Pat Austin
Encyclopedia
Pat Austin is a retired American drag racer
. He competed in the National Hot Rod Association
(NHRA). He won four NHRA Top Alcohol Funny Car championships between 1987 and 1991. He was the first driver to win eliminator titles at the same event when he won the Top Fuel
and Alcohol Funny Car
classes at Topeka. His 62 wins between his start in 1985 and 1996, which were the most for any driver between the late 1970s and 1996.
In 2002, the NHRA labeled him "the most successful drag racer born after the 1940s and the best driver of his generation". He had the first 250 mph (402.3 km/h) Alcohol Funny Car run and the first pass in the 5.5 second range.
native Austin went to high school at Franklin Pierce High School
, where he won two state championships in the shot put
. Austin was named an All-Star on his high school football
team during his senior year.
He began drag racing in the Northwestern United States
, where he won approximately 90 percent of the races that he entered. He started racing on the national tour in 1995. Austin won his first national event title in 1986, when he won the Cajun Nationals. He won the next event, the Springnationals. He had numerous second place finishes and lost the 1986 season championship at the final round at the Fallnationals to Brad Anderson.
Austin won his first national championship the following year. He won four the five championships between 1987 and 1991, losing the 1989 championship. Austin made eight finals in 1987 and won six events. He followed that season with his second championship in 1988. That season was highlighted by six wins, including his first U.S. Nationals win. He had his most wins in 1989 with nine wins (including the U.S. Nationals). Brad Anderson won the season championship after Anderson did better in divisional races. Austin won the 1990 championship with 12 finals and nine event wins. Austin clinched the 1991 championship in July (with four months left) after posting the first perfect 5 national and 5 divisional wins season. Gary Ormsby died of cancer; Austin bought his Top Fuel operation before the U.S. Nationals. He campaigned both cars at the event after testing his new Top Fuel dragster at one local event. After winning the Alcohol Funny Car finals at one of the next events, his blower
malfunctioned during his burnout at the finals. Austin had to watch Kenny Bernstein
as he smoked his tires to win the Top Fuel finals in a single. Austin continued to run both cars at events, vowing to win in both cars. His double eliminator win came two events later at Topeka. He won the Alcohol Funny Car finals over Chuck Cheeseman with a 5.97 second pass and the Top Fuel finals over Joe Amato with a 4.97 second pass. Austin avenged his final round Top Fuel loss to Bernstein at the Winston Finals at Ponoma and started the 1992 season by winning the second race of the year at the Motorcraft Ford Nationals in Phoenix Arizona over Doug Herbert. Between 1987 and 1991, he entered 57 national event finals and won 43 of them.
Austin achieved the second double eliminator win at the second event in 1992 at Phoenix. He won the Top Fuel finals and beat his uncle, rival Bucky Austin, in the Alcohol Funny Car finals. Austin won Top Fuel at the 1993 U.S. Nationals at Indianapolis Raceway Park over Doug Herbert in a tire-smoking peddlefest final round. His fifth and final Top Fuel win was at Englishtown over Don "The Snake" Prudhomme
in 1994 winning with a 4.88 to Prudhomme's 4.89. His last final round came in 1995 at Sonoma California losing to Mike Dunn. Austin became the first driver to achieve 250 miles per hour in the quarter mile in an Alcohol Funny Car in 1995.
In 1999, Austin noticed that IHRA
drivers such as Von Smith having success in Hoosier Racing Tire
s. Austin had been experiencing severe tire shake and tire spinning problems. So he purchased a set of Hoosiers at the U.S. Nationals and used them in second round qualifying at the next event at Dallas, which was the first time that Hoosiers were used in an NHRA event. After having a relatively slow pass, he made gear ratio adjustments at later events. He started using the tires for all passes after having a 5.64 second pass. He had the first pass in the 5.5 second range (5.56 seconds at 257 mph) and won the race, marking the first time that a Hoosier tire won an NHRA Alcohol Funny Car event.
In 2000, he recorded his 70th career victory, which put him fourth on the NHRA all-time win list. He had his 75th national victory at Ponoma's
2002 Winternationals. At that time he had 81 points wins for a total of 156 victories.
Austin now runs the Pat Austin's Pro Max Performance Centers, which is a national automotive parts dealer and it services cars in the Puget Sound
.
