Robert Ortmayer intensifies John’s physical therapy.

VIGOROUS PHYSICAL THERAPY PAYING DIVIDENDS FOR FORCE
14-Time Champion On Target for Pre-Season Testing

Robert Hight, in cockpit, gives physical therapist Robert Ortmayer a quick primer on driving a Funny Car so that he has a better understanding of how much more work will be needed to get John Force back in a race car by mid-January. Photos courtesy of Brandon Baker

YORBA LINDA, Calif. – The lengthy physical therapy sessions he is undergoing five days each week are beginning to pay big dividends for drag racing icon John Force as he tries to recover from injuries suffered in a Sept. 23 crash at the Texas Motorplex.

That was the assessment Wednesday of physical therapist Robert Ortmayer, who has been working with Force since the 14-time NHRA Funny Car Champion returned to his California home after 27 days in a Texas hospital.

The 58-year-old Force, whose goal is to be back in a Castrol GTX High Mileage Ford Funny Car when pre-season testing begins in mid-January, was cleared Tuesday to commence light strength training with the left hand and left foot. He already had been involved in strength work on the less severely injured right foot and hand.

In the crash, the worst of his career, the 125-time tour winner suffered a compound fracture of the left ankle, a dislocation of the left wrist so bad that it required the insertion of pins and application of a hard cast, broken bones in the right foot and hand, a severe laceration of the right knee with ligament and tendon damage and mangled fingers and toes involving significant tissue loss.

Even the worst break, that to a left ankle, has healed enough to support 50 per cent of its normal load. Strength and stamina now are the primary issues for the 14-time Auto Racing All-America selection who is just eight round wins shy of becoming the first driver to win 1,000 competitive rounds on the NHRA tour.

“Attitude is everything in these types of recoveries,” Ortmayer said. “John is exceptional in that area. He has done everything we’ve asked. It’s been difficult, but he is one of the most motivated people with whom I have ever worked. Considering the severity of the accident and the injuries, his range of movement already is remarkable and he’s making more progress every day.”

With an eye toward pre-season testing, Ortmayer toured the John Force Racing, Inc., shop facility Tuesday so that Force’s teammate, two-time POWERade Championship runner-up Robert Hight, could orient him to the cockpit of a Funny Car and explain what occurs during a typical quarter mile run.

The owner of Yorba Linda Physical Therapy then met with the JFR crew chiefs and Ford representatives, including Ford Racing boss Dan Davis, for an update on changes to the 2008 cockpit and chassis that might present new physical challenges for the 1996 Driver of the Year.

Physical Therapist Robert Ortmayer makes a point during a meeting at John Force Racing, Inc., with crew chiefs including Dean Antonelli, left, and Bernie Fedderly along with Ford Racing boss Dan Davis, far right.

Photo courtesy of Brandon Baker

John Force holds court on a visit to his shop facility where he was updated on the progress of new race cars.

Photo courtesy of Brandon Baker

-www.johnforceracing.com-

NEW SURGERY, ADDITIONAL CAST WON’T IMPEDE FORCE’S REHABILITATION
14-Time Champ Will Support Team at 43rd annual Automobile Club Finals

POMONA, Calif. – With casts now on both feet, John Force won’t be breaking any speed records this week when the 2008 NHRA POWERade drag racing season races to close with the 43rd running of the Auto Club Finals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona.

The 14-time NHRA Funny Car Champion underwent additional scheduled surgery Tuesday at Kerlan-Jobe Medical Center in Los Angeles where doctors inserted a pin in his right foot to support a broken bone discovered after he had flown home to Yorba Linda, Calif., following 27 days in a Dallas, Texas, hospital. Doctors also cleaned and repaired a troublesome nail bed on the middle finger of his right hand.

The new cast will further restrict Force’s mobility. The 125-time tour winner was able to use a walker to get to and from the starting line during last week’s ACDelco Las Vegas Nationals, but, with a new boot cast on the right foot, he will be confined to a wheelchair or his the cab of his Ford truck this week.

Nevertheless, it is just a temporary setback for the 14-time Auto Racing all-America selection, who plans to be back in the cockpit of his Castrol GTX High Mileage Ford Mustang in time for pre-season testing in January.

“We knew we were gonna have to do this (surgery),” Force said. “They told me it won’t set back my rehab, through. We’re still on schedule with that. They found the broken bone after I got back to L.A. and they think I might have done it during my rehab because we were doing three sessions a day, seven days.”

