Horsepower and Heels

Congrats Force Gals

Horsepowerandheels — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 22:49:55 GMT

You know, nitro Funny Car driver Ashley Force-Hood has been having a heckuva year. She's won several events, led the points chase, been to a handful of finals.... Girl is on Fire. (not literally. That would be BAD.)

Love it.

But there are 2 more Force girls out there racing worth the mention, and one looks to me to be making quite the splash too. Younger Force spawn Brittany and Courtney are both competing in Top Alcohol Dragster while they are attending college. Courtney is also all over the internets with a column in USA Today and participating in all sorts of cool Fiesta Movement shenanigans. (check out her twitter here or youtube antics here)

This past weekend in Seattle, both younger sisters made it to the semi-finals, having to face off against each other. With Courtney taking the win in that pairing, she would be the lone Force car left heading to the final rounds for that day.

Courtney Force defeated Chris Demke in that final to score her first TAD win, the lone Wally in the JFR pit for the day.

I'm a huge fan of all the Force girls, but something just stands out to me about Courtney, and I'm really excited to see her move up and join her dad and sister in the nitro categories. I *suspect* it may just be in a JFR dragster and not the typical flopper, but its just a hunch and would be cool to see. My fear is that her eventual move to funny car may be filling the seat of her retiring dad, and I don't think I'm ready for that yet.

Where ever she ends up, she seems to have the whole package: trademark Force good looks, articulate, engaging, and royal drag racing blood to boot.

Congrats Courtney on the first of many wins!

Labels: women in racing

Top Gun to Top Fuel: Mixing My Two Favorite Things

Horsepowerandheels — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 03:32:58 GMT

My parents may not have ever guessed that I'd grow up to be a total hopeless gearhead Drag Racer, but I think they had some idea that I wasn't a "normal" little girl.

While most kids dreamed of growing up to become veterinarians and doctors, I was awe-inspired at the tender age of 6 by what would be a classic 80's Hollywood movie... oh yes, wait for it.... Top Gun. [cue Danger Zone music]

I very clearly remember watching it with my family one night, and even though I was a restless 6 year old, was absolutely transfixed by what I saw. My dad was a career Air Force officer, and had retired from the Air Force before I was born. Perhaps my love of aircraft and speed came subconsciously from him, but I don't think they expected what came out of my 6 year old mouth after watching Maverick and the rest of the characters lighting up the sky in those F-14's.

And no, it wasn't the Volleyball scene, or a actually still relevant at the time and hot Tom Cruise, I had zero desire to be a Kelly McGillis lusting after some flyboy (though admittedly, I DO have a thing for men in flight suits as an adult). Top Gun was Navy, but whatever, I had decided at age six I wanted to be an Air Force Fighter Pilot.

My dream was rather crushed when my dad told me (at the time) that women were not permitted by the military to be combat pilots (something that changed in 1993). It wasn't because he didn't want to encourage me, I'm pretty sure it was also his dream growing up, and his eyesight was the disqualifying factor for him, so he didn't want me to be disappointed by the rule in place. Talk about a crushing blow... but instead of becoming an Ace Pilot, I later would settle on becoming a pilot of a different sorts... a drag racing pilot.

Maybe its not a screaming jet with supersonic speed and all kinds of fun G's, but drag racing at 200mph is still pretty thrilling. (Here's to hoping I get my chance in a Top Fuel Dragster and get to that 300mph thrill) And now the Air Force has figured out how to get the average person to merge these passions together with their latest recruitment tool: The Mustang X-1.

Designed by the same people responsible for the new gen KITT car (Galpin Autosports), this car has been totally redone for the USAF. On the exterior a radical lowered stance and low profile tires make for the aggressive aircraft-inspired theme complete with carbon fiber body, aerodynamic air intakes, and gull-wing doors. The flight cockpit interior completely replaces the Mustang interior with flight-stick, a touch-screen interfaced control system, and a single driver ejection seat center-mounted setup. GPS and nightvision technology is also found on the high-tech console.

