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On Tuesday, John joined us in The Magazine's moderated chat room to talk about the growing sport of funny cars. An edited transcript follows: Eric DeMoney: Besides Austin Coil, what do you attribute your amazing success in Funny cars? John Force: I think the dedication of my team. You've gotta have money, but you've gotta have the dedication, we've got a good team there. Bottom line is comraderie, working together. That's what it's about. Beth Beecham: The latest TV contract with ESPN is excellent and most drivers (especially you) are great to the fans, but there is still a need to get more people interested in drag racing. What would you suggest the NHRA do to increase the fan base and get more people at the races? John Force:: TV is very important, it opens the door for people who don't know what drag racing is. ESPN is very popular, you see what it did for NASCAR. Bottom line is that drag racing is better TV now, it's a better produced show, with story lines. We're not just running races like in the old day, they're kind of putting together a script that can go in any direction. They focused on team members running certain races because the team members could elect to do so and they focused on crew members and what they're doing. You've got the race in there, but there's story lines too. It's just better TV. Dean & Joshua: I am a Huge fan! Congrats on your win Sunday! I noticed that the speeds were low at the Prolong nationals with the new Ford Castrol Mustang body. Do you think the speeds will increase to 315-plus at some of the other tracks? John Force: I think it'll go to 325. This new Mustang body, compared to the Pontiac, has us excited. You've heard me giving opinions on the track, they have problems down track with the race. We were lucky and consistent to win the race, but you have to be able to adapt for a course. He who adapts best wins. Lane choice is very critical too. You've got to adapt and do it. As for the speed, it will come up down the road, guaranteed. Boyce: Do you feel the 90% rule has hurt the sport? John Force: No. I think the president of NHRA made the good call. It doesn't seem to have slowed the cars down much. We run 321. The reason he did it was to stop the breakage. Viewers don't want to have to watch oil-downs. Last year they had five hours of oil downs -- this year they had 45 minutes. And as for another issue, about foreign cars, NASCAR wants to stick with the American-made, but half the foreign cars are being produced in America anyway. Bring what they've got and we'll race it. International stars bring something to the table extra. The fans love it. To bring people from Japan, Australia, they're great for the sport. Bring their cars too, bring everybody. This is America, home of the free. Ralph Davis: John, You don't seem to be showing any signs of slowing down. When do you think you will finally call it a career and how will you spend your time when you retire? John Force: Retirement's not even in sight. To make the transition to Top Fuel is a possibility. This is what I do, this is what I love, it's not "Gee, I've done this for 25 years, I'm tired of it." If I wasn't racing, I'd be at the track helping people. I'll be an owner one day. I really want to help my teammate Tony Pedragon. In five years together, he's been No. 2 four years. He's proved he can win. There's only one car to get around and that's me, so hopefully we'll crown him the champion in time. And one of my daughters, Ashley, will hopefully be in the seat. Bob Benedict: John, You have been a great spokesman for the sport of drag racing, but who is going to be there to carry on the torch when you are gone? John Force: You heard them say my mouth is as fast as my race car, I enjoyed talking since I was a kid, so it's natural. I see young kids coming up, a lot of kids are coming up. This week Schumacher said that whoever lost the race had to cut their hair off and he lost and did. That's carrying on the sport. There's a lot of newcomers, a lot of women. It's exciting to see the emotion in the interviews. In time, some people will surface. The snowball started before with me, and I was just there at the right time. There's a lot of guys out there and maybe because they don't win so much they don't get into the groove of the interview. I've just had plenty of time to do my interview. Mike Copeland / Missoula, Mont.: Given Whit Bazemore's recent criticism of the Seattle International Raceway, what can high profile race drivers like yourself do to urge race track owners to invest the money to make tracks safer? John Force: First of all, Bazemore's right, the racetrack has problems. He's very opinionated and he says what he feels. Rockstead, who owns the track is a friend of mine has done a great job with the track. He knows it has problems, and the problem is that you have to have capital to invest to fix the tracks. You might have to put a million in. He's made a lot of improvements, but when you've got a track in the surrounding area, the neighborhood wants to close you down. He's put a lot of personal money into it, but with the threat of being closed down can you expect him to put everything into it? I see both sides of it. They're both right. Racers want what they want. We spend a lot of money and then have to go on track that's lose. So you can see both sides here. Some say the reason Bazemore was frustrated was that he won Devner and he hasn't won in a while -- smoked the tires in the first round. M.Soeken: John: Can you describe what the first big crash you had felt like? Did you ever consider giving up because of a crash? John Force: That'd be like giving up eating, that's how I make my living. My first major crash was in 1975. There was a picture in HotRod Magazine of the car engulfed in flames and all you could see was my hand on the roof. The roof had melted and trapped me in. That's when we invented the roof hatch, after that race. That was scary because we didn't have the equipment we did now and I couldn't breathe. I wear a St. Christopher around my neck -- I wear two actually - and it was burnt off in the