Force’s original injuries included a compound fracture of the left ankle, tendon and ligament damage in his right knee, badly mangled fingers on his right hand and toes on his right foot and a left wrist so badly dislocated that it required surgery during which pins were inserted and a cast applied.

The Sept. 23rd accident during which his car broke apart and collided with that of Kenny Bernstein during competition at the Texas Motorplex was the worst of Force’s 30-year career. In fact, it was the first time the 58-year-old icon had been injured badly enough to spend the night in the hospital.

Son-in-law Robert Hight, who still has a mathematical shot at the $500,000 POWERade Championship, said Wednesday that Force’s presence at last week’s race in Las Vegas provided an emotional boost to everyone associated with the team. It also provided a boost for Force himself.

“Nobody loves drag racing more than John,” Hight said. “That’s all he talked about in the hospital was getting back out here. He’s the leader of this team whether he’s in a wheelchair or in a race car.”

Hight still could win the championship IF he wins the race and current points leader Tony Pedregon fails to qualify or if the wins the race and sets the national record and Pedregon is eliminated as early as round one. If Pedregon wins a round of racing, the championship is his.

“We have no control over what Tony does,” Hight said. “All we can do is go out and try to get all the points we can – and that’s what we’re going to do.”

In addition to Hight, John Force Racing, Inc., will field cars for 24-year-old Ashley Force, veteran Phil Burkart Jr., who for the second race will fill the seat normally occupied by Force, and former title-winning crew chief Mike Neff, who will compete in his second event in a Castrol GTX Ford tuned by John Medlen.

Ashley, the front runner in the race for the Auto Club’s 2007 Road to the Future Award, is coming off a runner-up finish last week at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. She is the first woman to reach the final round in the Funny Car category.

-www.johnforceracing.com-

DRAG RACER FORCE'S PHYSICAL THERAPY PROGRESS COULD SEND HIM HOME THIS WEEKEND

Photo Credit: John Force Racing

DALLAS, Texas – Drag racing champion John Force, seriously injured in a Sept. 23rd crash at Texas Motorplex, praised the medical staff at Baylor University Medical Center and the Baylor Institute for Rehabilitation Friday and demonstrated his daily physical therapy regimen in advance of an expected Saturday release.

Amy Wilson M.D., medical director Baylor Institute for Rehabilitation and 14-time NHRA
Funny Car champion address the media concerning Mr. Force’s injuries sustained
September 23 at the Texas Motorplex prior to his release this weekend.

 Force, 58, suffered a compound fracture of the left ankle, broken right foot, broken and mangled fingers on his right hand, ligament and tendon damage to the right knee and a badly dislocated left wrist when his drag racing Funny Car crashed at a speed exceeding 300 miles per hour.

 Despite his injuries, the 14-time NHRA Funny Car Champion is expected to fly home to Yorba Linda, Calif., Saturday, 16 days after entering physical therapy and 27 days after suffering the worst accident of his 30-year career.  He will receive further physical therapy in his home state in anticipation of returning to competition in the 2008 season.

John Force talks with media about his recovery and his plans for 2007 and 2008.

 The 125-time NHRA tour winner plans to attend at least one day of next week’s race at Las Vegas, Nev., to support the efforts of daughter Ashley Force, 24, and son-in-law Robert Hight, 38, who drive Castrol GTX and Automobile Club of Southern California-backed Ford Mustangs almost identical to the one in which he crashed into fellow competitor Kenny Bernstein when a tire failed after his semifinal victory.

 Flanked by Amy Wilson, M.D., the medical director for BIR, and Melissa Simon, his primary physical therapist, Force said his plan is to be back in a race car when his team begins testing for the 2008 season in January. 

John Force and Melissa Simon P.T. work on car transfers outside Baylor Institute for
Rehabilitation today. This was the first time Mr. Force had been outside since his
September 23rd accident.

 Despite those lofty expectations, Dr. Wilson acknowledged that Force still has a lot of work ahead of him.  Because of the fact that he has been instructed not to put weight on his left ankle for another month, the 14-time Auto Racing All-American is confined to a wheelchair or a walker.  However, he demonstrated Friday his technique for getting into and out of a passenger car, one of the conditions of his release.