At first, I was rather curious how they were "driving" via a flight-stick, but I read on to discover that there is a hidden regular motorized steering wheel that pops out for the "pilot" to steer with (slight disappointment that its not stick-driven, but whatever). The stick is actually a very nifty shifter for the manual transmission. I was also surprised that the car is only hopped up to 500 hp with cams and exhaust, which by my hotrodder standards does it zero justice... I mean why not twin turbos or something cool!

Alas, its a pretty cool recruitment tool if you ask me... they also have a Charger called the "Vapor", but the X-1 is definitely the more radical of the two.

Now that I'm grown and have spent the last 10 years chasing my dream of drag racing, I wish I would have had the level of determination applied to pursuing my dream of being a fighter pilot. I had no way of knowing then, but CAN'T just means you have to try a little harder.... Its still on my "Bucket List" to ride in a supersonic jet at some point, to cross off both me and my dad's dreams together. Or maybe I'll land a Top Fuel/Air Force sponsor and get to combine both dreams at once. (Keep your fingers crossed folks!)

Regardless, I feel pretty lucky to be participating in the land-version of high speed flight in drag racing, because as Goose and Maverick put it oh so well....

"I feel the need.... the need for SPEED!!"

Photos: USAF

Brickyard

Horsepowerandheels — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 03:30:10 GMT

So, as is my norm here lately, I had another whirlwind weekend in celebration of Memorial Day festivities. (I'm almost dizzy looking at my calendar anymore)

Originally, I had planned to make a trip to Indy all weekend, but I was pleasantly surprised to learn that I had been added to the Dixie Derby All-Star team. We had a home bout on Saturday, which I played in and we ended up winning 154-41. Great night for sure. Thanks for everyone that came to watch, I had a great time!

I didn't get to celebrate long at the afterparty, because after that tiring day, it was up bright and early headed out to Indianapolis, IN. I had a few different reasons to be going to Indy, but one of them was to definitely catch part of the Indy 500 in person. I've never seen an Indy race live, especially not at the hallowed Brickyard, so I raced the 6 hours up there early Sunday morning to catch the race. (thank GOD for radar detectors.... and drafting... and fun travelers with the same idea in mind)

I arrived around lap 90, but by the time I got parked and hiked the 2 miles to the track, it was somewhere around lap 140 or so. To my luck, they weren't even checking tickets anymore, so I just walked in and grabbed an empty seat on Turn 2. I had a bunch of friends there that I hoped to meet and sit with, but unfortunately, you can't exactly hear a cell phone well from the track, so I just gave up and sat in the stands next to some *interesting* people.

Of course, I learned after I made it about 1.75 miles of my hike that I'd hauled my camera with me for NOTHING, being that I had conveniently left my only CF card in the USB reader at work back in Huntsville. Grrrr..... I can be thoroughly brain-dead sometimes. But I did catch some of the *BIG* Meira crash, as it happened right in front of me. They took awhile to get him out, I had a sick feeling as they don't make it a point to say anything about the driver's condition over the PA. I thought I saw him moving on the stretcher, so that was a hopeful sign. Thankfully, he's okay, just has some broken vertebrae and will have some therapy to go through for the rest of the season.

So, the best evidence of my 1st trip to an Indy car race comes from my negative 3.0 mega pixel camera phone. And let me tell you how hard it is to actually CATCH a 2oomph car whizzing by with that sucker too. ::Shakes head in disgust::

Danica Patrick again did really well, landing in the 3rd spot at the race end behind Helio and Wheaton. Helio had a huge lead, but I was secretly hoping for some last lap antics by Danica that would've moved her into 2nd. Sarah and Milka both finished the race, but out of the top 10. Oh well, next year for my girls!

Monday's rainy trip home was far from fun, as I was thoroughly exhausted and had to fight some pretty crappy conditions. (Hello Mustang, time for some new tires!) I made it back into town around 8pm, snuggled up to my little chihuahua, and tried to unwind before heading back to the grind.

And it doesn't appear that my schedule will be letting up any time soon! Next weekend: Evansville, IN for Derby. Following weekend: Knoxville, TN for derby, where I'm actually skating with the Knoxville team, who was short players. Week after? FLORIDA for fun, sun, family.... and oh yea, WORK too. Then possibly a bonzai run back to Bowling Green, KY for the nostalgia race. Yippeee-aye-ahhh!

