(Above) John Force gives daughter Courtney a kiss for good luck as she prepares to start her Funny Car career. (Below) It wasn't so long ago that he was doing the same for Ashley, who quickly blossomed into a a national event champ.

The O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals presented by Super Start Batteries will mark Courtney Force’s Professional debut in the Traxxas Funny Car, the latest jewel in a racing dynasty started by her father, John Force, who has dominated the class for more than two decades and won 15 NHRA Full Throttle championships and 133 national event titles.

She also has to follow in the footsteps of her sister Ashley Force Hood, who in just four seasons of nitro Funny Car competition won the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals twice and finished in the top 10 all four times, including a career-best second place in 2009.

Pressure? What pressure?

Fortunately for Courtney, she has her big sister’s experience to rely on. Force Hood says she knows how  Courtney must feel because she went through it in 2007, and that experience allows her to advise her sister. Force Hood modestly chalks up her success to “just really good luck,” but the bar she set for Courtney and other women is admittedly high.

“There were no other girls in the class at the time I started, and honestly, I don’t think people expected very much of me,” she said. “There were so many people worried that I wouldn’t be strong enough to drive it. They were going to be surprised if I even did halfway decent. Now, I think the expectations Courtney is going to face are going to be higher.

“I’m nervous for Courtney because so much is going to come at one time. You try to prepare as much as you can, but nothing prepares you for it all. She’ll have some ups and downs over the next few months; that’s all just part of it. There’s no new driver who doesn’t go through that. The best mind frame is to put the past in the past, and every run is a new one and a chance to improve. You can’t improve if you start at the top, so it was good to go through it.

“But she has a good team, great equipment, and great sponsors to fund the car, but you still have to get the experience. The worst thing you do is to get mental about yourself worrying what everyone else is thinking. A good goal is just to learn and not repeat mistakes. If I could take something I did wrong and learn from it, then I would become a better driver, and I wouldn’t care what people thought if I made a mistake. I hope that’s how she looks at it.

“The best thing I had was the support of my team. We all made a lot of mistakes together, and we all supported each other. They never talked bad about me or made fun of me behind my back. That helped me, too. You can’t get into a car thinking that your crew thinks you’re a crappy driver because that’s all you’re thinking about. I always got in with my guys telling me, ‘This is going to be a great run; it’s going to be a great day,’ and that always gave me confidence. I’ve worked with Ron [Douglas, crew chief], and I’m sure he has put together a good group of guys to back her. Dad’s always taught our teams that if the driver messes up, you need to support them, or if the crew messes up — if there’s a mistake in the pits or the tune-up is completely off — we drivers stand behind our teams. It’s a two-way street. It really works out well, and it’s an enjoyable environment.”

Courtney is the first to admit that she has a battle ahead of her.

“There’s definitely some pressure,” she said. “I have some big shoes to fill, and I’m still learning every time I get in the seat of that car. It’s going to take some time. I hope I can prove myself to them and show them how bad I want this. I had great teachers with my dad and Robert [Hight] and Ashley and Mike Neff, so I have to take my time and learn. I hope to do as well as Ashley did her rookie season. I’m very excited. I’m going to work hard for my new team and do the best I can because I’m definitely motivated. I’m driven to win.

“I knew even when I was little that I wanted to be a race car driver, but it’s crazy that everything has fallen into place. You dream about it as a kid, and you wait and wait and work your whole life to get to that point, and here it is.”
 

The 2012 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season kicks off Feb. 9-12 at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona with the 52nd annual O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals presented by Super Start Batteries. Click here to get your tickets.