 Although he had been offered air ambulance service by Kalitta Air, owned by fellow drag racer Connie Kalitta, Force said he planned to travel by commercial airliner back to the Los Angeles area where he will be re-united with his family: wife Laurie and daughters Ashley, Brittany, Courtney and Adria Hight.

 “Getting home will be a big step,” Force said.  “I can’t say enough about the care they’ve given me at Baylor.  I couldn’t have been in better hands, but going home tells me that I’m making real progress.  It’s still hard, the physical therapy, but I have a goal and that’s what gets me up and going every morning.”

-www.johnforceracing.com-

UPDATE: Thursday, Oct. 04, 2007

CASTROL SUPPORTING FALLEN STAR WITH BANNERS, SPECIAL E-MAIL SITE

WAYNE, N.J. – BP Lubricants, Inc., whose Castrol GTX® brand is synonymous with drag racing icon John Force, is providing moral support for its fallen star this week even though there will be no Castrol GTX Funny Car in the field when the NHRA POWERade tour moves to Richmond, Va., for the second annual TORCO Racing Fuels Nationals.

Force, drag racing’s most prolific winner, remains hospitalized at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, Texas, where he is being treated for injuries suffered in a Sept. 23 crash at the Texas Motorplex. Although he suffered a compound fracture of the left ankle, broken toes and fingers, a dislocated left wrist and a severely lacerated right knee, Force’s prognosis for complete recovery is excellent.

“We are in complete support of John, his family and the race team during this very difficult time,” said Lori Anne Gola, assistant sponsorship manager for BP Lubricants. “John isn’t just someone we sponsor, he’s part of our family and our only goal is his recovery.”

In addition to Force, who has won 125 races and 14 championships in Castrol GTX race cars, the GTX brand also sponsors the champion’s 24-year-old daughter, Ashley, a leading candidate for NHRA Rookie-of-the-Year honors.

However, neither of the Forces will race at Richmond – John because he is undergoing physical therapy; Ashley because in the aftermath of her father’s crash, upgrades to her Castrol GTX Ford could not be completed in time for this week’s race.

Nevertheless, Castrol will retain a major presence at Richmond in the form of Robert Hight, driver of the Castrol-backed Auto Club of Southern California Ford and one of the leading contenders in the NHRA’s new Countdown to the Championship playoff system.

Hight, whose car was first in line for upgrades commissioned by the Team Castrol crew chiefs after Force’s accident, presently is second in driver points with only this week’s race remaining before the field is pared to four drivers. Ironically, Force presently occupies the fourth and final transfer position.

Castrol, which began its association with Force in 1985, will continue to support the 14-time Auto Racing All-America selection during a recovery period that could take up to three months.

Beginning with this week’s race, special banners will be made available at the Castrol midway display on which fans can pen get well notes to Force. In addition, Castrol has created a special website for well-wishers that can be accessed at getwelljohn@bp.com. All e-mail messages received will be compiled, printed and delivered to Force along with the special banners.

-www.castrol/us.com-

UPDATE: Thursday, Oct. 04, 2007

BOTH FORCES OUT AT RICHMOND; HIGHT CARRIES THE LOAD FOR TEAM
Upgrades to Ashley’s Car Not Completed in Time for TORCO Nationals

DALLAS, Texas – Injured drag racing star John Force confirmed Thursday that daughter Ashley, the leading contender for the Auto Club’s 2007 Road to the Future Award, won’t compete this week in the second annual TORCO Racing Fuels Nationals at Richmond, Va.

Modifications to the 24-year-old’s 320 mile-an-hour Ford Mustang that were mandated by her father after his Sept. 23 crash at the Texas Motorplex simply could not be completed in time to send the Castrol GTX team to Virginia Motorsports Park.

Since Ashley is not part of the NHRA’s new Countdown to the Championship, priority for those upgrades was given to teammate Robert Hight’s Auto Club Ford, which will be the only John Force Racing entry in the Final 4 and the only one in competition this weekend.

“A lot of different decisions had to be made within a short amount of time,” Ashley said. “The top priority is safety and the second priority was getting Robert and his team into the Richmond race because they’re still in the Countdown.

“So, we focused on Robert’s Auto Club Mustang. They’re still working right now to get it ready and there just wasn’t time to do the other cars like dad wanted them. So, I’m staying (in Dallas) with dad and Mike Neff (who’ll drive a fourth Force Racing entry next season) is going to be in Richmond with Robert.