His father (Walt Austin), mother, brother Mike, and sister have helped on his team. Walt Austin competed in drag racing from the 1950s to 1970s. He inherited his father's muffler and radiator shop in 1968. Walt's brother Bucky started on his pit crew until opening a rival muffler shop in 1970. Bucky Austin had over 200 drag racing wins at Northwestern regional NHRA, AHRA
and open matches. Pat described their relationship, "We've had our tense moments, just the same way as the businesses have been treated. It's competition. It's no different than having a one-on-one basketball game, except we're all grown up. It's never been bad blood."
Drag racing
Drag racing is a competition in which specially prepared automobiles or motorcycles compete two at a time to be the first to cross a set finish line, from a standing start, in a straight line, over a measured distance, most commonly a ¼-mile straight track....
. He competed in the National Hot Rod Association
National Hot Rod Association
The National Hot Rod Association is a drag racing governing body, which sets rules in drag racing and host events all over the United States and Canada...
(NHRA). He won four NHRA Top Alcohol Funny Car championships between 1987 and 1991. He was the first driver to win eliminator titles at the same event when he won the Top Fuel
Top Fuel
Top Fuel racing is a class of drag racing in which the cars are run on a mix of approximately 90% nitromethane and 10% methanol rather than gasoline or simply methanol. The cars are purpose-built for drag racing, with an exaggerated layout that in some ways resembles open-wheel circuit racing...
and Alcohol Funny Car
Funny Car
Funny Car is a drag racing car class. In the United States, other "professional" classes are Top Fuel, Pro Stock, and Pro Stock Motorcycle. Funny cars have forward-mounted engines and carbon fiber automotive bodies over the chassis, giving them an appearance vaguely approximating manufacturers'...
classes at Topeka. His 62 wins between his start in 1985 and 1996, which were the most for any driver between the late 1970s and 1996.
In 2002, the NHRA labeled him "the most successful drag racer born after the 1940s and the best driver of his generation". He had the first 250 mph (402.3 km/h) Alcohol Funny Car run and the first pass in the 5.5 second range.
Racing career
Tacoma, WashingtonTacoma, Washington
Tacoma is a mid-sized urban port city and the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. The city is on Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, and northwest of Mount Rainier National Park. The population was 198,397, according to...
native Austin went to high school at Franklin Pierce High School
Franklin Pierce High School
Franklin Pierce High School in Midland, Washington is named after the fourteenth US President, Franklin Pierce, who was president when the Washington Territory was formed in 1853.-Music:Music at Franklin Pierce High School has a rich history...
, where he won two state championships in the shot put
Shot put
The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" a heavy metal ball—the shot—as far as possible. It is common to use the term "shot put" to refer to both the shot itself and to the putting action....
. Austin was named an All-Star on his high school football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
team during his senior year.
He began drag racing in the Northwestern United States
Northwestern United States
The Northwestern United States comprise the northwestern states up to the western Great Plains regions of the United States, and consistently include the states of Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, to which part of southeast Alaska is also sometimes included...
, where he won approximately 90 percent of the races that he entered. He started racing on the national tour in 1995. Austin won his first national event title in 1986, when he won the Cajun Nationals. He won the next event, the Springnationals. He had numerous second place finishes and lost the 1986 season championship at the final round at the Fallnationals to Brad Anderson.
Supercharger
A supercharger is an air compressor used for forced induction of an internal combustion engine.The greater mass flow-rate provides more oxygen to support combustion than would be available in a naturally aspirated engine, which allows more fuel to be burned and more work to be done per cycle,...
malfunctioned during his burnout at the finals. Austin had to watch Kenny Bernstein
Kenny Bernstein
Kenny Bernstein is an American drag racer and former NASCAR and IndyCar team owner. He is nicknamed the "Bud King" for his success in the Budweiser King dragster, he has also been nicknamed "The King of Speed," because he was the first driver to break 300 miles per hour in the standing-start...
as he smoked his tires to win the Top Fuel finals in a single. Austin continued to run both cars at events, vowing to win in both cars. His double eliminator win came two events later at Topeka. He won the Alcohol Funny Car finals over Chuck Cheeseman with a 5.97 second pass and the Top Fuel finals over Joe Amato with a 4.97 second pass. Austin avenged his final round Top Fuel loss to Bernstein at the Winston Finals at Ponoma and started the 1992 season by winning the second race of the year at the Motorcraft Ford Nationals in Phoenix Arizona over Doug Herbert. Between 1987 and 1991, he entered 57 national event finals and won 43 of them.
