Austin Prock, two-time NHRA Funny Car champion, shares his offseason transition from John Force Racing to Bob Tasca Racing, highlighting the challenges of changing teams and adapting to new dynamics. He discusses his deep roots in motorsports, the intense physical and mental demands of driving nitro funny cars versus top fuel dragsters, and the unique culture of racing in Indianapolis. Austin also reflects on his rapid rise in drag racing, the horsepower extremes of funny cars, and his respect for all forms of motorsports, including NASCAR and sprint cars.
"I mean you just assume hey back-to-back two-time NHRA funny car champ just gonna keep running back"
NHRA funny cars are special race cars that go very fast in straight-line races called drag races. They have unique shapes and are part of a big racing organization.
NHRA funny car is a class of drag racing vehicle in the National Hot Rod Association, known for their distinctive body styles and extremely high speeds over a quarter-mile track.
"The only thing that's the same in that building right now is the expedition that tows the race car and the Ford Mustang"
The Ford Mustang is a popular fast car from Ford that many people like to race and drive for fun.
The Ford Mustang is a classic American muscle car known for its performance and iconic design, often used in various motorsports including drag racing.
"...that's the same in that building right now is the expedition that tows the race car and the Ford Mustang Dark ..."
The Ford Expedition is a big car that can carry lots of people and pull heavy things like trailers or boats. It's popular with families and people who need a strong vehicle for big jobs.
The Ford Expedition is a large, full-size SUV designed for family use and heavy-duty tasks like towing. It's often highlighted for its spacious interior and strong towing capacity, making it suitable for hauling trailers, boats, or race cars.
""You know learning curve at John force racing everything's done in-house and you kind of live in your own world\nYou know you build your own parts. You build your own chassis""
John Force Racing is a top drag racing team that makes their own car parts and builds their race cars themselves. They focus on doing everything inside their own shop.
John Force Racing is a professional drag racing team known for competing in the NHRA (National Hot Rod Association) drag racing series. The team is famous for building their own parts and chassis in-house, emphasizing a hands-on approach to racing.
"Oval racing interest they keep up with NASCAR at all. Do you watch sprint cars? Yeah, I keep up with all of it"
Sprint cars are special race cars that go very fast on short dirt or oval tracks. They have big wings on top to help them stay stable.
Sprint cars are high-powered race cars designed primarily for short oval or dirt track racing. They are known for their large wings and lightweight chassis.
"I didn't even realize that NASCAR season was starting until the Sunday of the Daytona 500
So I'm definitely a NASCAR fan."
The Daytona 500 is a very famous and important car race in NASCAR. Many fans look forward to it every year.
The Daytona 500 is the most prestigious race in NASCAR, held annually at the Daytona International Speedway. It is often considered the 'Super Bowl' of stock car racing.
"I didn't even realize that NASCAR season was starting until the Sunday of the Daytona 500
So I'm definitely a NASCAR fan. Definitely a fan of all motorsports"
NASCAR is a type of car racing where drivers race special cars on oval tracks. It's very popular in the US and lots of people watch it.
NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing) is a popular American motorsport series featuring stock car racing primarily on oval tracks. It is known for its high-speed, close-quarters racing and large fan base.
"There was Indy car guys at lunch. There was the Indy race part spring car team at lunch
Like there's it's such a melting pot for all sorts of different racers
So like is there Indy car teams around you and sprint car teams around you as well?"
IndyCar is a type of car racing with very fast, single-seat cars. They race on different types of tracks including big ovals and city streets.
IndyCar is a premier American open-wheel racing series, known for events like the Indianapolis 500. The cars are single-seaters designed for high-speed racing on ovals, road, and street courses.
"Yep drag team and sprint car team Rico a bruise taking over the reins on that with Ricky Warner
Those are two good friends of mine."
Drag racing is a race where two cars go straight ahead as fast as they can over a short distance to see who wins.
Drag racing is a type of motorsport where two cars race in a straight line over a short distance, usually a quarter-mile, to see who can accelerate the fastest.
"I feel like people that inhale nitro methane for a living are a little bit different because you got to be damn
You're crazy to go and that fast"
Nitro methane is a special kind of fuel that race cars use to go really fast. It's very powerful but also dangerous to handle.
Nitro methane is a highly flammable fuel commonly used in drag racing and sprint car racing. It produces a lot of power but requires special handling due to its volatility.
"Short story to go along with that Don Pardome actually got me my first sponsorship to get on the NHRA tour in 2019 So, yeah, he's a good family friend of mine."
The NHRA tour is a big drag racing competition where the best drag racers race their cars at different places across the country.
The NHRA (National Hot Rod Association) tour is a professional drag racing series in the United States, featuring various classes of drag racing vehicles competing at different tracks nationwide.
"So you driven both top fuel dragsters and funny cars
Get into the weeds a little bit about how they drive differently because I"
Top fuel dragsters are super fast race cars that go straight and very quickly using special fuel. They are very long and have big engines that make a lot of power.
Top fuel dragsters are the fastest accelerating racing cars in drag racing, powered by nitromethane-fueled engines producing thousands of horsepower. They have a very long and narrow chassis with a wheelbase around 300 inches, designed for straight-line speed over a quarter-mile.
"The the funny car is tenfold harder to drive
Okay, you have the same amount of horsepower the same power plant and 125 inches a wheelbase rather than 300"
Funny cars are special race cars that look like regular cars but are built to go very fast in a straight line. They have their engine placed in a way that makes them tricky to drive.
Funny cars are a class of drag racing vehicles with a shorter wheelbase (around 125 inches) and a body that resembles production cars but are built for extreme speed and acceleration. They have the engine mounted over the front of the rear axle, making them harder to drive due to weight distribution and proximity of components.
"Okay, you have the same amount of horsepower the same power plant and 125 inches a wheelbase rather than 300
You know so I always for you know circle track racers or grassroots racers"
Wheelbase means how far apart the front and back wheels are on a car. This distance changes how the car drives and feels.
Wheelbase is the distance between the front and rear axles of a vehicle. It affects handling and stability; longer wheelbases generally provide smoother rides, while shorter ones can make a car more agile but twitchier.
Car
non-winged sprint car
"I compare it to
Non-winged sprint car the nitro funny cars the non-winged sprint car the
The dragsters like driving a Cadillac down the freeway, you know, it just kind of floats through there"
Non-winged sprint cars are fast race cars that don't have big wings on top. This makes them harder to drive but very exciting.
Non-winged sprint cars are high-powered race cars used primarily on dirt tracks, notable for lacking the large aerodynamic wings that help with downforce and stability. They require significant driver skill to control due to their light weight and powerful engines.
"You know that the engine sitting right on top of your feet the bell housings in between your feet the drive shafts between your legs
You know the drive shaft when I sit in that thing the drive shafts a half inch away from my ass"
The bell housing is a part that covers where the engine connects to the gears that make the car move. In some race cars, it's very close to the driver’s feet.
