The Driving Woman

It's been one heck of a year for Funny Car driver Ashley Force.

There was her family's "Driving Force" TV show on A&E, her January decision to drive the 300 mph, nitromethane-powered beasts called Funny Cars, the tragic death in March of racing teammate Eric Medlen and finally, her selection by poll in early September as AOL's "Hottest Athlete" (complete with an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.)

Ms. Force took a few minutes last week during the NHRA Fall Nationals to speak with The Driving Woman about her busy racing life.

Q:  Did you ever think that this year would be as crazy as it has been for you?

A:  "Definitely not! We've made it through this year; next year and the following year will seem so easy.  I think it made us a stronger team together -- I've definitely bonded with my team.  We're so close now, and I think it was because of a lot of those things.  With everything that's happened it definitely made us a close team....and that makes for having a better car, because when you're all working together and happy with each other and motivating each other, then you're just going to do better." 

Q.  Do you ever get any resentment from your team for all this "rock star" stuff? I mean, Jay Leno, wow....

 A.  "From my team, not at all, and I've been really lucky.  I know I've heard stories from other teams and drivers and the struggles they have sometimes, because really, we get all the glory.  When we do badly, we get all that side of it, too.  You know, we're only in the car a total of a few minutes a day.  We have a lot of other stuff we do, but the guys are out there, pouring sweat, from 6 in the morning till 10 at night, not with their families, on the road, working so hard, and then you're the one that gets all the attention [as a driver.]  That's why you'll hear a lot of drivers, we want to talk about our team. Lately, NHRA [and TV programs like NHRA Race Day on ESPN2] have been giving a lot more attention to the crew guys because they play such a big role."

"I have a young group of [team] guys, they're so excited, they've never said one even minor negative thing to me, ever.  Anything that I mess up on, if I have a horrible light [the signal to start a drag race] they're the ones who say, 'That's all right, we'll get 'em next time.'  I've been hearing that all the guys are staying next year, and that's not always common when you get a brand-new team....we'll be so good to go, because we're already in synch....it gives me more confidence and in return, I do better."

Q.  The AOL Hottest Athlete contest certainly brought attention to the sport of drag racing.  Are you OK with that; do you think that girls and young women today are more comfortable with being girls AND being in a non-traditional sport?  Girly stuff used to be set aside sometimes because it could mean that you'd be taken less seriously.

A.  Yeah, there's such a difference now in racing, than back when Shirley [Muldowney] raced.  Truthfully, if I had been racing during that time, I wouldn't have made it like she did.  She paved the way for us; I'm glad that I came in during a time when women are in business....a lot of women are in the board rooms of our sponsors.  It's not such a big deal that there are women in board rooms, there are women in race cars.  People have kind of gotten over it; I get more questions about it from people outside of racing....the people within racing, it's not that big of a deal."

"I grew up with a Mom who is not a tomboy, I had a whole family of sisters; we did cheerleading and dance.  I mixed it up -- I loved racing, but I loved the girl things, too, and thankfully you don't have to lose sight of that.  All these women out here, we wear makeup and dresses, but Melanie [Troxel, Top Fuel] and Hillary [Will, Top Fuel] and Angelle [Sampey, Pro Stock Motorcycle] when they get in their cars or bikes, they kick butt.  So, who can say anything about it.  You know what? They're doing their job."

One day after this interview, Ashley's father John Force was in an accident during the Fall Nationals quarterfinals and had to be airlifted from the drag strip with severe injuries.  Ashley gave up a chance to race in the semifinals to be with him and her family at the Baylor Medical Center in Dallas.  John Force is expected to make a full recovery.

On September 27, 2007, Ashley was chosen as one of five top rookie competitors in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series. The next NHRA POWERade race is the Torco Racing Fuels NHRA Nationals near Richmond, VA October 5-7.

Look for a full profile of Ms. Force and some more interview highlights in a few weeks on the Edmunds.com Women and Family Car Guide.