Blast from past: Bernstein back in driver's seat
At 62, Kenny Bernstein thought his days in an NHRA cockpit were over. Think again, Terry Blount writes.
BAYTOWN, Texas -- In 2006, four years after his original retirement from drag racing, Kenny Bernstein finally made peace with himself.
The NHRA legend spent a couple of years after his retirement desperate to get back in the cockpit.
"But lo and behold, the door opened up. I was at the right place at the right time."
When he least expected it, Bernstein got his chance to get back on the track this season. Bernstein is in the Funny Car field this weekend for the O'Reilly Spring Nationals at Houston Raceway Park.
A partnership deal Monster energy drink has with Budweiser, Bernstein's team sponsor for 28 years, eventually put Bernstein in a driver's seat.
At age 62, the six-time NHRA champion has a chance to turn back the clock. But the beginning of his revival tour was no return to the glory days. Bernstein failed to qualify for the first two events of 2007.
"I expected it to be very difficult with a completely new program," Bernstein said. "It was a major undertaking in a short period of time. I thought we would struggle, but not like we did."
Bernstein made a crew chief change after the first two races. Ray Alley, who was the NHRA's director of Top Fuel and Funny Car racing, left that position to join Bernstein. But Jimmy Walsh, the tuner for J.R. Todd's Top Fuel dragster, replaced Allen two weeks ago at the Gatornationals in Gainesville, Fla.
"Ray came to me in Phoenix and said if I could get someone else, he wanted me to do that," Bernstein said. "Ray hadn't been a crew chief in six of seven years. The learning curve was pretty tough.
"It wasn't a question whether he was smart enough or dedicated enough to get there. It was how long would it take. I think he realized it would take longer than we were going to be able to live with."
In Walsh's first race, Bernstein not only qualified, but he reached the semifinals before losing to Ron Capps.
"Jimmy has never run a Funny Car before, but he's been out here doing this," Bernstein said. "He knows what to do."
So does Bernstein. He raced 13 seasons in Top Fuel, winning two championships, but hadn't driven a Funny Car since 1989.
Would it be the same for a man who won four consecutive Funny Car titles from 1985 to 1988? The last time Bernstein sat in a Funny Car, the floppers were half a second and 40 mph slower getting down the track.
"These Funny Cars are harder to drive today because they're quicker, faster and have more power," Bernstein said. "And they are much harder to drive than a Top Fuel dragster. It takes much more manhandling and more aggressiveness with the steering wheel.
"But the first time I got in the car again, I was extremely comfortable. I've haven't had one moment of a nervous stomach."
Bernstein's uncomfortable moments came in the three seasons he wasn't competing. His original retirement was short-lived.
Son Brandon Bernstein, who replaced Kenny in the Top Fuel dragster, suffered a season-ending back injury in the eighth race of the 2003 season.
Kenny climbed back in the car and raced as well as he ever had. He won the last four events that season.
Brandon was back in the car for the 2004 season, but he knew his dad was itching to race again.
"He just felt out of place not being in the car," Brandon said. "He would walk to the starting line and say, 'Where do I stand? What do I do.' When he got back in the car and drove for me, you could really tell that his competitive spirit was still alive."
But the chance to capitalize on that competitive urge didn't happen.
"I was pretty miserable," Bernstein said. "I felt bored out here on the weekends. By 2005 it subsided some, but I still was looking hard for sponsorship to come back. By 2006, I didn't solicit any sponsorship. I told myself, 'It's over. Forget about it.' "
That's when the call came from Mark Hall, president of Monster Energy. He wanted Bernstein to start a second team to run with the Budweiser dragster, but he wanted a Funny Car.
"I had no problem with that," Bernstein said. "But he didn't know I wanted to drive it. I told him, 'I know I don't fit your demographics, but I'd like to do it.
"I miss it terribly.' "
Hall wanted to make sure Budweiser officials didn't have a problem with Bernstein racing the Monster car. Budweiser was all for it, but Bernstein said Hall had one other concern.
"Mark had some reservation, but not on my age," Bernstein said. "His concern was how they make me a Monster driver after all these years with a Budweiser identity. I convinced it wouldn't take long for that to happen."
The other concern by some people is whether Bernstein still has the physical skills to pilot a car at more than 320 mph.
Brandon finds those concerns laughable.
"The man is a machine," Brandon said. "Believe me, there's no problem whatsoever with him physically or mentally. He still has the reactions times and still has the feel of the race car."
Kenny is a fitness nut. He also appears 20 years younger than his age. And he isn't much older than John Force, who won his 14th Funny Car championship last year at age 57.
Bernstein has no doubts about his racing skills.
"I think I'm better because of my experience," he said. "I would hate to be a rookie today in Funny Car trying to learn. These cars can be a handful.
"It took everything I could do to keep the car off the wall on two occasions at Gainesville. I knew I was past the point of no return and it was time to get off the throttle. That's something you learn after a lot of time out here."
Despite his slow start, Bernstein believes he has the people, the funding and the equipment to compete with the top teams this season.
"All that pie has to be in place," he said. "I think we have that now with Jimmy here. He's still learning Funny Car, but the more runs we get the better he'll get. We have a car that can win. We have a shot. That's all I wanted."
Terry Blount covers motorsports for ESPN.com. He can be reached at terry@blountspeak.com.