A bell housing is the bell-shaped cover that encases the clutch and flywheel, connecting the engine to the transmission. In funny cars, it is located between the driver's feet, making the cockpit very tight.
"the bell housings in between your feet the drive shafts between your legs
You know the drive shaft when I sit in that thing the drive shafts a half inch away from my ass"
A drive shaft is a long rod that helps send power from the engine to the wheels so the car can move. In some race cars, it’s very close to the driver.
The drive shaft is a rotating shaft that transmits power from the engine or transmission to the rear wheels. In funny cars, the drive shafts run very close to the driver, making the cockpit cramped and challenging.
"Which the funny car is one of the only cars?
I believe or motor sports where you actually sit on top of the rear axle
So like getting that feel like when it steps out it feels so much different"
In funny cars, the driver sits right above the back wheels, which is different from most cars where the driver sits more in the middle. This changes how the car feels when driving.
In funny cars, the driver’s seating position is directly over the rear axle, which is unusual compared to most race cars where the driver sits ahead of or near the middle of the car. This affects the car's handling and the driver's feel.
"I only made probably eight runs in an alcohol dragster before I got in the top fuel car and
John forcey threw me on a crash course like I literally"
Alcohol dragsters are race cars that use a special type of fuel called alcohol to go very fast in drag races.
Alcohol dragsters are drag racing cars powered by methanol (alcohol) fuel. They are generally less powerful than top fuel dragsters but still extremely fast and challenging to drive.
"Both of our cars shook and just instinct
I got out of the gas slapped it again when you have slow tire shake like that
You have to be able to decipher what the tires do and to understand how to apply the throttle back so
One sensation is like the tire will like waffle the slot sidewall"
Tire shake is when the car's tires start to wobble or vibrate a lot while going fast, which can make the car hard to control.
Tire shake is a rapid vibration or oscillation of the tires during acceleration, often caused by loss of traction or uneven grip, which can affect vehicle control and performance.
"I slapped it turned on the wind light no parachutes sure to shut down on to her got it stopped it and crash it and
Went on to second round. Did you forget the parachutes or they shouldn't come out?
No, I went for him. I set them all up and they did not deploy"
Parachutes are like big fabric chutes that open up behind a race car to help it slow down quickly after going very fast.
Parachutes are drag racing safety devices deployed at the end of a run to help slow down the vehicle rapidly, especially important for very high-speed cars.
"Smoke the tires a lot that thing ever land when you have a wheel in it. Oh, yeah Yeah, yeah, I mean it'll like I've had runs where it'll stick the tire"
When the tires spin so fast that they make smoke, it means they are slipping on the ground instead of gripping.
Smoking the tires means spinning the tires so much that they produce smoke, usually due to loss of traction during aggressive acceleration or wheelspin.
"Was there anything that he took from NASCAR just what he learned tire data"
Tire data means information about how the tires are working, like how hot or worn out they are, to help make the car go faster and safer.
Tire data includes information collected about tire performance such as temperature, pressure, and wear, which helps teams optimize car handling and speed.
"And then we'll jiggle the engine we take a little timing out of it To get the tire to regain traction and then when we jam the timing back in it and apply the clutch"
Timing means when the spark happens inside the engine to make the car run well and not slip.
Timing in an engine refers to the precise control of the ignition spark relative to the piston position, which affects power output and traction.
"...cond it takes about 60 feet about the length of a semi truck from a dead stop doing a hundred Dude, do y..."
The Tesla Semi is a big electric truck that carries heavy loads without using gas. It can speed up quickly and helps keep the air clean by not making smoke.
The Tesla Semi is an all-electric Class 8 truck designed to revolutionize freight transport with zero emissions and impressive acceleration. Its significance lies in its potential to reduce the environmental impact of long-haul trucking while offering high performance and lower operating costs.
"...a pedal fest right here. Yeah, this was a bucking bronco. That was not intentional Can you is it right on ..."
The Ford Bronco is a tough, big car made to drive on rough roads and trails. People talk about it because it looks cool and can handle bumpy, hard places really well.
The Ford Bronco is a rugged off-road SUV known for its strong performance in challenging terrains and its recent revival as a modern, retro-styled vehicle. It's significant for enthusiasts who appreciate its capability and nostalgic design, often discussed in contexts involving adventurous driving or off-road experiences.
""And you have three four thousand pounds of downforce on it and it blows it into the air like that""
Downforce is the push that keeps a race car stuck to the ground when it goes really fast. This helps the car not slip or fly off the track.
Downforce is the aerodynamic force that pushes a car's tires onto the track, increasing traction and stability at high speeds. In drag racing funny cars, downforce can reach thousands of pounds, helping keep the car planted during rapid acceleration.
"You know anything he touches he wins in and uh, he does a really good job in that race car
You know, they put a good race car under him. He's gonna win a lot more too."
A race car is a car made to go really fast and compete in races. It is built differently from normal cars to help the driver win.
A race car is a specially designed vehicle built for competitive motorsport events, optimized for speed, handling, and safety on a racetrack.
"That's that's this is the video I was talking about. Oh, yeah, this is it. This is you getting stuck throttle. Yeah
Whoa, it looks like you're just doing a really long burnout man."
A stuck throttle means the gas pedal gets stuck, so the car keeps speeding up even if the driver wants to slow down.
A stuck throttle is a dangerous mechanical failure where the throttle remains open, causing the engine to continue accelerating uncontrollably.
"Whoa, it looks like you're just doing a really long burnout man. Yeah pretty much
Oh, he did get her shut down and how yeah, how you explained it was exactly how it looked"
A burnout is when a car spins its wheels really fast but doesn’t move forward much, making the tires smoke.
A burnout is a driving maneuver where the driver spins the wheels while keeping the vehicle stationary or moving slowly, creating smoke from tire friction.
"And it's like that but on steroids, you know, you're accelerating like
Nobody should accelerate. Essentially. It's the fastest accelerating vehicle on the planet. Human bodies are not built for that."
Acceleration means how fast a car can speed up. Some race cars can speed up so fast that it feels really hard on the body.
Acceleration refers to how quickly a vehicle can increase its speed. In racing, some cars can accelerate faster than the human body can comfortably handle.
Select text to request an explanation
Okay, everybody, we have a special edition stack-in pennies,
because it's not every day you get to talk to a fellow like this.
Doesn't come, doesn't live in town.
We talked to a lot of NASCAR winners.
We talked to some motor sports people.
We're broadening our horizons, if you will.
Stackin' them deep, sellin' them cheap.
I'd say it's like gasoline, rubber, and victory.
Where's that here?
Stack-in pennies.
Back to back.
Defending and raining.
30-year-old from Pittsburgh, Indiana, in town,
so we had to get him up here to Nonsense Scratch.
Please help me welcome Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
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Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
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Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
Austin Prok.