“It’s a little disappointing, but we’ll just stick with our teammates and get ready for Vegas (and the Oct. 26-28 ACDelco Las Vegas Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway).”

Ashley has remained at Baylor University Medical Center since her father’s crash. The elder Force presently is undergoing an accelerated program of physical therapy to address a laundry list of injuries that include a compound fracture of the left ankle, broken toes and fingers, a badly dislocated left wrist and a severely lacerated right knee.

Hight, who was the points leader until he failed to qualify for the race in which his father-in-law was injured, doesn’t believe the changes to his car, which included extra bracing throughout the chassis, will adversely effect performance even though they added 30 pounds of weight.

“It’s untried,” Hight said of the car in which, earlier this year, he posted the two quickest quarter miles in Funny Car history, “but, trust me, the crew chiefs wouldn’t send our car out there if they didn’t think it could compete. I’m actually looking for it to be a better car along with being safer. Until we go down the track, we won’t really know, but I have a feeling that it might be better.”

As for Force, he’ll follow the race by phone and, with the help of staff members and family, on the internet.

“Robert’s our lead guy now,” Force said. “He’s racin’ this week not just for me and Ashley and Eric Medlen but for all the sponsors – Castrol GTX, Auto Club, Ford, Mac Tools, BrandSource, Mach 1 Air Services. I’m in the Countdown (fourth in points) but if any of those other guys show up, they knock me out – and they’re probably gonna show up.

Medlen, the lead driver in Force’s Next Generation initiative, succumbed last March to injuries suffered in a testing accident at Gainesville, Fla. Modifications made to the cars after that accident probably kept Force from suffering more serious injuries in his crash.

Those changes included widening the top of the roll cage and, with the assistance of Kris VanGilder at ISP (Innovative Safety Products), adding extra padding around the driver’s head. Furthermore, the team shucked the five-point seat belts mandated by rule for a more restrictive seven-point system and worked with Trevor Ashline of Safety Solutions, Inc., to create the new “Hybrid X” restraint system that restricts the driver’s head movement from side-to-side as well as from front-to-back.

“Eric saved my life,” Force said, “because my crew chief (Austin Coil) told me my accident was worse than his. If we hadn’t made the changes, I wouldn’t be here.
So I’m just gonna do my therapy this week and pull for Robert and Jimmy Prock and the whole Auto Club team.

“Next week, I’ll get with the docs and we’ll figure out when I can get back in the car. That’s my motivation. I miss racing.”

-www.johnforceracing.com-

UPDATE: Tuesday, Oct. 02, 2007 – 8:00pm CST:

FORCE WILL STAY PUT AFTER CONSULTING WITH ORTHOPEDIC SPECIALISTS
14-Time Champ Scraps Plans to Attend TORCO Nationals at Richmond

DALLAS, Texas – John Force got a reality check Tuesday and the 14-time NHRA Funny Car Champion found he didn’t have a leg to stand on.

Faced with the knowledge that he can’t put weight on a badly broken left ankle for at least 60 days and the realization that his severely damaged right knee and foot simply won’t hold him up, Force finally acquiesced to the wishes of orthopedic surgeons treating him at Baylor University Medical Center.

The upshot is that the injured icon will remain at Baylor for an undermined amount of time under the supervision of trauma specialist Dr. Michael Foreman, orthopedic traumatologist Dr. Alan Jones and orthopedic surgeon Dr. David Zehr and immediately will embark on a more intense physical therapy program.

Although, with assistance, he has been up on his feet since the Sept. 23rd accident at the Texas Motorplex that left him seriously injured for the first time in his 30-year career, reports that the 125-time tour winner has been walking have been greatly exaggerated.

His physical activity to date has consisted primarily of doing pull-ups with his right arm and raising and lowering his legs – all from his hospital bed, which is why, on Tuesday, drag racing’s biggest star acknowledged that while he is extremely motivated to get back in his race car as quickly as possible, he finally understands that he cannot accelerate the healing process.

“It is what it is,” Force said. “I know I said I was going to drive at Richmond (in this week’s second annual TORCO Racing Fuels Nationals at Virginia Motorsports Park) and that I was going to drive at Las Vegas. That’s what I wanted to do, but the truth is I’m beat up pretty bad. I can’t do anything for myself right now plus my blood count is down.

