Seriously injured Sunday when his Castrol GTX High Mileage Ford Mustang broke in two at the end of a second-round match with the Monster Energy Drink 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 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 (Hight, son-in-law and teammate)," 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.
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.
Drag racing legend John Force continued on the road to recovery Wednesday at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas. Team publicist Dave Densmore said in a release posted on the NHRA website Wednesday evening that Force spent the day "napping, rehabbing, and taking numerous phone calls from racing stars in all forms of motorsports.” "He's basically trying to be John Force, but his body is telling him no at the moment," Densmore said. "Of course, he's wanting to do more than they're allowing him to do, and the fact he hasn't slept for more than an hour at a time since the accident isn't helping matters much. But they do have to monitor him very closely, take his blood pressure every hour, and keep him medicated to help with the pain. "He's been a real treat to deal with, as you might imagine. He complains and grouses when he's going through the exercises they need him to do, and then he spends about twice as long apologizing to everyone. It's quite an ordeal. The good news is he's progressing nicely."
Force is still hoping he’ll be able to return to action for the Torco Racing Fuels NHRA Nationals Oct. 5-7 in Richmond, Va. but Densmore doesn’t expect that to happen. Densmore also said thoughts of Force leaving the hospital by Friday may have been premature. "The medical staff is thinking Monday before they'll allow him to fly home," Densmore said. "That's just to fly in a plane. I doubt he'll drive again this year, but every time I tell him that he throws me out of his room."
Former Funny Car driver Raymond Beadle(1) and former open wheel driver Johnny Rutherford visited with Force on Wednesday. Force also got a call from former Nextel Cup Series champion Darrell Waltrip. "Waltrip told him the worst thing he did after his big wreck was to rush back to his car," Densmore said. "He told John straight out that if he had to do it again, he would have rehabbed completely before climbing back in a race car. Racing will always be there, but you only have one body. Beadle told him the same thing; so did Rutherford."
(1) Wow, a visit by legendary 3 time NHRA Top Fuel Funny Car champion Raymond "Blue Max" Beadle. He's the perfect individual to go see John and talk some sense into him. Beadle is the toughest "ice water in his veins" guy to ever drive a Top Fuel Funny Car. - FlA ~ http://www.nhra.com/50th/top50/R_Beadle20.html
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Latest from the K. Bernstein camp. I can't say enough good things about Kenny and I'm very impressed how Brandon is following in his footsteps. - FlA
All The King’s Horses and All The King’s Men Put The Monster Energy/Lucas Oil Funny Car Together Again
KennyBernstein.com
by Christine Thieroff, Bernstein Racing
RICHMOND, Va. -- Kenny Bernstein and the Monster Energy/Lucas Oil team are picking up the pieces, literally, and putting together another chassis and Dodge Charger Funny Car body for competition at the Torco Racing Fuels Nationals, Oct. 5-7. Legendary drivers Bernstein and John Force collided in second round competition in Dallas, Texas. News of the accident jammed cyberspace for hours as fans and friends searched for information. The accident happened when Force’s car began to break apart and became unmanageable. Bernstein climbed out of his chassis without injury, while Force was airlifted to a Dallas hospital and underwent a surgical procedure to repair ankle, hand, wrist, and knee injuries.
“John is a good friend and we’re happy to know he is making good progress,” said Bernstein. “We know it’s going to be a painful recuperative process, but John is strong and determined. “When drivers go through an accident like this, the best thing from my point of view is to get back in the saddle and ride the horse. I will be fortunate enough to be able to do that at Richmond. “The saving grace for John is that he doesn’t remember much of the run at all, so the vision won’t keep looping through his brain. I remember everything that happened, but I never want to review video footage or photos from something like this. I leave the review process to Jimmy (Walsh, crew chief). So I’m mentally prepared to get on with qualifying.
“Physically, Jimmy and the entire Monster Energy/Lucas Oil team have a lot of work to do. Tuesday after the accident they took the damaged chassis to Murf McKinney’s shop, who manufactures our chassis, and found out it was beyond repair. That chassis was on only its third race. “We have two more chassis and three more bodies, so we should be good to go for the remaining three races. “I also want to say that the padding around my head which was beefed up as a result of the technological advances that John Force Racing is doing as a result of losing their driver and our friend Eric Medlen earlier this season, certainly helped us weather the impact of the crash(es) much better. By the same token, I’m sure their research played a big part in saving John from more serious injury.
“We want to thank our friends and fans who contacted us through emails, faxes and phone calls after the accident, concerned about our well-being. It means a lot to have everyone reach out and rally around. It gives us momentum to get back out and do the very best we can for them.” Bernstein and Force collectively have 20 NHRA world championships and 194 national event wins to their credit.
Nitro (Top Fuel and Funny Car) qualifying for the Torco Racing Fuels Nationals begins Friday, Oct. 5 at 4 pm with a second session at 6:30 pm. There are two qualifying rounds Saturday, 12:30 pm and 3 pm., with final eliminations scheduled to begin Sunday at 11 am. ESPN2 coverage (ET): Oct 6, Qualifying 7 – 8 pm ; Oct 7, NHRA Race Day 11-11:30 am; Oct 7, Eliminations 7 – 10 pm ET.