NHRA News: Schumacher's schedule stays full even in the off-season (12/8/2003)

Schumacher's schedule stays full even in the off-season

By Rob Geiger, NHRA.com
12/8/2003

"I wouldn't want to change places with anyone going into next year."
– Tony Schumacher

Top Fuel driver Tony Schumacher doesn't slow down much in the off-season. In between his various trips for the U.S. Army, his sponsor of the last three-plus seasons, and preparations for his 2004 campaign, where he's widely considered one of the favorites to unseat two-time champion Larry Dixon, he's filling his most important role – that of being a dad.

"Me and Anthony are having a blast together," Schumacher said of his rambunctious 2-year-old. "We're trying our best to give [wife] Cara some space. She's busy with the baby [newborn Michael] so I'm up making us breakfast. We're building planes, riding four-wheelers, going to the mall. It's awesome. I stay pretty busy during the year so I've learned to soak up these moments."

While Schumacher continues to build up his muscles toting his son around, drag racing fans continue to wonder just how many times he'll put his daddy workout to use hoisting Wally trophies in 2004. Ever since the powerful Army team added three-time champion crew chief Alan Johnson to the mix in late May, the camouflaged crew has been the best team in Top Fuel, earning more points than any team out there, including a miniscule three-point edge over Dixon's Miller Lite group.

The best year ever
"Well, I have to admit, I can't wait for the 2004 season to get started," Schumacher said. "But not because people are saying we're favored to win the championship. I'm excited because I think 2004 is going to be one of the best, if not the best, Top Fuel seasons ever.

Former champ Schumacher, near lane, says the
Top Fuel class will be too close to call throughout
the 2004 POWERade Drag Racing series.
www.RacersEdgePhotography.com

"I don't think there will be one dominant car. I think we'll be waking up every morning wondering what the heck is gonna happen today. The year we won our championship, in 1999, there were 10 cars still in the hunt for the title when we rolled into Indy. It'll probably be just like that this coming year.

"We ran well the second half of the year, for sure, but I checked the record books and they have never awarded the championship based on off-season talk. I'm expecting an intense struggle every race. Every field will be filled with stout cars and hopefully ours will be in the mix every race. That's all you can really ask for."

Aside from earning more points in the past 14 races then all the other off-season fav's, Schumacher also out-performed his rivals down the stretch, matching Kenny Bernstein's four wins, locking up five low qualifier awards, and posting three of the four quickest elapsed times in NHRA history – including the national record of 4.441 seconds.

Johnson and Schumacher even gave the chase pack something to think about going into the winter break with a stunning run at the Auto Club of Southern California NHRA Finals that featured seven 4.4-second passes in qualifying and eliminations, which included three rounds of Budweiser Shootout action. His only run of the weekend outside the 4.4-second zone came during an eight-thousandths of a second semifinal loss to Scott Kalitta when he ran a 4.508 to Kalitta's 4.521-second holeshot job.

www.RacersEdgePhotography.com

"All the credit goes to Alan," Schumacher said. "The guy truly is a genius when it comes to tuning these cars. I wish every driver out there could work with this guy so they could fully appreciate how his mind works. Of course, then I'd have to race against him and that's something I'd rather not do. I've been down that road and I'm really glad he's on my side now.

"I wouldn't want to change places with anyone going into next year. Of course, I'm sure Dixon and the Kalittas and Brandon [Bernstein] are all saying the same thing. I just have so much faith in Alan and the rest of the guys on this Army team. We've really grown together by surviving some tough times as a group."

Big plans
Schumacher is aware of his father's efforts to add a second Top Fuel dragster and he knows of Johnson's plans to help Jerry Toliver return to the sport in a Funny Car. [Both deals are pending adequate funding.] But Schumacher isn't concerned about any distractions either deal would create, rather he's enthusiastic about the potential of the collaborations.

"It hasn't bothered me," Schumacher said of the speculation. "Not for a second. I don't think Alan's focus would waver. We already knew this could happen and basically he's just helping Toliver with his tune-up if that deal does come together. Alan was helping Jim Head this year and all that did was benefit us. He always knew what adjustments he wanted to make.

Alan Johnson (standing, in mask) has turned Schumacher into a title contender once again.
www.RacersEdgePhotography.com

"The way Alan's mind works in pretty phenomenal. I mean, we wrecked a car and he didn't miss a beat. We switched chassis' four times in the last few races and maybe smoked the tires twice. He can just look at a car make one run and he knows what to do to make it perfect the next time around.

"If we add another dragster it would both good and bad, in my opinion. Good in the sense that we could learn a lot from another car running out of our pit; bad because it would be another stout car we would have to race straight up because the sponsor would be totally different. All this stuff is out of my hands, really, so I don't worry about it."

Taking care of business
Any worries about next season are at least a few months away so Schumacher instead tends to the business of being a dad and one of the chief spokespeople for an Army that continues to grind out a war in Iraq.

"I'm heading out to Walter Reed Hospital this week," Schumacher said. "The soldiers wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan all end up there. It's been six months since I've been there so I'm anxious to get to D.C. and talk to the soldiers. It's strange in a way because I'm starting to see some of the guys that we might have had a part in them joining the military come back from the war.

The U.S. Army car rocked Reading's Maple Grove Raceway with a national record E.T. of 4.441 seconds.
www.RacersEdgePhotography.com

"You know, we go to these deals to help lift up the morale of the soldiers that have been hurt but in reality it's them pumping us up. I was talking with a Sergeant who had three days left before he was supposed to come home on regular rotation when he stepped on a land mine. The guy lost a leg but he was so happy that none of his troops were hurt while he was there. Nothing else mattered to him.

"These guys are going through hell. They have kids come up to them and toss a grenade in their jeep. There are some very bad people in that country. But they're all proud to be Americans and you never hear a complaint from any of them or their families. It's impossible not to get pumped up by our fighting men and women. They really are awesome."

And so life goes for Schumacher. There are very few dull moments or time spent worrying about things he can't control. He's far too busy encouraging the young men and women in the U.S. Army, and chasing his drag racing dreams, and his son, across the country.

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