“They want me to eat, but nothing tastes right and they want me to walk on my own, which I can’t do because my right leg is so bad.”

Force’s right leg initially was weakened by childhood polio and then aggravated by an accident in 1989. In the crash, the same knee was deeply lacerated, affecting the tendons and ligaments.

“I’ve had to rely on my daughter Ashley and my son-in-law, Robert Hight, to do everything for me – and I mean everything,” Force said. “I got two bad hands and two bad legs, so it didn’t make any sense to do a couple days of therapy here, a couple more in Indy and a couple more in California.

“My doctors here are right up there with the best in the world for these kinds of injuries. They worked with Kenny Brack and they’ve handled PBR bull riders when they’ve been hurt. So, my new game plan is to stay here to do the physical therapy they want.”

That decision countermands Force’s earlier plan to travel to Indianapolis this week and then on to Richmond to provide morale support for Hight, who presently is second in POWERade points behind only Tony Pedregon.

Instead, he will remain in Texas under the care of a trauma team that has had considerable experience with injuries like those suffered by the 14-time Auto Racing All-American when his Castrol SYNTEC Ford Mustang literally broke in half after a tire failure.

In fact, Dr. Jones headed the team that put IndyCar driver Kenny Brack back together after he crashed heavily in a 2003 IRL race at Texas Motor Speedway. That was a determining factor in Force’s decision to stay put although he still is determined to be in Las Vegas for the Halloween weekend ACDelco Las Vegas Nationals.

“I’d like to think that I’m Superman, but I’m not,” Force said. “I know I have to get stronger. I’m down probably 10 pounds (since the crash), but for years whenever I lost weight I did it the wrong way. Instead of exercising it off, I just quit eating. Well, lying here in the hospital, I realized how weak I am. I know I’ve got build myself back up if I’m going to continue to race. So that’s what I’m going to do.”

Relying on his family for support, Force said his nephew, Brian Force, will fly to Dallas to take over the heavy lifting from Hight, who has done yeoman duty as Force’s arms and legs during recovery.

Enhancements to Hight’s Automobile Club of Southern California Ford Mustang should be completed Wednesday. That will make it possible for the seven-time tour winner to compete this week – but not to test.

Work still is being done at McKinney Corporation on Ashley’s Castrol GTX Ford and on a third Mustang for rookie-to-be Mike Neff. Force’s car, which was to be the second to receive the latest upgrade, was pulled out of line when it became apparent that the 1996 Driver of the Year would be unable to compete this week.

Force said Tuesday that Ashley’s participation in the TORCO Nationals won’t even be considered if improvements to her car are not completed by Thursday.

In addition to his leg injuries, Force has broken bones in the fingers on his right hand and a severely dislocated left wrist. He also has skin grafts on his injured fingers. Of some additional concern is the fact that his white blood count is low, a situation that ultimately might necessitate a blood transfusion.

-www.johnforceracing.com-

UPDATE: Sunday, Sept. 30, 2007 – 10:00pm CST:

FORCE CONTINUES TO RECOVER; CONSIDERS ‘TUB’ TO PROTECT DRIVER

DALLAS, Texas – While he is thankful for changes to his race car that protected his head and neck in a spectacular crash last week at the Texas Motorplex, drag racing icon John Force said Sunday that his next goal is to promote the development of a protective “tub” that might help mollify leg and foot injuries like those from which he is recovering at Baylor University Medial Center.

“I had no head injuries, no neck injuries, no back injuries, no bleeding, not a even a Band-Aid on anything but my hands and feet,” Force said, crediting changes to the cockpit that followed the tragic death of teammate Eric Medlen in a testing accident last March at Gainesville, Fla. “The next issue is to put the driver in an Indy Car-type monocoque that protects his legs.

“I wish I could explain it to you, but I don’t fully understand it myself. Bottom line, I’ve got the best people in the world working on it. I’ve got John Medlen, Eric’s dad, who heads up the Eric Medlen Project. I’ve got 15 Ford engineers, Dr. John Melvin and all the crew chiefs. Every day, they call here and give input to Robert (Hight, Force’s son-in-law and driver of the Automobile Club of Southern California Ford Mustang) because I can’t be on the phone with everybody. If I have an hour a day, I’m lucky.

“You know, we did start on a tub three, four months ago when Eric crashed,” Force said, “but we got so busy dealing with cockpit issues – extra padding, the seven-point belt, new head-and-neck restraints – that there just wasn’t time (to complete the project) and that’s why I’m here.”

