Thu, 22 May 2008, 09:48 PM Everybody has the Same Chance to Win

By Bob Frey Photo copyright 2008 Auto Imagery, Inc.

Amy in the Comp car.

In an article in National Dragster in November of 1980, Amy Faulk said that she had closed her last door in drag racing. That was a reference to the fact that Amy and her husband, Kenny, were about to give up racing "door cars" and step up to Competition Eliminator. "I'm not a natural driver like some of the guys are," Amy said in the article. "So it will take me a little while to get used to driving a dragster and racing in Comp but we're committed to it. In fact, initially we thought about keeping our Camaro but now we've sold it so it's full speed ahead." Amy did, indeed, race a dragster in Competition Eliminator but she certainly hadn't closed her last door. After doing well in Comp, including going to final rounds at both the national and divisional levels, and after having a very successful career in Top Alcohol Dragster, Amy did return to her roots, Stock Eliminator, and she continues to do well there almost thirty years after "closing her last door."

Amy in her Super Stock in '79.

With all of the talk recently about the success of Ashley Force and, this past week, Melanie Troxel, Amy Faulk has to take a lot of pride in the fact that she has accomplished a great deal in drag racing and that she began her career when women weren't as much a part of the sport as they are today. "It's pretty nice to see a lot of women in the drag racing," she said while waiting her turn at the track in Bristol this past weekend. "The good thing about this sport is that if you have a car, a crew chief and a desire everyone can compete." Amy said that, even though she has been racing since back in the 1970's, she really doesn't think of herself as anyone special and doesn't consider herself a pioneer for women in the sport. "I've been very fortunate to do what I've done. I love everything about the sport and I really enjoy the driving. I never thought this is what I would do with my life but it's worked out rather well." Yes it has. Amy's career, which began back in the mid 1970's, includes national event wins in three different classes and a national championship in Super Stock in 1979. In addition to her national event wins Amy has also been to the final round at sixteen divisional races and they include finals in all three of her specialties, Comp, Super Stock and Top Alcohol Dragster. She also has a pair of top ten finishes to go along with her World Championship as well as a divisional title and two trips to the sportsman all-star race in two different classes. These days you can find her racing in Stock Eliminator with her beautiful Pontiac Firebird and she is just as competitive as she has ever been. "We've had this current car for a couple of years now and it's a really good ride," she said. "When you get in the car, whether you're a man or a woman, it's just you and the car. I don't really worry about the person in the other lane, I just focus on doing my job." And she does her job well. "I should correct something," she said. "This really isn't work or a job, it's just fun, and I have as much fun today as I did when I first started."

Amy and Kenny

Amy's start in drag racing really came about by necessity. "My dad owned a garage so I was always around cars when I was growing up. And then when I got married, Kenny was racing but he really didn't like the driving part so I got to do it. I wasn't a natural at it, in fact, in the beginning I was really bad. I think the fact that I had to work to become a good driver is one of the reasons why I stayed with it. If it had come easily I may not be driving today. I enjoyed the challenge and stayed with it and I'm glad that I did." Her early days not only featured a learning experience behind the wheel, but it included a rather unusual car. "Kenny had a Volkswagen, so we were racing an import car in Modified Eliminator with a girl driving." While that particular combination may not seem like the normal road to success, it worked for Kenny and Amy. After a stint in that car the Faulk's bought a car from Bobby Warren and Amy's career really took off. "Most people ask me if I remember winning the World Championship and I guess I should. But I really remember winning class at a national event for the first time and I remember racing that Camaro. I always took racing one round and one race at a time and that's how I approach it today."

Amy's Top Alcohol Dragster.

While Amy has enjoyed a great deal of success in racing she says that everyone has that same chance today. "It's a great sport and everyone can be successful if they work at it. I applaud what people like Ashley Force and Melanie Troxel and Shelly Anderson have done, not because they are women, but because they paid their dues and came up the hard way. I raced against Melanie's father, and she was there, in the pits, learning all about the cars and how they work. There's nothing that Shelly can't do on a car. She can tune them and drive them and she does it all well. And Ashley raced for years in Super Comp and the alky class before moving up. Sure she has an advantage with her dad but she's done a good job at every level." She went on to say that if someone gets into the sport thinking that they will get magazine and television exposure and sponsors just because they are female, they're wrong. "Eventually you have to win. It's that simple."

Amy in '83.

For her part, Amy can also do almost everything on a race car. She has spent most of her racing career working in and around the high performance industry and knows the ins and outs of how a car works. "I worked with Comp Cams, TCI and Cam Dynamics before moving to my present position with Hypertech. I was fortunate to be able to work with the folks at Reher & Morrison and with people like Lee Shepherd and Jack Roush. Warren Johnson is still a good friend of mine and we talk often. With all of those people I was able to talk, listen, ask questions and learn and that was a real part of my learning experience and it continues today." Among the other accomplishments in her career, she has been inducted into the Division 2 Hall of Fame and, in one of her finest moments, was named the SEMA Person of the Year in 2002. "That was such an honor," she said. "Wally Parks and NHRA actually made a special 'Wally' trophy and presented it to me at SEMA and that was really neat." And as for advice to anyone, male or female who wants to get into the sport today? "I would just tell them to go for it. It's a level playing field, but make sure you do it because you love the sport." Amy added that her big goal, before she really does close the door for the last time, is to make one swing around the country. "I would really like to retire and then spend one year going to all the races. To take your time and get to compete against the best racers all over the country would be a real treat." The treat would be for those racers who got to line up against Amy, one of the best racers in the sport in any class.