NHRA: Ashley Force Shines A New Light

By Brian T. Smith
Sports Writer / Bristol Herald Courier
Published: May 16, 2008

Danica Patrick: Old news.

Ashley Force: The bright, new (female) face of auto racing.

Granted, Patrick still garners the most headlines and quality time on ESPN. And when it comes to Q ratings, Patrick’s still king.

But where Patrick’s Indy Racing League fame is based more off public relations-wizardry and intrigue, Force’s rise to the top has been a slow, natural climb predicated on small successes that have evolved into larger ones.

And that’s just the way she likes it.

“It’s been a long road,” said Force, a 25-year-old native of Yorba Linda, Calif. “[There have been] so many ups and downs and struggles with the car, and having a new team and driver and everything brand new. But we were able to kind of build on that. And the same group of guys joined me this year in the [2008] season. And it was exciting for me to step up, go to the next round and [keep] going to finals. And we knew if we kept getting to finals, eventually we’d get a win. We just had to be patient and keep doing what we were doing.”

Seven years of competitive driving peaked when Force made history April 27 in Atlanta, Ga., as she became the first-ever woman in the 57-year history of the National Hot Rod Association to win a Funny Car race, besting her father, John, a 14-time NHRA Funny Car champ.

A Force family duel in the finals transformed into a history-wielding spotlight when John smoked his tires and Ashley pulled down a 4.387-second run to grab first place.

And Force is now the name to watch and the face to find in Bristol, Tenn., this weekend, at the eighth annual O’Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals.

Ashley said the aftermath of her Atlanta victory felt like a “dream.”

Her cell phone filled up with text messages.

She was paraded around the television talk-show circuit.

And words like “history,” “Danica” and “ground-breaking” surrounded her name in print and on the Web.

But to Ashley, the meaning of her victory was much simpler.

She is a racer. She won a race. And the only thing she could do after the buzz from Atlanta had quieted was to focus on her car, the track and the next race.

“It is easy to get caught up in the excitement of it all,” said Ashley, currently second in Funny Car points at 473, sitting just behind first-place Tim Wilkerson (497). “And especially my whole life, watching my Dad win championships. And now, with my team to be at the top of the pack, we’re very motivated and excited. And we just want to stay ahead of the rest of the guys and gals.”

Ashley also credited her father with helping her maintain the expert focus she preaches. A series of close-calls in final-round eliminations early this season at NHRA races in Houston, Tex., and Las Vegas, Nev., left Ashley feeling frustrated and unsure.

But a reminder from the 14-time champ that “going to the finals is a good thing” helped the driver of the Castrol GTX Ford Mustang Funny Car stay on track.

“Our car’s very consistent and that’s the key in drag racing,” Ashley said. “If you can have consistency, it’s going to pay off. So we’re just trying to stay focused; not get caught up in everything. It’s so easy to want to be looking at the points every round, seeing where you’re at … we’re really trying to not get into that. It would only distract us from what our main goal is, and that’s to win rounds. Because you can’t win races without doing that.”

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Who: Ashley Force
Age: 25
Hometown: Yorba Linda, Calif.
Car: Castrol GTX Ford Mustang Funny Car
Points: 473 (second place)
Note: Became the first-ever woman to win an NHRA Funny Car race with her victory in Atlanta, Ga., on April 27.