Force, drag racing’s most prolific winner with 125 NHRA POWERade tour victories and 14 Funny Car championships, suffered a compound fracture of the left ankle, broken toes and a broken bone in his right foot, broken and mangled fingers on his right hand and a dislocated left wrist when his Castrol SYNTEC Ford Mustang suffered a tire failure at 300 miles per hour.

When the tire blew, the chassis came apart with the front half veering into the lane occupied by rival Kenny Bernstein, hitting his Dodge Charger; the back half coming to rest, with Force still strapped inside, against the left guardwall.

Force’s injuries were addressed in six hours of surgery last Sunday night by Dr. Michael Foreman, chief of trauma services at Baylor, orthopedic traumatologist Dr. Alan Jones and orthopedic surgeon Dr. David Zehr, a specialist in hand injuries. The 14-time Auto Racing All-America selection’s prognosis for a full recovery is excellent.

Dr. Jones, who used three screws to repair Force’s damaged left ankle, also tended to the leg injuries suffered by IRL driver Kenny Brack in his 2003 accident at Texas Motor Speedway.

Once Force is released from Baylor, likely either Monday or Tuesday, he will travel to Indianapolis, Ind., to consult with his crew chiefs about the chassis changes and with with Dr. Terry Trammell, an orthopedist specializing in motor racing injuries.

Force’s goal is to travel to Richmond, Va., for this week’s TORCO Racing Fuels Nationals to provide moral support for Hight, who is prominently in contention for the $500,000 POWERade Championship. Nevertheless, he said Sunday that he will abide by whatever Drs. Jones and Trammell believe is best.

“The first car that rolls out (of the McKinney Corporation chassis works) will be Robert’s,” Force said. “The second one was intended to be mine because I really thought that I’d be driving (at Richmond). Now I know that’s not gonna happen. I haven’t given up on driving at Las Vegas or Pomona, but if they docs say no, I’m just gong to do what they say so that I’ll be ready for testing in January.”

“We’re working with Murf McKinney to get the changes done,” Force said, “but his people are on overload because there are other guys in line to make the same changes. Ashley’s car (the Castrol GTX Ford driven by 24-year-old rookie Ashley Force) is in that line. So is a car for our newest driver, Mike Neff.”

The fix includes the addition of an X-shaped cross member for strength plus additional bracing designed to insure that if there is another such incident, the chassis won’t break at a point that leaves the driver’s legs exposed like Force’s were.

“Safety still is the big issue,” Force said. “I’ll evaluate what they’ve gotten done when I get to Indy. As far as Robert Hight and the championship, he will be our lead car. He will be in Richmond with changes made to his car – all the new stuff that we can possibly put on it.”

Hight, the 2005 winner of the Auto Club’s Road to the Future Award that identifies the NHRA’s Rookie of the Year, presently is second in Funny Car points behind Dallas winner Tony Pedregon

“You don’t need four Funny Cars to win a championship,” Force said. “We won five championships with one car. We didn’t add a second car until 1996. If Robert has to take this on by himself, there’s no reason why he can’t still win it all. (How many other Fords are in the Richmond field) depends on what the crew chiefs tell me and how much McKinney can get done.”

-www.johnforceracing.com-

UPDATE: Friday, Sept. 28, 2007 – 8:30pm CST:

FORCE WON’T RACE AT RICHMOND, BUT VOWS TO BE THERE FOR THE TEAM

DALLAS, Texas – Five days after the spectacular crash that landed him in Baylor University Medical Center, John Force again credited fallen teammate Eric Medlen with saving him from more serious injuries.

Force’s crash last Sunday at the Texas Motorplex was eerily similar to the one in which Medlen suffered fatal head injuries in a testing accident last March at Gainesville, Fla. In both instances, for whatever reason, a tire failed, setting up a chain reaction that culminated in a chassis failure.

In last Sunday’s incident, which occurred in the second round of the 22nd annual O’Reilly Auto Parts Fall Nationals, Force’s Ford Mustang broke in two with the front half veering across the center line where it collided with the Dodge of Kenny Bernstein. The other half of the car, with Force still strapped inside, his legs exposed, came to a stop against the left guardwall.

