “I just think it’s incredible. That was a car that really ignited so much enthusiasm and excitement. What they accomplished is just incredible. My grandfather was really the pioneer of that program. To see it re-created in the 21st century, it is just going to be exciting. We bought one that we’re going to campaign at selected races this year. I think it’s really energized the Ford Racing base. It’s going to be fun to see those four cars go out there and compete. I know my Dad is coming, my uncle is coming and they remember the cars as children when my grandfather raced. They are excited to see the cars run. John [Force] and I ended the season last year racing the Cobra Jet. For the record, I beat him. I haven’t beaten him in a Funny Car yet, but I’ve beaten him in a Cobra Jet. The fans were into it as well. We got a lot of cheers as any other car going down the race track that day. It’s going to be fun to see the Cobra Jets compete. I think they’ll be very competitive. It would be wonderful to see one of those four cars win it. We look forward to taking our Cobra Jet out. I think we’re going to race ours in Charlotte. I’m not sure if I will race it or if my Uncle Carl will race. He’s really excited. He didn’t race, the racing gene must have skipped a generation. My grandfather raced and my Dad and uncles were involved. Then when my grandfather got out of racing and that was it. He was the boss. There was no more racing. As my father and uncles grew up, they didn’t race anymore. My grandfather stopped racing in the early 1970s, or late 1960s. Then I started racing a few years ago. My uncle has an itch to drive the Cobra-Jet. He’s having fun putting a role cage in it. Hopefully, we’ll make a few adjustments to make it go a little faster. He’ll probably end up driving at Charlotte.”

Tim Wilkerson driver of the Levi, Ray & Shoup Ford Mustang Funny Car finished second in the 2008 NHRA Funny Car championship narrowly missing the title as a single car entry in the age of multi-car teams. In 2009, Wilkerson formed a technical alliance with Bob Tasca III and Tasca Racing allowing the two single car entries additional access to data and set-up information. As part of the alliance Wilkerson will campaign a Ford Mustang for the 2009 season which kicks off later this week at Pomona, Calif. with the NHRA Winternationals.

YOU HAVE A TECHNICAL ALLIANCE WITH BOB TASCA. WITH TESTING STIPULATIONS IMPLEMENTED BY NHRA, HOW CRITICAL IS YOUR PARTNERSHIP WITH TASCA RACING? “With some bans on trying to keep costs down and keeping the level playing field with testing slowed down, I think that the more information we can get is going to be even better for all of us. Plus, I have a new three-frame which I didn’t have last year, and Tasca has one of them also, so all that is going to be a positive to our cause by the end of the day.”

HOW HAS TESTING GONE TO THIS POINT? “It’s gone okay. We’ve got some different stuff that I’ve never had. That three-rail car is really weird, so I’m trying to figure out how that thing works and what makes it tick and that kind of thing. It shows a lot of promise. I mean, I’m going to be hard-pressed to say that we can do at the beginning of this year what we did last year, but I think that we’re going to have a good car and I think that the Mustang is going to help us a lot. That body is one that we’ve always wanted, at least I have, so that’s going to be a good thing for the team. And then dealing with Bob is going to be a good thing for us, too. And I think that we could probably rely on Force’s guys, too, a little bit if we can squirrel a little bit of information out of them if we have to.”

WHAT ARE SOME OF THE CHANGES THIS YEAR, AS OPPOSED TO LAST YEAR? “The three-framed rail chassis is something that I’m a bit more nervous about, because we changed cars midway last year and that kind of threw us into a bit of a loop, not bad, but a little bit. And then after all that was said and done and we got a different tire. There were a lot of changes that went on and we seemed to adapt pretty well to all of them last year, but like I say, I think all of the rest of the teams have caught up, for a lack of better words, in terms of performance, but the weight changes that were made last year and the different tire that we had to run and all of the weird things that happened to us – now I think you’re going to see the competition much more level so we’re really going to have to be on our game. So that’s where I’m hoping that aligned with Bob will help us and plus help him.”

ECONOMIC TIMES ARE HITTING RACING, BUT IT LOOKS LIKE THE FUNNY CAR FIELD WILL BE FULL. CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THE FUNNY CAR FIELD HEADING INTO THE YEAR? “Well, I think that last year we had a goal which when I said it I think everybody thought was ridiculous, but I still don’t think that it’s a dumb goal, and that’s to qualify for every race. I mean that’s our main focus first off. You’re sure not racing on Sunday if you’re not qualified, so we’re going to try and qualify for every race first off, and like you say, based on the amount of cars out there, there were 20 good cars out there last year at every race. So, you’re not going to see any team or any specific car that isn’t ready to race on Sunday if they make the field. I don’t care if it’s one through 16, anywhere in that field, you’re going to have a good race. I think we showed that a lot last year. With the economic times being so trying, maybe things would lighten up in Funny Car, but I don’t think that you’re going to see that. I think you’re going to see the best racing that NHRA Drag Racing has ever offered to a fan and we’re going to have the best cars to do it.”

WHAT YOUR OPINION OF THE 1,000-FOOT RULE? “I like the 1,000-foot for the safety aspect of it, giving us another 300 feet to stop. I know we’re kind of treading on our heritage there, but the cars have done nothing but get faster and faster and faster. John [Force] and Ford have spent a lot of time and money renovating that new three-rail car. We need to make sure that the tracks are available for us to do the best we can on them and still be safe, and quite frankly, some of the tracks weren’t. And until they can find a way to make the shut down areas as safe as they can, I think the 1,000-foot is a no-brainer. Not only safety-wise, but financially for all the teams. You know it’s still great side-by-side racing; I don’t think the fans should be concerned. I know there’s a lot of talk about it, but I really think they just need to sit back and enjoy the racing because the racing is even closer than it used to be.”

WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO DO DIFFERENT THIS YEAR SO THAT THIS YOU’RE THE ONE DRINKING THE CHAMPIONSHIP CHAMPAGNE? “Well, to tell you the truth, I don’t think that we have to do anything different. We had a great car all year long; my guys did a terrific job working on it. I think the Mustang, again, will really help our cause and the alliance with the Tasca. And to have some technology that we’ve never seen in our life with being with Ford. So I think that is going to be a first step for us. And the second step, we just need to not screw up in the playoffs. That’s all it was to it. I just had some bad luck there in the playoffs and my predecessor that won the thing really did a better job, so he deserved to win. He got the wins when he needed and he was hot when we were cold. Hopefully, we can just stay consistent like we were this year because I think that was our key last year, we were consistent all year long. We weren’t the fastest guy, but boy, on Sunday if you made a mistake, we were right there beside you showing you what you shouldn’t have done. So hopefully we can just show that consistency again and bring a trophy home.”

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