I'll be honest
When I did a quick Google search through my research on you
I did not realize you had all the stuff going on
I mean you just assume hey back-to-back two-time NHRA funny car champ just gonna keep running back
You got a whole family team. Nope you packed it up packed it up move over to Bob tasker racing
So is the whole change is it weird? Is it uncomfortable? Are you excited? Is it all of those things?
It's all those things I worked at you know my previous employer from the time
I was in high school till you know just a few months ago. So that shop for the listeners
Yeah, John Force racing so
The that shop was kind of like home to me and being in
Another race shop was kind of like being in another woman's bed. You know, it just felt weird doesn't feel right. Yeah, and
You know, it's been it's been fun. You know, I have my family with me still
We moved as a bunch and got my whole team with me all the crew members a few other employees from the race shop
So all familiar faces in there
Just a huge
Undertaking making over this race team, you know, that there's been a lot of change going on
The only thing that's the same in that building right now is the expedition that tows the race car and the Ford Mustang
Dark horse body that's on it. Everything else has changed and we've been working
15 to 18 hour days seven days a week for the last few months and
As a race car driver, you wouldn't think I'd be in there, you know getting dirty with the boys
But you know, I'm the one closing the doors at the end of the night
So I know you're not wearing that ring when you're working on those top
Some days I do I this thing's kind of hammered. I busted a couple diamonds out of it on the floor in the shop
But working man. Yeah. Yeah, I got to get your paws dirty and you know earn your keep
What's the point in winning it if you're not gonna wear it? Exactly. Yeah, I got a next week
I get my second one on on the same hand and you can bet your ass off two of them on be dragging it around
They won't be 12 ounce curls anymore, they'll be 15
Your dad was at forces for 27 years. Yeah, like really that's all you've known your whole life, right?
Yeah, for sure
I never knew anything outside of that building and that's been a huge
You know learning curve at John force racing everything's done in-house and you kind of live in your own world
You know you build your own parts. You build your own chassis
You don't deal with any outside manufacturers and going over to task erasing you deal with all outside manufacturers and
You know trying to get things how they need to be the right way and
You know, it's just been let alone the work
But just making the relationships making the connections with the people that you need to deal with day in and day out
It's been a eye-opener for sure
So zoom out a little bit and give our majority NASCAR fans audience a little bit context, right?
Let's back up
So you had started drag racing straight line
Relatively late. I don't know early 20s. Oh, we'll track guy. Let's go. Yeah, so you order magic kids
You started some spring cars right from from Indiana
You you pointed out Pittsburgh, Indiana is the quote-unquote birthplace of Jeff Gordon
We don't really know for sure where he's exactly born. Well, we'll talk to Jeff here in a couple weeks
after Darlington, but
So you had some oval track experience naturally you gravitated to where your dad was and there was an opportunity and now you're hauling ass
but is there any sort of
Oval racing interest they keep up with NASCAR at all. Do you watch sprint cars? Yeah, I keep up with all of it
You know this year. Like I said, I've been so busy in the shop
I didn't even realize that NASCAR season was starting until the Sunday of the Daytona 500
So I'm definitely a NASCAR fan. Definitely a fan of all motorsports
You know, you got horsepower and four tires. I'm in so yeah, I enjoyed it
I and I respect all all forms of motorsports and you know, I'm game to get behind the wheel of any of them, too
I love Indianapolis because like we were talking about I was like, well, where's your shop?
And you're like, oh, it's right next door to forces
But like I love going and seeing Tommy from cold art art like when I went and saw him and had lunch
There was Indy car guys at lunch. There was the Indy race part spring car team at lunch
Like there's it's such a melting pot for all sorts of different racers
So like is there Indy car teams around you and sprint car teams around you as well?
Yeah, for sure Tony Stewart racing is right down the street from us and drag team now
Yep drag team and sprint car team Rico a bruise taking over the reins on that with Ricky Warner
Those are two good friends of mine. So I'm excited for them this season
But yeah, that's one nice thing about
Living in Indianapolis area is it's all racers, you know, there ain't much going on there
Other than a few good steak houses and the you know, the the racing scene and you know being around our breed
Essentially, you know racers were we're all a little different, but when you're surrounded by them
It's really nice speaking of a little bit different
I feel like people that inhale nitro methane for a living are a little bit different because you got to be damn
You're crazy to go and that fast speaking of clay like clay last week
He was in course bus at Daytona and I was like
How you reverse age and then like you I was like Corey asked you to go on a beer
I was like, we're gonna have to check his ID. You're like, no, I'm 30. Yeah
So what is it about nitro that makes you guys look so much younger? It's the fountain of youth. Yeah, I
Honestly believe it does. Yeah. No, I swear like I mean, there's some there's some grassroots drag racers
You know pioneers they'll live till 90 95 years old and all they did was huff nitro their whole life
There's got to be something Don Pardome looks like he's you know, 65 years old. Yeah, he's almost 90. Yeah
Yeah, so I was at Daytona. It was like dark
I forget but Eddie would the wood brothers. He's like, hey, you're a racer come here
I want to meet somebody and he walked me over. He's like, this is a snake. I was like
Shit like I wasn't ready. I was like, hey man, but it's like he has like an aura around. Yeah
He's like he's like the rich or petty drag race for sure. Yeah
Short story to go along with that Don Pardome actually got me my first sponsorship to get on the NHRA tour in 2019
So, yeah, he's a good family friend of mine. Oh shout out snake guys like him. I grew up
Close to English town, New Jersey. So my dad we would go to English town all the time
So I was like a huge Bernstein. I was a big Joe Mato fan
Like my dad my kid has a Joe Mato die cast in his room because it's like a Pennsylvania guy. Yeah
Scranton yeah, and I love maple grove. I've never been to maple grove
But I was like because we went to English town, but
Yeah, just like guys had so much swag like Bernstein
Think and you had to back then because it was so it's it's still sketchy. Yeah, but then it was really sketchy
Yeah, but like I'm looking at this
11,000 horsepower blows my mind every time I see it. Yeah, cuz like we think 900 is good
You know a world Alice print cars got 900. Yeah, things got a lot of power
Where the hell are they getting 11,000? Yeah
Yeah, if you ask my dad it actually makes 13,000 by the torque sensor. Well, you win back-to-back championships by having 13
Yeah, we make more horsepower than essentially any other race car in one cylinder. That's so crazy
So you driven both top fuel dragsters and funny cars
Get into the weeds a little bit about how they drive differently because I
They're like it would be this looks the same to me. Yeah
The the funny car is tenfold harder to drive
Okay, you have the same amount of horsepower the same power plant and 125 inches a wheelbase rather than 300
You know so I always for you know circle track racers or grassroots racers
I compare it to
Non-winged sprint car the nitro funny cars the non-winged sprint car the
The dragsters like driving a Cadillac down the freeway, you know, it just kind of floats through there
Is it tough to drive? Yeah, but nowhere near as
As tough as the nitro funny car you got the bomb in front of you
You know that the engine sitting right on top of your feet the bell housings in between your feet the drive shafts between your legs
You know the drive shaft when I sit in that thing the drive shafts a half inch away from my ass
You know and then you're sitting on top of the rear tires to brass balls sit on between both sides of which
Which the funny car is one of the only cars?