“The work we’ve already done through The Eric Medlen Project saved my head,” Force said. “I’m all broken up in my arms and legs, but my head’s fine, my back and neck are fine. That was what really excited John Medlen (who heads up the John Force Racing, Inc., safety initiative begun after his son’s death).”

Nevertheless, with his family around him, including oldest daughter Adria Hight, who flew in Thursday night with his youngest daughters, Brittany, 21, and Courtney, 19, Force acknowledged Friday that the rehabilitation process is going to be long and arduous.

To underscore that reality, doctors concerned with swelling in his right foot Friday ordered additional X-rays that may identify yet another break.

The bigger right leg problem for the 58-year-old drag racing icon is the deep laceration to the right knee, a knee weakened by childhood polio and injured 18 years ago in a fall. Unfortunately, that’s the foot with which the 14-time series champion mashes the gas pedal on the Castrol GTX High Mileage Ford Mustang.

Beginning to recover from the effects of anesthesia and pain medication, the 125-time tour winner acknowledged for the first time Friday that he won’t be able to drive next week in the TORCO Racing Fuels Nationals at Richmond, VA.

He is withholding judgement on his status for the last two races of the season until he consults next week with Dr. Terry Trammell, a noted orthopedic surgeon who specializes in motor racing injuries. It was Trammell who repaired three-time former NHRA champion Shirley Muldowney’s badly mangled legs and got her back into a Top Fuel dragster following her accident at Montreal in 1984. She returned to the winners’ circle at Phoenix in 1989.

“I couldn’t have wound up in a better place than Baylor,” Force said. “The doctors and nurses have been great to me and my family and I’ll always be grateful for that, but I’m a race car driver and I need to talk to someone that understands racing. That’s why we’re going to Indy.”

As originally diagnosed, Force’s injuries included a compound fracture of the left ankle, broken and mangled fingers on his right hand, a deep laceration in his right knee and a severely dislocated left wrist.

“As soon as they release me, my game plan is to go to Indy to get updates from all my crew chiefs – Austin Coil, Bernie Fedderly, Jimmy Prock, Dean Antonelli and John Medlen – on the changes we’ve made to our race cars,” Force said.

“After that, I’m going to meet with the doctors (Dr. Trammell has offices in Indianapolis) and see about getting me back in my race car.

“I want to thank all the fans,” Force said. “I know a lot of them wanted to come by (the hospital) to see me, but right now I just need to focus on getting my strength back. I’ll be in Richmond, but I just won’t be racing.

“I want to wish everyone good luck in the Countdown. I’ll be rooting for Robert Hight, my son-in-law, but I want everyone just to be safe. I’ve seen all the footage (from the crash) and I don’t want anyone else to go through this. I’m really proud of John Medlen and what he and his team are doing to make these cars better. We’ve done some good work protecting the head. Now we need to focus on protecting the arms and legs.”

-www.johnforceracing.com-

UPDATE: Wednesday, Sept. 26, 2007 – 10pm CST:

FORCE STILL HOSPITALIZED; VOWS TO RETURN BEFORE SEASON’S END

DALLAS, Texas – Disputing suggestions that his 2007 season might be over following a spectacular crash last Sunday at Billy Meyer’s Texas Motorplex, drag racing icon John Force worked through physical therapy Wednesday at Baylor University Medical Center while his crew chiefs pondered their options for next week’s TORCO Racing Fuels Nationals at Richmond, Va.

Seriously injured Sunday when his Castrol SYNTEC Ford Mustang broke in two at the end of a second round match with the Dodge Charger of Kenny Bernstein, Force endured another strenuous physical therapy session Wednesday in the hope of speeding his release.

Meanwhile, co-crew chiefs Austin Coil and Bernie Fedderly, with input from fellow crew chiefs Jimmy Prock, Dean “Guido” Antonelli and John Medlen, were examining video of the accident in the hope of providing Force with enough information to determine how many cars he might send to Richmond.

“The crew chiefs are looking for what happened,” Force said. “Was it a tire issue? Was it a chassis issue? What happened, first, and then, why did it happen? We have to know those answers before we make any decisions.

“But, bottom line, the things we’ve done, safety-wise, since Eric’s accident (teammate Eric Medlen succumbed last March to injuries suffered in a testing accident in Florida), are working. My neck and head were fine. Bernstein’s neck and head were fine. Eric saved some lives out there and now we need to move ahead to address other issues.”