Austin achieved the second double eliminator win at the second event in 1992 at Phoenix. He won the Top Fuel finals and beat his uncle, rival Bucky Austin, in the Alcohol Funny Car finals. Austin won Top Fuel at the 1993 U.S. Nationals at Indianapolis Raceway Park over Doug Herbert in a tire-smoking peddlefest final round. His fifth and final Top Fuel win was at Englishtown over Don "The Snake" Prudhomme
Don Prudhomme
Don 'The Snake' Prudhomme, is an American drag racer.-Racing career:In 1962, Prudhomme was a partner in the Greer-Black-Prudhomme digger, which earned the best win record in NHRA history, before switching to Funny Car. He would win the NHRA FC championship four times in his thirty-five-year career...
in 1994 winning with a 4.88 to Prudhomme's 4.89. His last final round came in 1995 at Sonoma California losing to Mike Dunn. Austin became the first driver to achieve 250 miles per hour in the quarter mile in an Alcohol Funny Car in 1995.
International Hot Rod Association
The International Hot Rod Association, also known as IHRA, is the 2nd largest drag racing sanctioning body after the NHRA.-The Carrier Era:The IHRA was formed in November 1970 by businessman Larry Carrier. Throughout this period the organization was operated primarily in the south-eastern United...
drivers such as Von Smith having success in Hoosier Racing Tire
Hoosier Racing Tire
Hoosier Racing Tire is an American tire manufacturer primarily specializing in the production of tires for competition use. An Indiana based company, Hoosier claims to be the world's largest race tire manufacturer...
s. Austin had been experiencing severe tire shake and tire spinning problems. So he purchased a set of Hoosiers at the U.S. Nationals and used them in second round qualifying at the next event at Dallas, which was the first time that Hoosiers were used in an NHRA event. After having a relatively slow pass, he made gear ratio adjustments at later events. He started using the tires for all passes after having a 5.64 second pass. He had the first pass in the 5.5 second range (5.56 seconds at 257 mph) and won the race, marking the first time that a Hoosier tire won an NHRA Alcohol Funny Car event.
In 2000, he recorded his 70th career victory, which put him fourth on the NHRA all-time win list. He had his 75th national victory at Ponoma's
Infineon Raceway
Infineon Raceway, formerly Sears Point Raceway, is a road course and drag strip located on the landform known as Sears Point in the southern Sonoma Mountains near Sonoma, California, USA. The course is a complex series of twists and turns that go up and down the hills...
2002 Winternationals. At that time he had 81 points wins for a total of 156 victories.
Austin now runs the Pat Austin's Pro Max Performance Centers, which is a national automotive parts dealer and it services cars in the Puget Sound
Puget Sound
Puget Sound is a sound in the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected marine waterways and basins, with one major and one minor connection to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Pacific Ocean — Admiralty Inlet being the major connection and...
.
Personal life
Pat and his wife, Keila, have a son named Drew and a daughter named Allison.His father (Walt Austin), mother, brother Mike, and sister have helped on his team. Walt Austin competed in drag racing from the 1950s to 1970s. He inherited his father's muffler and radiator shop in 1968. Walt's brother Bucky started on his pit crew until opening a rival muffler shop in 1970. Bucky Austin had over 200 drag racing wins at Northwestern regional NHRA, AHRA
American Hot Rod Association
American Hot Rod Association, also known as AHRA, and most recently AHRA Motorsports. In late 2008 Rod Saint restarted the AHRA and brought onboard Jim Tice, son of the late Jim Tice Sr., and Troy Moe, nephew of Orville Moe. 2010 was to be the beginning of a new era and season with the 'reunion...
and open matches. Pat described their relationship, "We've had our tense moments, just the same way as the businesses have been treated. It's competition. It's no different than having a one-on-one basketball game, except we're all grown up. It's never been bad blood."