I believe or motor sports where you actually sit on top of the rear axle
So like getting that feel like when it steps out it feels so much different
Compared to any other race car where you're just in front of the rear axle or or you know in the middle of the race car
It definitely gives you you know a different aspect of the first one feel like right because you you had this idea of what you expect
Going from alcohol cars to then top fuel dragsters to then F1 say how hard how are gonna be?
Holy moly. Yeah that I didn't have much drag racing experience before I got in the dragster
I only made probably eight runs in an alcohol dragster before I got in the top fuel car and
John forcey threw me on a crash course like I literally
licensed in
Super comp dragster super gas and then got into the a fuel alcohol dragster
Made I think three runs in an alcohol funny car
But I only made just enough runs to get my license into each of those in the first time
I ever competed was my first professional debut in Pomona, California first race of the year
I licensed in the dragster
Three days, I think two days before the national event made just enough runs to get my license
And they sent me there and Q1 was my first ever full-pole never even went to the finish
We're already where'd you qualify? I think we qualified in the top half. I think we might have been a
And I won first round in a pedal fest
I'd never had to pedal a race car before I stood on the gas first round racing my teammate at the time and
Both of our cars shook and just instinct
I got out of the gas slapped it again when you have slow tire shake like that
You have to be able to decipher what the tires do and to understand how to apply the throttle back so
One sensation is like the tire will like waffle the slot sidewall
And if it does it as soon as you stand on the gas that means it's slow
So you can just get off and slap it the quicker you slap it the better you're gonna run
if it goes out there and goes
60 feet or a hundred feet and then does that it's fast
So then you have to get off let the tire recover roll into the throttle
So it was a slow shake
I slapped it turned on the wind light no parachutes sure to shut down on to her got it stopped it and crash it and
Went on to second round. Did you forget the parachutes or they shouldn't come out?
No, I went for him. I set them all up and they did not deploy
Is that a common thing the drivers do their own parachutes kind of like hey if I'm gonna jump at this airplane
I want to be the one to mess this up. Yeah
It's kind of
Gone the other way a little bit, you know, just like any other motor sport
The driver used to always be hands-on on the race car. Yeah, you know, some drivers are getting away from that
I'm still heavily involved in every aspect of the race car, you know, I'm surprised my hands aren't black right now
Caps still does it. I saw caps. Yeah caps caps packs his parachute. It's I mean I
Do it because it's kind of
the my crew has
Better areas elsewhere to put their time and effort
So I just do it to help help out if I can't get to it if I have media appearances
I have no problem, you know trust in my guys to pack my parachutes
I trust them to assemble the engine in 30 minutes and send me on a 340 mile an hour run
So you go from the dragster and you get into the funny car the first time
What what was it? It feel like going from a non-wing to a wing from non-wing sprinkler
Were you like holy shit that was harder and I thought it was yeah, absolutely
I mean they the front like like your field of vision is tighter, too
Yes, you can't see out of it the front ends off the ground half the run
They steered like shit. They don't have more downforce
They do but the front it's so short that one tire if any tires are on the ground
It's just one, you know, the things torqued up left front off the ground
You know and aiming the race cars really important just because it is shorter wheelbase when you do give it wheel input
It's more prone to making the the rear axle free and just slipping
so
Aiming the race car is much more important because when you stand on the gas if it carries the front end if you're trucking
You want to land where you need to be?
Hmm on the racetrack, you know if I'm in there hacks on the wheel from the start to the
330 where they're starting to apply the clutch the crew chief is gonna be really mad at me because it's gonna
Smoke the tires a lot that thing ever land when you have a wheel in it. Oh, yeah
Yeah, yeah, I mean it'll like I've had runs where it'll stick the tire
You know and it'll leave all goofy and it'll pull the front end up and when it pulls the front end up
It'll sit on the left rear and drive you towards the fence or and then you're just in there
You can't lift. I mean you can but you know, that's a loser. You know, so you just hang on and you give it wheel
But you start feeding it and then you go well
This is all happening in a few thousandths tenths of a second you're feeding it wheel and you're like
Well, I can't do that because when it lands it's gonna yank and then make it smoke the tire
So like I'll start to give it wheel and then before it lands
I'll bring it back and then try and feed it like just asking Jesus to take the wheel
Naturally when you get sideways, you're giving it wheel. Yeah, yeah, that's right thing. So it's crazy. Yeah, they're uh, they're
Definitely always entertaining as soon as you think you got it under control. It throws you for
Baves, what are you doing? What I'm just mowing the lawn. No, it's blazing hot and dry out here
Don't you remember smoky bear says avoid using power equipment when it's windy or dry. Where'd you learn this?
Oh, it's on smoky bear calm with many other wildfire prevention tips
Right. Thanks, honey bear because remember only you can prevent wildfires
Brought to you by the USDA Forest Service your state forester in the ad council some loop. What do you think?
makes
the difference between the great
Ones and the good ones. I think being able to handle all conditions of what it's capable of doing
You know when you make a night if you're on a gripped up racetrack and you go a to b all cylinders lit
You hold the wheel fairly straight
It's when you get into the situations where the crew chiefs got you
You know, there's there's a little bit of grip on the starting line
If you're lined up way outside of the groove and you got to launch the tracks greasy out there
Bring it back to the middle of the racetrack without making it being smooth being finessed
Just like any other motorsport when it smokes the tires or it shakes like making the right
Instinct decision to get the tire to recover because even if my car smokes the tires
I'm hoping the guy next door does too and I always want it if we smoke the tires
I always want to be the guy that wins because I did the better job recovering the race car
So all that's really important to me being able to when when you drop a cylinder when it's running on a the thrust
Propulsion is even on each side when you drop a cylinder it actually thrust steers
So if you lose a cylinder on the left the right thrust is going to drive the car around
Literally from the exhaust push from the exhaust
I'll tell you a story about that here in a second
So when when it drops a hole it feel like you're trucking through there. It'll drop a hole
It feels like you got t-bone. That's how quick it turns
Oh, so as soon as you feel that the more square you can keep the thrust
The easier it is to get back. You might be hand over fist to keep it straight
But if you let it get away from the the vector of the thrust
Out of going straight you can't get it back and you just feed wheel until you have to lift whether you're gonna cross the center
Line or hit the wall well, so what's your story? So my dad figured out how important thrust was a few years back
I think it was 2017 and
He decided to the exhaust he decided to lay the exhaust back
To help instead of push down push back instead of down force help it propel the race car
So he dreams up these pipes dude. I mean they built them hack
You know they built them with broomsticks
They had broomsticks in the headers to try and figure out what angle they thought it needed to be well
They put these things on and one started carrying the front end more
Made the race cars way more difficult to drive because the front ends lighter but faster and to exactly yeah, and to
The Sun was up one day the track was like a hundred and twenty or a hundred and fifteen degrees
Which is fairly warm for us track temperatures equates to grip and he ran the national record with the Sun up and
He walked off the starting line just with his tail between his legs like what did I just create, you know
And yeah now every now every cars every cars got him laid back
NHRA had to build a rule around it saying you can't lay him back more than this and it was a whole deal
But it picked the category up mile an hour and ET like crazy and all he did was tip them back
Everyone silver did that with Larsen's Sprint car. Did you ever see that where they?