fire, never found it. I wear them in case I need somebody to save me. You can get hurt, but I never considered quitting. Bob Severin: How many days a year do you get to relax at home? John Force: Zero. New Year's Day I was working a show in Florida. It's a year-round thing. If you're gonna win -- and we've won nine -- you dedicate to it and you live it. I certainly love it, and even though I get tired doing it, it's not a job to me. If I get beat, I'm the first guy to get in the stands. I was in Denver and sitting in the stands having a beer with [Team WWF driver and rival] Jerry Tolliver. We like drag racing just as much as the fans do. But they were coming up to us with pictures, they couldn't believe it. We just love it though. Bobby: John what is the total cost (parts,labor,travel) for a top-five funny car for one year? John Force: I couldn't put a car out there any cheaper than $3.5 million. I know guys who run on a million dollar budget, but they don't have reserves and technology for the future. That's what helps us win, because we have the money. It's 3.5 million, bottom line. Mike: What do you think of the WWF team? John Force: I think it's a very good team. Jerry Tolliver has proved that he can find money. He teamed up with an individual group that had a great marketing strategy behind them. He put together a team and he's out there putting up a fight. They're not polished yet, but they're fighting. I'm very impressed with Tolliver. He can be wild at times. A lot of people say he's got an attitude, but that's what the WWF wants, it's part of their hype.With me, interviewers are saying what's wrong with John Force:, he's not excited? I have a different way of looking at stuff. It's like a linebacker in a football game, you can yell and scream all you want, but you gotta do it when you get to the quarterback. I'm not gonna yell and scream until I get the points lead back. george fairfield,ct: John, congrats on recenly passing Bob Glidden with 86 event wins. Does he inspire you in any way? John Force: I was always impressed with Bob Glidden, because he was a real racer's racer. He had to do it all, promote it, crew chief it and drive it. I want to clarify something, because I've seen some people write that I've compared myself to Bob Glidden. I've never compared myself to Bob Glidden. I made it clear that I've never even raced Bob Glidden and he was in pro stock and I'm in funny car -- completely different animals. But a record is out there to go after. McGwire is in a different ball game than Ruth -- you can't compare. Records have to be put out there to create motivation. The guy's great. Warren Johnson is moving up on the record, another great individual; it's all about timing. I don't compare myself to Warren Johnson or Bob Glidden. I'm just here with good people and financing and we're doing it. I still stand and look at Don Prudhomme with respect, he'll always be the king of funny car regardless of how many times I win. He's the best, and I want to race so he'll say, man, he's good. It only means something when the best says you're the best. It's not being humble, that's the way I am. Jim Wagoner: John, I really take my hat off to you and your past records. I am 1 year younger than you, I have raced NHRA and SCCA, but now I think that my reaction time and concentration are not what they used to be. Do you have any problems with yours at any time? And how long do you think you can compete with those youngsters? John Force: Well the difference in motorsports is length -- in NASCAR and Indy, you have to drive for three hours. In funny car we only have to drive for five seconds, so we drive on feeling. You have to have good vision so you can respond to the Christmas tree, but it's a lot more about instinct. I have to work more with the tree now to keep the reaction times up and I don't party as much as we did in the old days, but with drag racing you're not in there as long. When my reactions go away, I'll have somebody prepared to take over. Brian: Do you think it is better for drag racing to have one dominant driver (like yourself) or to have several good teams, say WWF, CSK, Force: Inc. etc., from a competition standpoint? John Force: I think it's better to have a lot of teams. I like to dominate, I'm spoiled, but we paid our dues. I give the credit to Austin Coil and everybody who runs this team. Bottom line is that it's more exciting even to myself to be chasing Jerry Tolliver. I get up on Sundays and look forward to it. For a few years I just assumed I would win. I dropped 25 pounds and have the thrill of competition again. I don't want to see one guy dominate. I'm fighting and the fans are getting the best at the race track and that's what it's all about. Tracy Heath: John great job at Seattle. Which is your favorite track to race at and why? John Force: Indy, because Indy is our granddaddy, our big show. We do the Big Bud shootout there and then the race on Monday. But the track I really like to race at is Dallas. It's all concrete and the fans are great. It's all about conditions. Cool air records fall there. That's a place -- like Topeka -- where racers can go after it. Jo Ann: Hi John, How important is a good start for a round and, during a start do you focus solely on the tree or do you divide your focus between the tree and your opponent? John Force: I never look at my opponent, doesn't matter what he does. I only take the instructions on track conditions and locations on the track, then I go after the Christmas tree. I don't even know if I won the race after it's over half the time. All focus on that Christmas tree. Part of the business isn't just being a great driver, part of the business is getting the money. If you don't have the money you can't hire the crew chiefs. I've had a lot of great crew chiefs. With that money you buy technology. So when people say John Force: wins because he has so much money, it's part of the game. We weren't started with money, we earned it. It's all part of the game. I want to thank ESPN and the fans. We're in a growing stage here and we need everyone's support. |
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