In an episode of “Driving Force,” the A&E reality television show about drag-racing legend John Force and his family, the champion warned his daughter Ashley about the dangers of their profession.
“The monster is out there,” Force said on the show last fall.
This week, en route to Morrison’s Bandimere Speedway for the 28th Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals, Force clarified himself.
“The monster is out there, but I didn’t know,” he said. “I’ve never been hurt in 30 years.”
The monster surfaced in March and hit Force and his family harder than any wall he has collided with. A few months after adding Ashley, 24, to his four-car funny car team, teammate Eric Medlin was killed in a practice run in Florida.
“Ashley had already fought the fires and hit the wall, but Eric was like a brother to her,” John Force said. “Eric was the leader of our new generation, and I really didn’t know what was going to happen with her after that.”
Filming for “Driving Force,” which at the time was focusing on Ashley’s career, abruptly stopped after Medlin’s crash. And Force, a 14-time funny car champion, withdrew his team from the ensuing race in honor of the Medlin family and to focus on making his cars safer.
“It was always real, but you kind of didn’t think it was real,” John said of the reality show. “Eric’s death stuck a knife in us. We didn’t want to be filmed.”
Added Ashley, speaking for her three sisters and the rest of the racing family: “Eric, he was like our brother. We were all very close to him. He was a big goofball; he kept things light.”
Many wondered if Ashley would continue to race after Medlin’s death. Despite failing to qualify for last weekend’s race in Bristol, Tenn., it is clear Ashley is no Paris Hilton behind the wheel. She is ninth in the funny car standings, far ahead of her father (13th) and challenging for a playoff spot in the inaugural season of the “Countdown to the Championship.”
Yes, she’s pretty and has inherited a rich name and an outstanding opportunity, but she has made the most of it.
“She has really evolved, not just with driving but with the media and things outside the track,” John Force said. “We’ve taken a break with the reality show, but she’s still amazing to people. She can’t walk through the airport (without being noticed).”
If the season ended today, Ashley would be just 20 points shy of qualifying for the funny car playoffs, which begin after the 17th race of the 23-event season. That’s remarkable after factoring in Medlin’s death, the ensuing missed race and her DNQ, the first in her 11-race NHRA Powerade Series career.
In addition to being in front of her father, she is ahead of veterans Tommy Johnson Jr. (10th), Del Worsham (11th), Tim Wilkerson (12th) and Kenny Bernstein (15th). The top eight drivers and riders in the NHRA’s four professional divisions make the cut. This weekend’s event at Bandimere is the 13th race.
“We’re really excited,” Ashley said of beginning the second half of the season at Bandimere. “We’re bummed about not qualifying last week, but with the new points structure, you just have to keep in that top eight. We’re almost there right now.”
Ashley called missing last week’s eliminations round a “fluke thing.”
“We had the worst luck in one weekend possible,” she said. “No oil pressure in the first round (of qualifying). Fuel levers turn off in the second. Smoked tires in the third. And the throttle stuck during burnout in the final round. None of those things usually happen on a run, but we had all of them happen in one weekend.”
She said moving on from Medlin’s death wasn’t easy but she learned she belongs in racing.
“Every race we go to reminds us of Eric,” Ashley said. “You don’t not want to think about him. You just try to be strong and succeed at what he loved. There’s times I’ll just start crying. I miss him.
“But his accident has made us even more aware of the dangers. You know things can happen. We’re always a step ahead now. If something is going to happen to us, Eric’s death hit that point closer to home, and we’re more prepared now.”
Life goes on, and so will the reality show. John Force said more episodes will be filmed.
“They (A&E) want us to do two more shows this year, and we want to do a tribute to Eric,” John said. “I really want to show everybody what has gone on, and then we’ll negotiate for next year.”
Ashley said she is ready for the camera.
“The break was good,” she said. “Overall, it has had its ups and downs. There were times when you just didn’t want to be filmed. But other times were fun.
“The nice thing about it was, since there’s five of us in the family, they weren’t always filming everybody. I think we’re ready to move on.”
Staff writer Mike Chambers can be reached at 303-954-1357 or mchambers@denverpost.com.
Ashley Force
Birthdate: Nov. 29, 1982
Residence: Anaheim Hills, Calif.
Height/weight: 5-foot-7, 125 pounds
Career-best time: 4.73 seconds
Career-best speed: 323.43 mph
Career events: 11
Quarterfinal appearances: 6
Semifinal appearances: 2
Finals appearances: 0
Career win-loss record: 8-10
Did you know Ashley Force …
Graduated from Cal State Fullerton with a degree in communications?
Prepared for a funny car career by running top alcohol dragsters the past three seasons?
Captured her first victory in the NHRA’s biggest race, the U.S. Nationals at Indianapolis, in 2004?
Shared the winner’s circle with her father at the 2004 race in Pomona, Calif.?
Earned her funny car license with a 4.93-second, 315.86 mph pass in April 2006?