Flip the collectors up
He was like he wasn't doing good and they flipped them up and everybody's talked about he started winning again
But they they'll bust your chops for having your collectors up like in the modified series because they say it's down for us
So like everybody and F1 uses their exhaust to go over their wings like that that's been a thing even in a NASCAR for a little bit
With the next gen car
Because everybody's cars are the same this margins are so slim
So everybody was trying to get their pipes out a little further for a little more downforce and how you know
Everybody's got CFD now and it wraps around the car. So, you know talking about that
You switch manufacturers and I always wonder like I
Understand what manufacturers support and OEM support means for the NASCAR sites
I've been around it forever, but how important is that on the NHRA side with data and
Tyres and everything that they do. It's just as important, you know, they obviously your aero package is important and being able to have
Access to engineers and the resources that these big corporate manufacturers have
This is something new to us that we have and I think that my team can really take advantage of
My brother is a mechanical engineer. He actually used to work down here. He was a race engineer for Stuart Haas and oh
2019 to
2022
Okay, yeah, he was on Boyer's car and then he was on Briscoe's car
Was there anything that he took from NASCAR just what he learned tire data
Yeah, he learned he learned so much down there
You the budget is so much more you have so much more room to expense on R&D
He learned so many things like he's he's a big reason of the success that we've had in NHRA drag racing
You know that they the year I think Harvick won the
Brickyard 400 my brother Thomas designed the rear clip for it. So that was kind of a cool, you know
Kissing me off because we were what we were leading
Yeah, and Rodney short pit us a lap then the cost came out where I was a blaney
Okay, you're on second and it still chaps my ass. Yeah, so I appreciate bringing it up
I
Got a random question
if you
We're at the bar prior to having a couple beers and you just grabbed
John Smith sitting there and you literally put a helmet on him plug them to the top to a car. What would happen?
He'd crash
How so?
So say it's like okay when it goes green pal. You just mash and see what happens. Yeah, they you're accelerating so fast
ESPN back in the day did this like
Diagnostics on NHRA drag racing and if you were lined up one degree off and you stood on the gas
How many feet you would travel off to the left by the finish line and it was like hundreds of feet?
so one just being able to
Steer it and understand where you're going and to being able to withstand just getting your head rocked
Which which is that off the off the bounce it's four to five off the starting line
And then we'll jiggle the engine we take a little timing out of it
To get the tire to regain traction and then when we jam the timing back in it and apply the clutch
We'll get six through the middle of the racetrack
So like it leaves it leaves it launches hard. This is a funny car dragster
You can apply the clutch a lot more aggressively because of the wheelbase
But it leaves it'll have the front end in there. It'll land
You'll feel the tire kind of catch back up and then they send it and it'll pull the front end off
The ground in the middle of the racetrack if you apply the clutch really aggressively
But yeah, just just being able to understand
How quick you need to react to that thing when it leaves and it goes left, you know
Being on top of it and understanding what direction you're going to bring it back into the middle of the groove
I think the majority of like I would say 98% of people
Wouldn't even want to touch on the gas. Yeah, like they wouldn't even want to get in that van
So like a lot of first-time drag racers, even though it's just like super comp like a super comp dragster
It runs like nine seconds in the quarter mile at a hundred and fifty miles an hour
Mm-hmm fast car, but not like what we do
But when they hit the throttle let off the trans brake hit the throttle
90% of them when it hits when it hits them in the back of the seat their foot comes off the gas
Yeah, and that thing's running, you know, nine ten seconds just saying my nitro funny car
When I stand on the gas in two tenths of a second it goes from 2600 rpm to 8600 rpm
Oh, and in less than eight tenths of a second. I'm doing a hundred miles an hour
How much eight tenths of a second it takes about 60 feet about the length of a semi truck from a dead stop doing a hundred
Dude, do you wear like a like a whoop strap or Fitbit? Is that a Fitbit under? What do you know?
This is just a wristband. Do you have you ever worn like a whoop to see what did it your heart rate is during a run?
No, I've always wanted to NHRA's talked about like getting one that they can you know use as a community one to put on television
I would love to see what it looks like it you got to be pinned
Yeah, like I mean when I get out of the race car at the top end
I always say I feel like I could knock out my Tyson like there is no better feeling in the world
Then getting out of that race car after going
340 miles an hour and then feel in the shoots it so I've been a picker guy forever
And we were 12 seconds at a time 10 seconds at a time
Whatever it is and they did that to us when they first started doing it and our
Heart rate would stay fine until after the stop and everything was over then it would shoot
So I wonder if you guys are the same way where you're like you're like in flow state and then when it's done
Yeah, that's crazy. I would I would believe that because like when I
Kind of correlate us to like sharp shooters, you know, like you have to be
Calm breathing very focused meticulous like when you're lining up and like waiting for the tree to drop and then you know
When you stand on the gas obviously
You get 4g's thrown at you. I'm sure your heart rate goes through the moon
That's gotta be a just an unbelievable experience. How do you try to get like are you head?
Are you like cranking up music?
pounding an energy drink like yeah, what sort of like
Physical space do you need to be in prior to like your put your your 341?
Yeah, yeah, I like to vibe like I'm always blaring music in the staging lanes either whether it's in my
What's your music? I love on race day. I love hip-hop like what you're going to do like Mark Barnes
Yeah, yeah, I love Gucci, man. I love that about Mark Martin
plug I've been a big on
Primo rice lately and
What's other dude
What's your dad your dad vibe out for some you know
Crap
Oh, yeah, he doesn't he doesn't screw with me though on race day
Yeah, I play whatever I win in championships. I'll let you listen whatever you want to yeah
What one thing I think that is super cool that Ford does is they get everybody together
At the beginning of the year. Were you able to be part of this year?
So that was my first day of school the networking that gets done there with like even when I think about guys like Vaughan or
Ben Hopson who drives their drift cars?
Daniel Ricard like you get to meet everybody that's involved
How cool has that been to be a part of it's been awesome? I just left another deal like that today
We had a immersion day. They called it, you know learning things and out of Ford racing and you know
What their vision is and how they want us to promote their brand?