Derby Photos: Angela Zaborny; Indy Photos: My crappy Blackberry.

Labels: On the Road

Traveling the Country One Track at a Time

Horsepowerandheels — Tue, 26 May 2009 23:41:04 GMT

One of the great things about racing, is that it has allowed me to travel the country, one racetrack at a time. I tried to sit down and think of all the tracks I've been to, which isn't an easy task. Sad part is, that although I've been all over the U.S., I couldn't tell you much about the cities I've visited BESIDES which track surfaces are good and how the pit parking was.

The list that I can remember is about 40+ right now, including a few over the ocean in Puerto Rico. I'm hoping to add to it as the years go by. (or as I can remember where else I've been!)

US 19 Dragway -- Albany, GA
Goodtimes Drag Strip -- Baileyton, AL
Houston Motorsports Park -- Baytown, TX
Beechbend Raceway -- Bowling Green, KY
Bradenton Motorsports Park -- Bradenton, FL
Bristol Dragstrip -- Bristol, TN
National Trails Raceway -- Columbus, OH
Atlanta Dragway -- Commerce, GA
One Way Dragway -- Cottonwood, AL
Cordova Dragway Park -- Cordova, IL
Southeastern Int'l Raceway -- Dallas, GA
Darlington Int'l Dragway -- Darlington, SC
Dothan Dragway -- Dothan, AL
Douglas Drag Strip -- Douglas, GA
Texas Motorplex-- Ennis, TX
Gainesville Raceway Park -- Gainesville, FL
Huntsville Dragway -- Harvest, AL
Emerald Coast Dragway -- Holt, FL
O'Reilly Motorsports Park -- Indianapolis, IN
Carolina Dragway -- Jackson, SC
Route 66 Raceway -- Joliet, IL
Lakeland Motorsports Park -- Lakeland, FL
Twiggs Co. Raceway -- Macon, GA
Gateway International Raceway -- Madison, IL
Montgomery Motorsports Park -- Montgomery, AL
Summit Raceway Park -- Norwalk, OH
Orangeburg Dragstrip -- Orangeburg, SC
Orlando Speed World -- Orlando, FL
Phenix Motorsport Park -- Phenix City, AL
Pomona Raceway -- Pomona, CA
Ponce International Raceway -- Ponce, Puerto Rico
Maple Grove Raceway -- Reading, PA
Silver Dollar Raceway -- Reynolds, GA
Old Dominion Raceway -- Richmond, VA
Rockingham Dragway -- Rockingham, NC
Puerto Rico International Speedway -- Salinas, Puerto Rico
Alabama International Raceway -- Steele, AL
Heartland Motorsports Park -- Topeka, KS
South Georgia Motorsports Park -- Valdosta, GA
Palm Beach International Raceway -- West Palm, FL

I don't even want to think how many road miles that adds up to!

My favorites are Bristol's Thunder Valley for the beautiful scenery and awesome atmosphere as the cars race through the mountain valley, and Norwalk's Summit Raceway Park because of the midway and great hospitality (and because it was my first 6 sec, 200mph pass there). The ultimate package has to be Ponce Int'l Raceway in Puerto Rico, its a drag racer's dream! More on that in another blog post though...

I'm hoping to add the rest of the NHRA tour onto my list at some point (in the not-so-distant future).

Labels: Lists

A Photo is worth a Thousand Words

Horsepowerandheels — Wed, 06 May 2009 20:13:12 GMT

In addition to the crew chiefs and drivers, one of the other groups of greatly talented professionals you get to meet at the racetrack every weekend are the guys and gals that are risking their butts hanging on the guardwalls to give us great images of the action. Though I know absolutely NOTHING about photography aside from point-and-click, I've always had great respect for these guys and gals, and always truly admire their work.

Last week, I had the pleasure of meeting my absolute favorite Professional Sports Photographer, Mark Rebilas. I've been a fan of his and have been following his work for quite awhile now, but I didn't realize how cool a guy he actually is until recently.

Mark hails from Phoenix, AZ; the son of photographer Gil Rebilas, who first put a camera in his son's hands at age 10. Mark quickly learned the trade, enlisting as a Photographer for the US Navy, and leading a team of 22 photographers on an aircraft carrier during a wartime deployment across the world.

