Autoweek NHRA insider Ron Capps' blog: The future and my '31 Ford Coupe

(Editor's note: This is the seventh in a series of exclusive Autoweek blogs from NHRA Funny Car driver and 2016 champion Ron Capps. Capps continued his 2019 season this past weekend at the NGK Spark Plugs NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at Charlotte, North Carolina. Capps qualified 10th and was sent home after the first round of elminations. Capps left Houston ninth in the Funny Car standings after six race weekends.)

I promise here, pretty soon, we’re going to have a blog with a picture of the winner’s circle! It’s coming. It's just been a strange year.

At least this week, I got to take my hot rod out when I got home. If I’m home a few days, I try to take it out take my son caden to high school or take drive the care out to the gym or something. This time, my daughter Taylor came in from school and saw it out front and asked if she could drive it. So, we went around the block, which was interesting for me. It’s a '31 Ford Coupe street rod with no power steering, no power brakes, all-steel body and all that. She’s tiny, but she did a great job. I didn’t mind sitting shotgun while she drove it.

The car was built by Roy Brizio, who is a famous street rod builder who I've gotten to become friends with. He's built cars for Reggie Jackson, Eric Clapton and guys like that. It’s a car that my dad and I started working on when I was a kid. I learned how to weld on it. When I moved away, it just kinda sat in his yard. Then, when I got to be a real race car driver, I told my dad I was going to take it and have it built. Roy is the one who built it about 15 ago. 

It’s got a supercharged 650 horsepower motor in it. It’s just a cool cruisin’ car. If I’m home for more than a few days, I’ll get it out.

As for Taylor, she's 22, and she has her super comp drag license — she got it a few years ago — and we’re waiting for her to finish school before she starts chasing any of her drag racing dreams. I don’t know how I’m going to be if she decides to go racing. I was a nervous wreck when she got her super comp dragster license. I kind of got a feeling now for what my family goes through when they’re at the races in the grandstands watching me.

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