So it definitely is cool that they get everybody in all different categories together
You meet a lot of people and you know, everybody's been really nice so far. So yeah, it's definitely been cool
I've never had
Got to experience that in my previous career. So I definitely loved the way they handle business
Did you see Blaney's mustache up close? Yeah, I sat next to him today
Yeah, I think it was like tickling me from a foot away
Dude that thing was like cousin it sitting on the summer let bro. It is hilarious. What um
You're young man. You're 30 years old two-time NHR champ. What is like
How much more do you chase? How much more do you get to go after and then
Do you even think about what you want to drive next or what you want to do?
Yeah, I'm cutthroat. I just want to keep winning
You know, that's the only expectation I have out of myself out of my team
You know, I want to go three in a row. You know, that's the goal right now and
You know the the more you win the better position
You know, you're going to set yourself up for the future
So and the longevity of your career too. So
Yeah, I want to race it out all the way until the day I'm done and when I'm done
I might just disappear like uh martin truex. Well, bro, you keep you keep you know, breathe a nitro methane you can run to your 100
Yeah, I I watched I was on my dad's shoulders sitting on my dad's shoulders and watched john force quick time
On a friday like friday night's my favorite time
uh, watch some quick time
At english town and then my kid was on my shoulders and watched john force quick time
Whatever it was three years ago. So like
The career the the runways long and you have two at 30. Like what's the record? Is he a 15? 16? 16. Yeah
So is that a goal of yours or is your goal yours to spread your wings and maybe do because you're a core midget kid
race midgets and spring cars and
You know that I I wonder if it's the indianapolis thing because like selzey
Tony a lot of those guys
run that but like
Is that something with the four connection? They'd be like, hey, I'd like to
Jump in an oval car. Absolutely. I would love to like like I said earlier
Anything with an engine and four wheels. I am game to drive
I believe in myself that I could do a good job too. You know, I'm a racer at heart
And if you got that passion inside you, you know, I believe you can do anything you want
So I'm always open to trying new things. Um, you know, I you know, I'm young
You know, as you said 30 but in the racing industry. I'm kind of old now. So, you know, no, dude not in
phony cars. Yeah
Maybe an ass car. Yeah, but go another routes, you know, um, not to say that's never gonna happen
But you know the the idea of it's probably getting smaller, but uh, yeah, I'm always open to anything
I I don't know where my career is going to take me. I'm happy where I'm at
But well always open for new adventures mark rushbrook
head over over for brace and came to you right now. It was like
Pick a car to run. We got, you know, broncos into car. We got
Obviously the cup cars we've got
F1 car
Let me give me the keys for that one
That's a hard decision. Um, you know, I
Off the top of my head
I really think that those v8 supercars are pretty interesting. They uh, they seem like they all asked
They seem like they're a handful. They're tough to drive. Um, you know, you can beat and bang
It seems like and everything, you know, you can still be pretty quick that way
A stock car has always been on my list of things to drive. I'd never got the opportunity to do it
Uh, I had opportunities right before I went drag racing and you know after that everything was kind of sewed up
But uh, or a wing sprint car world of outlaw wing sprint car racing or high limit strength car racing
Babes, what are you doing? What I'm just mowing the lawn
No, it's blazing hot and dry out here. Don't you remember smokey bear says
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With many other wildfire prevention tips
Right. Thanks, honey bear because remember only you can prevent wildfires
Brought to you by the usda forest service your state forester in the ad council
For our listeners
Do you feel like
Sprint cars would be better if they put starters on them and you didn't have to push them off with a jeep every time
We ran them now it would ruin the sport
Get out here. It's been
Oh man, so there's a where's that sign that that would be like making nascar turn right instead of left
No, would not it would actually be like, hey, you know what it's 2026. Let's start these things off
Well, just in 1987 larcen larcen was in here and we had this somebody gave us a sign
Says put starters on sprint cars on a friend of mine. He was holding in atlantic cities
She brought me stickers. I got to bring them in here, but uh larcen was like, you know, I always felt the same way
Till I drove that dirt late model. I just started it and drove out on the track and I was like, this is pretty nice
Yeah, have you ever drove one before? No, buddy. I first time I got in the rumble midget
Uh, I didn't have to start it. So they're giving all this stuff. I'm like, hey
You know, you know lucikoni
I know the name. So lu is a just a legend in world
And uh, the world of super like super modified midgets and all that
So he's like my mentor there and I'm like, hey, man, just one small issue
I don't know how to start this thing. So like, oh, you got to
Get it going watch the fuel or watch your oil then flip the fuel on and then fire it up
And then like the fuel was too far away. So my belts had to be loose
So that like start it like pull my earbuds out when I get the time I'm like, what the hell am I doing here?
But to your point shutting it off
With the fuel is just a sketchy because when you shut off goes
Like it gets way lean. Yeah way loud, but
I can't even imagine
Dude, I'm still sweating from the story. There's just something about though
Like when you jam that thing in gear and the push truck gets behind you and
Start, you know shoving you off and the wheels are locked up and the thing's skating
And then all of a sudden it overrides the compression
It does like and also when that sucker fires like you just said, there's no turning back
Yeah, it's game on. You gotta go. You gotta let it read. You gotta let it eat. I want you to we pulled
Not this video game. Got the other one I sent in the group chat the uh
His his record setting run. There's been
Nobody faster in funding car, correct? No 341.68. Yeah
Do you did you know like when you made that rumor you like that might be it like I knew it was trucking
I didn't know that it was gonna run 340 because when it starts pulling it always feels fast
But I caught the scoreboard out of the corner of my eye and
Obviously, he was pretty impressed. So and the best thing about this run is that was
Round one of eliminations like we just dropped it on him, you know
Where is the scoreboard for you to catch it?
On the left side of the wall. So but like yeah, he's passing it. It used to be a quarter mile. I moved it back
Yeah, so we raced to a thousand feet. So the scoreboard's right at a quarter mile
So 320 feet pass finish back back that thing up gay right to where he's staged
So
When you go up to the line, right you got the uh explain to me like I have never watched drag racing before
You're driving this
Is it auto club? Yeah, right the old the old cast roll gtx hot rod here
And so you're pulling up to the line
Walk me through that process. All right, so
um
They'll I'll back up from the burnout. They'll raise the body do the final adjustments on the race car
What are those final adjustments? Um, they'll you know look over everything
They'll take the like burnout switch off of it that changes the fuel map
Um, they'll do they burn out on alcohol and no no it's all on nitro
They'll charge the clutch make sure the the bearing on the clutch is all the way push back in its starting position
um
Look at fuel pressure oil pressure make sure everything's functioning properly look for leaks
They'll drop the body all my dad will roll me into the beams just before the first pre-stage bulb. Yeah
Once i'm set there he'll nod to the other crew chief make sure he's ready
He'll adjust the barrel valve the final adjustment on the barrel valve. What's the barrel valve?