Now, you can find him high above the tri-oval at NASCAR races, capturing some of the crazy crashes, or on the sidelines at baseball games and a wide variety of other sports. A very recognized name in the business, Mark's won the NMPA Motorsports Photographer of the Year award twice, and has been featured all over the industry in ESPN, Sports Illustrated, and many other publications. Mark has also covered a few drag racing events, and his images are absolutely stunning. His photo blog is really impressive, and tells a great story about the events he covers. Though he told me he originally started the blog for other photographers, any sports fan can really appreciate his detailed blogging style and the great story his images tell.

Some of my favorites are the unique portraits he's done with my favorite NHRA drivers. His approach is drastically different from our regular drag racing photographers, and from what he outlines in his blogs, his techniques are much more complicated and a lot harder work. But the results are amazing:

Angelle Sampey last year in Pro Stock Motorcycle.

Now-retired Funny Car driver Gary Scelzi

The action shots are unlike anything I've ever seen. With drag racing being the fastest moving of all the motorsports, I imagine its quite difficult to catch all the action coming at you at 300mph. But these are just the most vivid and spectacular I've ever seen...

Robert Hight in Nitro Funny Car
Tony Schumacher in Top Fuel

Fuel Altered Engine Explosion at March Meet

Clearly, I don't have to do much talking. His work speaks rather breathlessly for itself. I couldn't possibly post all of my favorites, so you really need to head on over to his blog to check them all out.

Other than the fact he drives a Corvette (::groan::), Mark is one of the coolest people I've had a chance to hang out with in some time! I've already made him promise that if I strike the lotto and go Top Fuel racing, he's going to be the official Photographer with sole mission to make me look like a resident bad ass! Thanks, Mark!

Check out Mark's Blog: www.markjrebilas.com/blog
Or better yet, subscribe to it free here.

Season 2: Erica and Ashley Force Hood

Horsepowerandheels — Sun, 03 May 2009 06:49:27 GMT

You may remember a few months ago (where the heck is time going lately!) that I had a chance to sit down with NHRA Nitro Funny Car driver Ashley Force-Hood for some gal chat to kick off Season 2 of Horsepower & Heels TV...

Its been a hectic few months, but the folks at PNN just finalized the episode. Though I wish we could have included all 20 minutes of great insight from Ashley on a wide variety of topics, PNN and I chose to give some insight to viewers from Ashley into the very unique side of being a woman at the races.

Hope you enjoy!

WATCH SEASON 2, EPISODE 1 of HORSEPOWER & HEELS TV!

Gator Nationals and Ashley Force

Horsepowerandheels — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 05:00:49 GMT

Its been over a week since I got back from a great trip to the 40th Annual NHRA Gator Nationals, and I'm just catching up enough to sit down for an update.

What a great trip! The Gator Nationals have become a semi-traditional trip for me, being the first east coast race of the season, and my first chance to get away and "smell the nitro" for the year.

As usual, the trip kicks off at the Gainesville Ale House on Thursday night, with a chance to catch up to many of my racing friends and a few personal friends from home that come up for the weekend from Orlando.

But the highlight of this year's trip was my opportunity on Friday morning to visit with Ashley Force courtesey of JFR PR pro Elon Werner. I met Elon through the new @JFR_Racing twitter campaign, and he invited me out to chat with Ashley in the pits. The JFR Twitter accounts allows fans to follow the instant team updates throughout the weekend to get a "behind the scenes" feel from the races in real-time.

(Check out my growing list of Drag Racing Twitter Accounts for other team updates)

Right now, Ashley is living the dream of a lot of us women racers in the PRO leagues of drag racing, being one of the few women competing this year in the NHRA. The advancement of women in racing is a passion of mine, so I was very eager to sit down with the top gal in our sport for some insight into what its like out there with the Big Boys. Ashley is in her third year as a professional Nitro Funny Car racer with her father's premiere funny car team. She's had incredible success as a racer, and is an inspiration to many.

