Coil’s Voluntary Return To Help Puts John Force’s ‘Heart Right’

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John Force said he races from the heart and talks from the heart.

And with the reconciliation between the 16-time NHRA Funny Car champion and Austin Coil, the crew chief who engineered most of those titles, Force said his heart is right again.

Photo credit: Ron Lewis

Photo credit: Ron Lewis

While the two might have renewed their racing vows, Coil hasn’t moved back in, has no official title, and doesn’t receive a paycheck.

But as Valentine’s Day and the start of the 2016 Mello Yello Drag Racing season happen to collide this weekend at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, Calif., with the Circle K Winternationals, Force loves the camaraderie with Coil – and this extra boost of confidence that at age 67, he can earn another crown.

“There’s been so many things on my plate. I lost half of my income, and when you lose money, you lose your help. Never lost motivation, never lost heart. But I had some baggage on my shoulders, some things that bothered me, and Austin Coil was one of them,” Force said, referring to his scramble after longtime sponsors Castrol and Ford left the sport and some of his trusted crew chiefs found other homes. Those were the latest in a series of blows – Coil abruptly had retired before that and since then had chosen not to speak with Force.

The JFR boss indicated Coil’s departure and cold shoulder hurt “when you’re with somebody over 30 years and you dominate in Funny Car. And he was winning championships [with Frank Hawley] before me.”

Never lost motivation, never lost heart. But I had some baggage on my shoulders, some things that bothered me, and Austin Coil was one of them. – John Force

Force said, “Mike Neff and I, we’re buddies. John Shaeffer and I, we’re buddies. But not a 30-year relationship. I don’t think I’ll live long enough to build that kind of relationship again. But there was a cloud over me, in my heart. It was like how can I run a team, bring it back from the dead, find the money to ‘put the band back together,’ get the money so we can build the brain trust? I lost people I really loved.”

He said, “There were things that I did wrong. And Robert [Hight, his teammate and president of John Force Racing] got us together. I want to clarify: he [Coil] does not work for me. He’s not on my payroll. He’s helping me because he loves me. He said, ‘I don’t know how a guy like you could screw all this up.’ ”

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What Coil had observed from afar troubled him, and he knew he could give Force some organizational pointers to make life easier, particularly on Mike Neff, who Force referred to as “my lead, my new Austin Coil.”

It turns out Neff, crew chief for Hight’s Auto Club Chevy Camaro, also was assigned to oversee the job that Shaeffer, the first-time crew chief for Force’s PEAK Camaro, was doing – and monitor the progress of the Monster Energy Dragster that Brittany Force drives. It was particularly burdensome, he discovered, considering Neff has no more experience than John Force did in massaging a Top Fuel car.

Coil advised him to treat the three Funny Cars, including the Traxxas Camaro that Courtney Force drives, totally separate from the dragster. And, as always, Force valued Coil’s opinion and followed his instruction. That also is weight lifted from Force’s shoulders. With Dan Hood and Ronnie Thompson co-crew chiefing on the Traxxas car and Shaeffer finding his rhythm, and Alan Johnson and Brian Husen handling the dragster operation, Force and Hight both can focus on their own driving and championship aspirations. Preseason testing at Phoenix’s Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park last weekend went well, as expected with the changes.

Even though I always say I have heart, it was hit pretty hard. I fixed my money, and I fixed my heart with Austin Coil. – John Force

“Everything was right,” Force said. Hight even noticed that Force was more chipper – something, incidentally, Force told Hight he noticed about him, too.

Hight told him, “You’re a different animal.” Force told him, “Yeah, when me and Austin made up, it made my heart right, because I failed him. Part of the reason that happens you don’t even realize: that there’s things you’re supposed to do in life to be fair and right. And I thought I was. But I made it right.”

The reunion suited Coil just fine, too. But, like he did decades ago, Coil laid out to Force just how the set-up would be. “I don’t want to come back,” Coil told him. “But I’ll help you.”

Photo credit: Gary Nastase Photography

Photo credit: Gary Nastase Photography

Said Force, “He’s a brilliant guy.”

So, too, is Ron Armstrong, co-founder of the must-have Racepak data-acquisition device, who has advised John Force Racing in the past. He’ll return as part of the dismantled-and-reassembled corps of strategists.

According to Force, “Ron Armstrong came back to be part of the brain trust, to work with Chevrolet, Mike Neff, and all the guys.

“We got heart again,” Force said. “That’s what I’ve always thrived on, heart. Even though I always say I have heart, it was hit pretty hard. I fixed my money, and I fixed my heart with Austin Coil.”

About the author

Susan Wade

Celebrating her 45th year in sports journalism, Susan Wade has emerged as one of the leading drag-racing writers with 20 seasons at the racetrack. She was the first non-NASCAR recipient of the prestigious Russ Catlin Award and has covered the sport for the Chicago Tribune, Newark Star-Ledger, St. Petersburg Times, and Seattle Times. Growing up in Indianapolis, motorsports is part of her DNA. She contributes to Power Automedia as a freelancer writer.
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