Where the it's our fuel manifold essentially so inlet outlet of fuel returns
He'll adjust the barrel valve and when he walks off all uh i'm very
Like time oriented and my routine
I think that doing the same thing over and over again benefits me because it puts me in a state of mind that i'm comfortable
And i'm not thinking overthinking
Uh, so he'll walk off. I'll do my count. I'll roll in pre-stage let the other guy pre-stage
At this point when you're ready to pre-stage like you got to be ready to go. Um, so once both cars are pre-staged
all
I got the brake on i actually have a push brake all let off of the clutch
So the you'll actually if you listen closely if you ever go to the races you'll hear the rpm drop
It's because the clutch pedals out and it's just it's tugging
And you're holding it with the brake all bump in
Just because you you just want to light that stage bulb the first one the second one
The second one is the fully stage bulb because when you just light it
Your racetrack is longer
So you can you'll get more performance out of the race car
I have a I have an option to roll seven feet or I mean seven inches closer to the finish line
But it makes the et and speed look worse
But your reaction time better because you're closer to the actual starting beam
So I just light that bulb
The other guy will go in and when that yellow light drops
Hammer down and you have to be 100 focused on those amber bulbs
You know because you're asking these cars race so close to each other now
You'll win or lose by a thousandths of a second
So one thousandths out of my human body is can make or break us
Potentially winning the race if it's first round
So when you are watching right they light up
Your pre-stage lights and then I dude he literally just dropped it with his thumb. Look he just he just he pulled it
He's a god nailed it
Yeah, so
Yeah, oh that was awesome. So your brake you push it forward. Yeah, and then let it go
Yeah, so and your brake and throttle have to be in sync all the time because if I hit the gas with the brake on
It's gonna screw up the first few rotations of the tire like literally the first quarter rotation of our tire
Can dictate if the car's going down the racetrack or smoking the tires instantly
So like having those in sync being a machine simultaneously
Um getting off the brake and on the throttle is really important
Yeah, I was talking to clay milkin last week in his bus and you know tires are super important asphalt racing
So I was asking about the tires and he's like, you know, well actually I was asking about stagger
He's telling about the crown of the track and he said we actually
Will measure the tires and use them smaller ones or bigger ones for our gear ratio
Yep, because you're locked into a gear you run, but that's how you'll change gear
Yeah, the the smaller tire will give you more
Drive shaft speed initially, you know, because it's gonna it's gonna free up quicker
Where the taller tire it's harder to pull, you know, even though we have 13 11,000 13,000
Drives her down. Yeah. Yeah, so you will tune we also use our tires. This is like
That looks like a bouncy one. Yeah
We'll actually use our tires. So a new tire. We don't have suspension. So we actually use our tires as suspension as well
Oh, they're dude. So a new a new tire has a
Stiffer sidewall and then like an eight run tire has a much softer sidewall. So we'll
Depending on the track conditions will
A tire with eight runs on it. Yeah, you can get it to that point
You don't want to run it any more than that
But you can junk a set of tires in one run or you could get eight out of them
This depends. Yeah, that this is a pedal fest right here. Yeah, this was a bucking bronco. That was not intentional
Can you is it right on here? This one you beat. Oh, yeah, you come back. Yeah, I actually did end up winning that round
Dude, that's I had no intentions of doing that. No, but yeah, it's just crying right here
So it's starting to come loose. Yeah, and I thought it was just barely on the edge of making it or not
So what I tried to do was just roll out half throttle and flat foot it back
Well, it just blew them off and then I was kind of behind the race car
Well, once I like got back to I tried just rolling into the throttle
Well as soon as I cracked the blades
It picked the front end up and when it picked the front end up my foot came off the throttle
And when it landed my foot went back on the throttle and it literally bucked me for
800 feet just
Move your head like do you doesn't do you move much in your seat or you have a pretty locked in
You're locked in like you can barely breathe when you get strapped in these things like we get strapped in
One of my crew members bobby straps me in and like he literally tries breaking me in half
Like you cannot you can't put on your chest really
Like you're so tight that you can't form a full sentence like you run out of breath
You're you were a mouthpiece. I'm like no, I don't some drivers do I never
I never was a fan of wearing a mouthpiece
In any motorsport. Oh, that was John's big wreck. Yeah
Yeah, that was nasty when
Man, I I asked this question the captain who's on here, but it came across wrong because I was I was virtual, but like
We're in the car like in a funny car and it blows up and blows the body off
What is that? What is the pressure like in there?
So feel like a bomb goes off for sure. Yeah, it is a bomb like I mean that that body weighs 200 pounds
And you have three four thousand pounds of downforce on it and it blows it into the air like that
Like that kind of puts it in retros like your ears like what is it?
Yeah, it gives you a headache like it literally concusses you
Whoa, like it
It'll blow your visor open
Come on. Mm-hmm. I've seen it kind of how much you were I wear a bell
Where do you have a you have a strap like a lock on it?
Uh, yeah, they they so this is my I grew up racing bell and when I raced over there
We he was all simpson branded. Yeah, so I got back with bell this year
But they just delivered my helmets last week and it's got this new formula one lock on it
It's a spring-loaded like lock in like when it goes down the button comes out
And then you have to press the button in to peel it up that thing's nice
It's a little bit of a pain to get open with this is me. I'm trying to open my shield
Yeah after a burnout you're choking. Damn it. Yeah
Yeah, you don't want to open your visor in one of these
We have fresh air in them and that's the only way you can breathe is
Breathe in that you open the visor you're just inhaling man nitro. Yeah and smoke. I got some soft balls for you
Well, you bring up smoke. I wanted to transition that the tony to tony. Yeah, I mean
That guy could literally race wheelbarrows and be successful and he's incredible has
Um, has that how successfully has been surprised you?
No, not at all. Uh, I I've known tony since I was 10 years old
And uh, you know, he's always impressed me. He's just a natural god-given talent
You know anything he touches he wins in and uh, he does a really good job in that race car
You know, they put a good race car under him. He's gonna win a lot more too. You know our sport
it's
It's almost reversed of a normal sport or like a NASCAR like 60 40. It's kind of the other way crew to driver
Um, you know, you got to be on when it's time to be on
But if your race car is not going up the racetrack, the only time you can help it out is if the other guy screws up
Just as bad as you so, uh, you put a good race car under him. He's gonna be lethal
That's that's this is the video I was talking about. Oh, yeah, this is it. This is you getting stuck throttle. Yeah
Whoa, it looks like you're just doing a really long burnout man. Yeah pretty much
Oh, he did get her shut down and how yeah, how you explained it was exactly how it looked
Still doing 145 miles an hour and it was shut off. It was probably running 220 fucking sideways
So, but tony has a tony has a impeccable way of explaining
Breaking down race cars even when I worked for him his feedback was phenomenal
But one thing I heard him say that like light bulb like man, that's a no-brainer, but you never think about it. He said
My my first run of the nitro car my head was six feet behind
Yep, like he he's like I got to work on getting caught up because
The car was six feet in front of where my head was is that how like is that a common thing with the guys?