Armed with my Horsepower & Heels TV Cam, I spent about 20 minutes with Ashley in her driver's lounge chatting about what its been like for her as a woman out on the circuit and how she's progressed through the ranks to reach professional status. PNN and I are now sorting through the editing, and we'll be kicking off Season 2 of Horsepower & Heels TV with this insightful look at the leading lady in NHRA Nitro Funny Car.

Stay tuned for more coming soon!!!

Labels: At the Races, On the Road, women in racing

This Gives Horsepower

Horsepowerandheels — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 04:49:05 GMT

Lamborghini Heels

Paging Ford Motor Company! How great a marketing ploy to get women into your brand... MAKE ME SOME MUSTANG HEELS!!!!!!

Blogging Anniversary

Horsepowerandheels — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 04:46:49 GMT

Wow, its been 4 YEARS since I started blogging. FOUR. YEARS.

I took a stroll down memory lane, and gathered up a few highlights in the archives. Let's call this the Horsepower & Heels Greatest Hits Album.

A Fresh Perspective --6/30/05
Plug Me In -- 6/20/05
Eating My Wheaties -- 9/21/05
Happy Halloween -- 10/31/05
Found a Peanut -- 11/15/05
We Did It!!! -- 7/10/06
Not Alone and Really Not all that Different -- 8/6/06
Finishing 2nd -- 9/19/06
Nothing Stands between a girl and her Racecar -- 2/19/07
FLASHBACK: My first Drag Racing Experience -- 6/21/07
Saddened -- 6/17/07
Street Racing, BAD DEAL -- 8/30/07
Fast Friends at 90+mph -- 8/4/07
Green-eyed Monster -- 8/2/07
Case Study In Sleep Deprivation -- 9/18/07
Don't Pinch Me! -- 10/26/07
FLASHBACK: 2 FAST, 2 FUNNY -- 10/10/07
Irresponsible Journalism -- 11/7/07
What 200mph feels like -- 1/31/08
Wearing Many Hats -- 1/22/08
Operation Driver Weight -- 1/8/08
Racing Sweeties -- 2/14/08
Fired Up: Subconscious Triggers -- 3/6/08
Mainstream Media Thumbs Nose at Drag Racing -- 4/29/08
What Matters -- 5/30/08
The Secret is in the Hair -- 6/10/08
Bucket List -- 7/16/08
10 Favorite Racecars -- 8/28/08
Crossing the Finishline of Fear -- 10/10/08
Shut Up and RACE -- 11/20/08

Labels: Lists

On Air: Houston 1560AM Thunder Road

Horsepowerandheels — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 01:12:07 GMT

Listen in this Sunday, March 1st to Houston's 1560AM The Game radio station for my guest spot on the Thunder Road show's "Driving Divas" segment.

Thunder Road is Houston’s ONLY place for all things motor sports and the best damn racing show around, featuring hosts Doug Johnson, a former Fun Ford Weekend competitor, and "Ya Boy Blue" (Jeffery Blue). Past guests on the "Driving Divas" segment have been NHRA Pro Stock driver Erica Enders and Stock Car racer Kristen Bumbera.

The show will air this Sunday, March 1st from 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM central standard time.

Don't live in Houston? The show is also available via web. You can listen online.

Labels: press

Drag Racer's Guide to Twitter

Horsepowerandheels — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 05:44:30 GMT

One of my favorite social networking tools is Twitter. I've been using it for a couple of years now, and although I first thought it was rather odd and didn't "get it", I've realized the myriad of different usages for the service, and how they can be customized and utilized for personal needs. (Visit me on Twitter here)

Lately, I've been very excited by the adoption of Twitter by many different racing teams as a way to communicate with fans. There are endless opportunities for teams to use Twitter in a new and engaging way.

One of the most beneficial usages is the fact that fans can now follow and request text message notifications to their phones for their favorite drivers. That means that if I subscribe with notification to JFR's twitter account, I'll get an instant text message update from the team whenever they tweet a new event. If PR people handle this right, it means insider information available instantaneously... and it also means a great database in which to reach out to your fans.
I've started assembling the Twitter Guide for the Drag Racing Crowd, to include a list of all the drag racing related twitter feeds. Feel free to add to my list in the comments section, and I'll post them online soon for everyone to use.