Although the 14-time NHRA Funny Car Champion reluctantly admitted that he might not be able to drive as early as next week, he vowed to be back for the last two events in the NHRA POWERade Series – the ACDelco Las Vegas Nationals, Oct. 25-28, at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and the Auto Club Finals, Nov. 1-4, at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona (Calif,.).

“I need to get back out there to help Robert (son-in-law and teammate Robert Hight),” Force said. “He’s got a shot at this championship. I did, too, right up until the tire let go.”

Fortunately for Force, the tire blew, for reasons as yet unknown, at the end of the run, just as he was deploying the parachutes. When the chutes hit, the car pulled apart with the front half accelerating forward into Bernstein’s lane and the back half coming to rest, with Force still strapped inside, against the left side guardwall. Force’s injuries included a compound fracture of the left ankle but the veteran never lost consciousness.

Force’s victory over Bernstein moved him back into the NHRA's Countdown to the Championship, but he’ll drop out of the final four if either of the three drivers immediately behind him – Ron Capps, Gary Scelzi or Mike Ashley – is simply able to make a qualifying attempt next week at Virginia Motorsports Park.

As a result, the 125-time tour winner was left to ponder what might have been Wednesday while visiting with sponsors and well-wishers. His visitors included Ford Racing boss Dan Davis, Automobile Club of Southern California president Tom McKernan and Bob Lawrence, CEO of BrandSource, Inc.

He took a phone call from NASCAR legend and TV analyst Darrell Waltrip, who was with a group of NEXTEL Cup drivers visiting wounded troops at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., and welcomed “Lone Star J.R.,” Johnny Rutherford, who stopped by to offer words of encouragement as three-time former NHRA Funny Car Champion Raymond Beadle, owner of the car in which Rusty Wallace won his only NASCAR championship, did on Tuesday.

-www.johnforceracing.com-

UPDATE: Monday, Sept. 24, 2007 – 7pm CST

FORCE UNDERGOING PHYSICAL THERAPY FOLLOWING TEXAS CRASH

Reporter Brad Hawkins from WFAA-TV(ABC), Dallas' No. 1 ranked news station,
conducted an in-depth interview with John Force from Force's Baylor hospital room.

DALLAS, Texas – John Force, seriously injured Sunday in the crash of his Castrol SYNTEC Ford Mustang Funny Car during the 22nd annual O’Reilly Auto Parts Fall Nationals at the Texas Motorplex, was undergoing physical therapy Monday at Baylor University Medical Center following six hours of reconstructive surgery Sunday night on his feet, legs and hands.

 The 14-time NHRA Funny Car champion suffered a compound fracture of the left ankle, a deep laceration of the right knee down to the bone, broken fingers and lacerations on the right hand and a dislocated left wrist that originally was diagnosed as a dislocation and break.
 
 The 125-time tour winner’s injuries were tended by Alan Jones, M.D., orthopedic traumatologist, Michael Foreman, M.D., chief of trauma services, and David Zehr, M.D., orthopedic surgeon and hand specialist.

 “We don’t really know what went wrong,” Force said Monday after viewing video of the crash for the first time.  “I don’t remember much.  I remember thinking that I had to cut a light to beat (rival) Kenny Bernstein.  The next thing I remember is them trying to get me out of the car.”

 Force’s race car broke in half just beyond the finish line at the end of a victorious second round.  The front half of the car then shot across the center line, crashing into Bernstein’s Dodge, separating the carbon fiber body from the chassis.  Meanwhile, the back half of Force’s car, with the 58-year-old driver still strapped in the seat, came to rest on its side against the leftside guardwall.

 “I was worried about Bernstein,” Force said, “because I knew he was in the other lane.  I didn’t want to hurt anybody, especially Kenny.  He’s a good friend and a great competitor – and he did nothing wrong.  In fact, he did a great driving job.

 “I’m just lucky to have my legs.  I gnawed off some fingers and toes, but they had me up trying to stand today.  They’re great people here at Baylor and I know they’ll get me up and around as soon as they can.

 “The car pulled in half and I’ve never seen that, ever.  A tire came off the car just as I put the parachutes out and it literally pulled the car apart.  I just feel so helpless and vulnerable.  I’ve been on fire from here to Australia.  I’ve had some burns, but I’ve gotten out of every crash and never had a scratch.  I’ve never had a broken bone (before) so this is all new to me.”

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