Force to be reckoned with
It seemed like John Force had finally reached the end of his career. He failed to win a single race in 2009 – the first time in 23 years of driving – suffered a serious car crash that mangled both his legs, and wasn’t close to ranking with his teammates.
Not only were his team mates ranking on top of the NHRA world, but his own family was out-racing him. Robert Hight, Force’s son-in-law, won three races en route to the 2009 Funny Car title. His daughter, Ashley Force Hood, won two races last year and finished in second place to Hight.
But Force sprung back into life halfway through the 2010 season.The 60 year old leads the standings and has four victories to his name. Add to this his six final round appearances and it looks as if Force has a good shot at the Northwest Nationals this weekend. The race takes place in Seattle and if he wins, Force could become the oldest champion in NHRA history. Warren Johnson currently holds that title; he was 58 when he won the Pro Stock title in 2001.
Force already has 14 championship runs. To be in a position to add a 15th is something nobody could have expected, including Force.
"I can't guarantee I will win the championship," said Force in a recent interview, "but I can guarantee you I'll be in the fight."
Force has long battled with injuries. His left ankle was shattered in five places after the September 23rd, 2007 accident. The crash happened in Ennis, Texas when his car collided with Kenny Bernstein’s. Force was 58 at the time and suffered severe blood loss from the deep lacerations on his left leg; his knee was fractured and his left wrist was all but destroyed as his fingertips were sawed off.
“Doctors said I wouldn't drive again, but they could teach me to walk again," Force said. "They told me racing was an impossibility.”
Force sure proved them wrong. “That was the wrong thing to say to me," he said their diagnosis. Force worked even harder to get back into driving shape, especially after friends and sponsors suggested he should retire.
“They [Castrol and Ford] wanted me to find a kid to put in the seat. I told them I could still do this. I could come back. I don’t know if they believed me, but they stuck with me and I’m extremely grateful for that.”
The crash was an eye-opener for Force. He worked hard to recover from his crash-related injuries, and also quit drinking and started to work out. Force had never worked out before, something Formula One drivers take very seriously. The 60-year-old had been successful in the past without it, but the accident really took a toll on him and made him re-evaluate his life.
The crash didn’t initiate the downfall of his career. Force was emotionally rattled when Eric Medlen was killed in a testing accident in Gainsville Florida. Medlen was the son of John Medlen, a crew chief for JFR. Medlen also drove for JFR, and Force had known him since he was a young boy.
“It crushed me," Force recalled about the accident. "I was racing, but I wasn't really racing. My mind was elsewhere. I thought about Eric, I thought about my kids being out here and wanting them to be safe, and then I crashed."
It took Force a long time to get back in the swing of things once he started driving again. Not only did he have to rebuild his confidence behind the wheel, but his muscle memory as well. Force had to go back to the beginning and take it one step at a time, and it ended up being two years before he felt he was “back where I was.”
Force has been granted a new lease on life and racing, and doesn’t consider age as anything more than a number; for the first time he feels young again and ready to conquer the next race.
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