Sanctioning Bodies
@NHRA -- NHRA Official Twitter
@IHRAMotorsports -- IHRA Official Twitter
@NHRA_FTS -- The NHRA Full Throttle Series

News Orgs
@go2geiger -- Go 2 Geiger Drag Racing News
@femaleracing -- Female Racing News Network
@ProStockCars -- Pro Stock Cars News

Drivers/Teams
@JFR_Racing -- John Force Racing
@FCSD_TASCA_PR -- Tasca Racing Team
@TerryMcMillen -- Top Fuel Driver Terry McMillen
@MattHaganRacing -- Nitro Funny Car Driver Matt Hagan
@ACDelco_Racing -- Pro Stock Team of Kurt Johnson
@FordRacing -- All Ford Racing
@wellsmotorsport -- IHRA Top Sportsman Carlos Wells
@topfueldragster -- Stevens Family Top Fuel Team
@rodhouckracing -- Pro Mod Driver Rod Houck

Tracks/Facilities
@norwalkracefans -- Summit Raceway Park in Norwalk, OH
@gatewayraceway -- Gateway Int'l Raceway in Madison, IL
@BMSUpdates -- Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, TN
@OReillyRaceway -- O'Reilly Raceway Park in Indianapolis, IN

Others
@RacingJunk -- Racing Junk Classifieds
@DragstarRacing -- DragStar Apparel
@MandHtires -- M&H Tires

Labels: Lists

Another Pink

Horsepowerandheels — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 05:43:34 GMT

One of the biggest things I've missed is my signature Black & Pink racecar paint jobs. Which is why I'm really excited that the other Erica racing is not only driving a Mustang this year too, but has gone with a Black/Pink color scheme for her DragStar Pro Stock ride.

Its been a tough road for racers lately, so I'm super excited for Erica Enders getting back to the Pro Stock arena. The car, which is sponsored by DragStar Racing, will be part of Cunningham Ford Pro Stock Racing program.

Amazingly, this year we are sharing not only the first name, but both of us are driving mustangs, and both cars will rock a similar paint scheme. Although I originally planned a similar Black/Pink theme based on my blog format, my car will now be a dark charcoal color with the pink/black accents instead.

With any luck, this will be the year for the Ericas Comeback Tour-- Enders taking on the Pro Stock boys, and myself dealing with the Pro Street crowd! Good luck, Enders!

Labels: women in racing

Turbo Inlets Cut

Horsepowerandheels — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 03:16:18 GMT

Here's another shot of the front end with the molding done for the turbo inlets.

Thanks again to Johnston Body Works & Bikes and Dan Parker of Parker Chassis.

Labels: In the Shop

More Progress!

Horsepowerandheels — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 00:06:44 GMT

Its getting even CLOSER! BIG, HUGE, CAN'T EVEN PUT INTO WORDS THANKS to David Johnston of Johnston Body Works and Bikes and Dan Parker at Parker Chassis. I'm really excited! Its getting so very close now!

Labels: In the Shop, women in racing

World of Wheels 2009 Atlanta

Horsepowerandheels — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 07:06:07 GMT

Its been a LONG while since I was around some good ole hot rods, so I was really excited to attend the 2009 World of Wheels Expo in Atlanta this weekend. I managed to remember to bring my fancy-pants camera, which I haven't drug out in over 2 years. After reviewing my photos from this weekend, I'm WAAAY out of practice, and did more fumbling with the thing than anything (hello FLASH, what happened to you?!?) , but you'll get the picture.

I LOVE rat rods and the work and creativity that goes into them. There were many need rat rods and choppers at this show, my favorites being the old skool tow trucks and themed bikes.

There were some iconic cars there as well. I'm a huge Speed Racer fan, so the Mach 5 rendition was especially cool to me. The Foose P-32 Roadster was also on display, as well as both the original and the latest rendition of the KIT cars from Knight Rider (As much as I love Mustangs, I still don't think the Mustang as the new KIT car seems right to me).

They even had a stunt street bike exhibition set up in the far corner, but of course my shoty photography skills got a major FAIL in that department. My blurry attempt at getting the endo stoppy action:

View the complete Photo Gallery here.