Yeah, it's just like anything like when you move up the ranks when you're growing up racing
You know you you go up to that next level and the car's driving you you're not driving it
And it's like that but on steroids, you know, you're accelerating like
Nobody should accelerate. Essentially. It's the fastest accelerating vehicle on the planet. Human bodies are not built for that. Yeah, no
I I was gonna ask you because I'm
Uh, a big I was a big drag race fan grown up. What's your favorite?
paint scheme or car of all time
That's hard. I loved, um
Gary Selze's
Oakley Mopar cars back
I haven't pulled up because I was thinking of scotty cans. Yeah, they were so sweet all hand painted by banshee
They were beautiful. Dude. I literally have that. That's what I've been looking at
But also and it had his mustache on the side, you know, I had like kind of like a caricature of himself
Well scotty cannon had he was the one that wore the glasses over his head. Yeah, but then like I was always I always got excited
when the moon eyes car came out
but like
The was a swamp thing
Who's that who was a nice swamp rat swamp rat?
Wait, no big daddy dog. Yeah. Yeah, that was a swamp. Yeah those things were so sick
And I was like
Did you ever watch growing up?
We'd be driving a quarter measure racism eight years older than you so might have been out
But like and they walked away. Yeah. Yep. That was like I watched them a lot
So like watching that thing flip over backwards turn and come back down the track and
Like those guys, but is there any other cars that kind of stick out to you that were like iconic?
Uh, yeah, I mean john force's cars obviously
The superman cars back in the day when they used to do the themed, you know
Across all motorsports, you know, uh, steep kenser had one gel motto had one force had one like those were cool days
The rat think cars were cool
You know the skull cars don pertoms skull cars with caps those the team cars one was blue one was
Green black and green those were sweet. Yeah, for sure. The winston cars were always cool, too
Yeah, bring back the winston days, baby. That's right. Some darts and some drag racing boys
The duffel bag
Babes, what are you doing? What I'm just mowing the lawn
No, it's blazing hot and dry out here. Don't you remember smoky bear says
Avoid using power equipment when it's windy or dry
Where'd you learn this? Oh, it's on smoky bear dot com with many other wildfire prevention tips
Right. Thanks, honey bear because remember only you can prevent wildfires
Brought to you by the usda forest service your state forester in the ad council
Uh, so you're you're in games will win like when's the start up next week? Yeah, we race next weekend
So, uh, I'll go back to
Indy tonight and uh work
till saturday trucks leave sunday morning and uh start testing tuesday
Test tuesday wednesday have thursday off to regroup and friday's first uh,
National event. Yeah, qualifying friday saturday race sunday. Awesome, buddy. Well, damn. It's been fun to talk to you
I appreciate it. Definitely watching along. How can fans follow your journey?
Yeah, uh prok rocket underscore tf. Um, it's my old top fuel handle. I never changed it
That on all platforms austin prok on facebook. Uh, it's a good blend of uh motor sports and culinary arts
I didn't ask you about that right this guy's like the most a good follow
Yeah, this guy's like the uh, you know most interesting man out there
This guy drives 340 miles an hour and also has a culinary arts degree. Yeah, what's your what's your go-to dish?
I don't have one i'll dream stuff up wake up in the morning write it down and go to the store
Uh, no recipes just off the cuff and uh, just get down to the kitchen. Yeah, I try. Yeah, he's he's like an idol
Yeah, him and bobby flay. You ever met him? Uh, no, I haven't hopefully ford can hook me up with that
That's why you don't want to meet your idols dude. You might cook them a dish and you might tell you suck
Yeah, I would hope I would hope he does you know, I want him to be the gordon ramsey
I see on television. Well, if gordon ramsey came in right now and you had a kitchen
What would you make for him?
I don't know. I it's just however I I cook how I feel I feel like how you feel right now. Yeah, uh
The first thing that came to mind is I made it. It's kind of chilly in here
I made a bomb lobster bisque the other day and first stab at it and it was on it like not too in my honor
It was the best lobster bisque I've ever had. Let's go. It was good made mountain stop
Hey, when you come to charlotte, you better have some lobster bisque in the trailer and we'll stop by buddy
Oh, man, so I'm excited. We gotta ask them. So we gotta ask them three questions. Yeah, we can't let them go just yet
um
Generally, these are oval track guys that are sitting here, but that's not often we get a
Dragster guy. So unique question if you had to pick one car and one racetrack to race out the rest of your life
What'd you go with?
Uh irp pavement midget. Okay. Let's go
Sick
Some of the most fun I've ever had in a race car man. That is a cool
You got to commit there. No break floated in there run the right front towards the wall and hammer down
Hey, they're coming back. Yeah, I know I actually I got some uh, I'm gonna do the ford focus deal
I believe the uh, little thursday night thunder series this year
I want to do the one at the speed drum. I have some I have some little 500 little hooks in the water
Yeah, I won my first uh, focus midget racer first time ever sat in one. Yeah, that place looks sick
question number two
What's uh, the most embarrassed you've been at the racetrack
Uh, probably that video you just showed me for bebop in the throttle for 800 feet. I won
I I did win but I mean that is
pretty dumb-looking
bush league
Uh, I thought it was cool as hell and you still won. So what's the fans thought it was awesome
Like I went back to the trailer and I'm like tail between my legs head down and all the fans are like, dude
You're the best drag racer ever
I'm like, all right
Yes, he's pissed right now
Last question man, if I had the you're you're close to our age
Um, so you'd get the men in black reference cement men in black. Yep, right? You get the pen zaps all your memory
Yeah, if I had that pen and I got the zap all your memories, but you only got to keep one racing memory. What do you keep?
Uh
That's tough
Probably winning my first championship that or
Winning my first ever race
Winning the championship probably I pretty much locked it up
one race before the uh
The season was over it was
Mathematically done, but I had to show up to Pomona and just get like entry points
Um, so winning the final round in Las Vegas to cap it off
We won it on a monday race got canceled on sunday for uh, some weather conditions and rolled it out there monday
And won the race no fans there just the boys just the team and celebrated big
No traffic leaving no traffic leaving. Yeah, love it. Awesome. Well, you guys know where to find us whether you're listening
Wherever you find your podcasts or youtube
Special edition episode because we had a special guest a special edition guest here in Austin proc
Back-to-back champion going for three in a row buddy. We wish you luck. That's right
everybody follow along austin and that's uh
Was a bob task of racing that for Mustang dark horse. It's gonna be a good cool year
I'm certainly gonna be keeping up with you more this year. Wish you luck and uh, thanks for stopping in
Yeah, thanks for having me. This is a good time. Yeah, buddy. Y'all have a good day. Keep stacking pennies guys talk to you next week. Bye
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