I dedicate this blog entry to the passing of my Top Fuel dragster. This is the car I drove to start my Professional career. I have a lot of respect for these cars, but perhaps it was time for this one to go. It was the car that I drove for the first half of last season. I mentioned in some of my blogs last year how that dragster and I had a tumultuous relationship. We had it front and back-halved over the winter so it was like new for this year. It made its final pass in the left lane at the The Strip at LVMS on Feb. 3, 2007, at about 2:13 p.m. (PT).

I never thought I would have to put a dragster to rest at that track. In the past, the left lane at LVMS has been really good to me. It is that same track, in that same lane that I won many of rounds in Super Gas. It is that same lane that I went down the track in my Bucky Austin-tuned Top Alcohol Dragster with the quickest elapsed time and fastest speed of the race. It is that same lane that we won four straight rounds to clinch my first national event win in April 2005. It is the same lane where I ran my career-best E.T. (4.48 seconds) last year in testing. It is the same lane where we ran back-to-back 4.49s just two weeks ago with that car.

I remember everything very clearly. The entire thing actually felt like it lasted forever. My eyes were wide-open through the entire ordeal. I felt like I was on a decent run. When I was between half track and the finish line, the car started to move around a little bit so I tightened my arms and had to work a little to keep it in the groove, which was nothing out of the ordinary. Then in an instant, it just took a hard turn to the right and the car felt weightless. I remember thinking, “Oh no, here we go; so this is what this feels like.” I’ve seen so many replays of dragster crashes. I was going head-on into the white retaining wall on the right side of the track and I thought I was going straight into it. For some reason, I never hit it. I saw blue sky as my cockpit tipped backward and I lost track of where I was, which was up. I remember feeling like I needed to do something. I couldn’t just close my eyes. Auto-pilot kicked in and I reached up and tried to pull the chutes which I didn’t know were already out. Then I grabbed the brake handle and gripped the steering wheel hard. It wasn’t doing any good but I felt I needed to do something. Pieces were flying everywhere coming at me. Some object came into the cockpit toward my eyes, but the Simpson visor deflected it. Next thing I know, I was upright and gently broadsided the left wall. Then I skidded along the left wall for what seemed like forever. I didn’t think it was ever going to stop. I was pulling the brake handle as hard as I could but it wasn’t doing anything. I had no idea that the back half of the car had detached and was hundreds of feet from me.

If you saw pictures of the incident, it’s pretty obvious that there’s nothing left of the car. I didn’t bother taking pictures of the debris. Unfortunately, our team owners, Ken, Judy, and Kenny Black will have a little lighter wallet now, but Ken did get a nice souvenir from it. It was also his first Top Fuel dragster. He said he was going to give that piece to his son, Kenny, who is part owner as well. I took a photo of him with one of the pieces.

Amazingly, I don’t think I ever slammed into anything. I don’t recall hitting anything and I don’t feel any soreness. The only thing that’s sore is my right arm between my wrist and elbow. There’s a bump and some bruising which was probably caused by the steering wheel. I remember before I got out, I took a brief moment to wiggle my toes and fingers to make sure everything was still functioning. I had to pinch myself as assurance that all that had just happened.

The ambulance was there by my side before I even stopped. I unbuckled myself and got out on my own as I always do. My team all made it up to the top end. Needless to say, that seemed pretty relieved that I was walking around. The EMTs made me go to the hospital, but I didn’t need to go and I definitely didn’t want to go. My main priority was figuring out why it happened and if there was anything I could have done to prevent it. I’m not going to speculate about what caused it. That’s not my job. I trust my team and I know they give me a good, safe race car every time I get in it.

I still feel like I’m beginning the 2007 season surer of myself than I was a year ago. Honestly, this whole ordeal gives me confidence because I know I can get through something like that. Everything did what it was supposed to do. The driver’s compartment kept me protected. My seat cushioned me from any hits. As always, my seatbelts were very tight and secure. I didn’t move around at all. My Simpson safety equipment protected me as it was supposed to do.

I have to thank the LVMS EMTs and safety crew who ventured out into the flying debris to get to me and were there before I was even stopped. I wasn’t very appreciative to them at the time because they made me go in the ambulance and I didn’t want to, but they needed to check me out for precautionary reasons. I also want to thank Chuck and the guys at Attac Race Cars for building me a good, safe dragster. I have to thank Top Fuel driver Cory McClenathan, who was the first non-EMT on the scene because he had just ran in front of us. I have to thank Kelly Bustos for being there for me. It was nice to have a smiling and friendly face when I had to be in the ambulance. She also loaned me her cell phone to call my family. I have to thank Linda Smiley of Racers for Christ. She was there to say a prayer with me before the run, as she often does. She even went to the hospital and we said a prayer after I was released. Ken Black, my crew chief, Jim Oberhofer, Cowboy Bob Coffman, and Kelly all went to the hospital. I’m thankful to have such supportive people around me.

Yesterday, my crew worked from morning until night to rebuild our backup car. I’m so thankful that the Black family gives us the resources we need, and we everything to rebuild a new car. I’m also very thankful that my team continues to work so hard. They missed the Super Bowl to make sure our car is ready for testing today. I know that Prince’s half-time show was going on when we fired the motor. I don’t know that they were too bummed about missing that. Everything went smoothly with the warm-up. I felt very comfortable in the car, and can’t wait to pull to the starting line at The Strip on Monday. My KB Racing teammates, Greg Anderson and Jason Line, also will be testing on Monday.

After that, we’ll head to Pomona on Tuesday as we get ready for the 2007 season opener. We did a lot of testing but it’s almost like we are starting from scratch now for the first race. Like I always say, I have a lot of confidence in my team. I have not doubts that we will I have a quick and fast racecar that we can win with at the Winternationals.

One final thing, thanks to all the fans for the support and words of encouragement. I truly appreciate all the phone calls, text messages, and emails. It truly means a lot. See you at Pomona.