TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE — NASCAR driver Reed Sorenson is accustomed to driving 200 miles per hour. On Friday, he broke 800 mph.
No, he did not shatter a land-speed record in his Air Force-sponsored No. 43 Dodge Charger. Sorenson broke Mach 1 in an F-15 jet, as part of a two-day promotional trip at Tyndall Air Force Base. A Peachtree City, Ga., native who turns 23 next month, Sorenson will drive the Air Force car for the first time in the 2009 Sprint Cup season. He said Friday he's looking forward to representing more than just another company.
"It's a different type of feeling when you get to represent all the different men and women who fight for our country," said Sorenson, who drives for the newly-merged Richard Petty Motorsports. "There's a lot of honor to it." The Air Force sponsors a car to boost recruiting. "There's a lot in common between the Air Force and NASCAR - speed, power, precision, teamwork," explained Col. Tim Hanson, chief of strategic communications for the Air Force Recruiting Service. The Air Force hopes the common ground will lead some NASCAR fans to enlist. "People who are interested in that kind of an organization, we think, would be interested in the Air Force," said Hanson.
Sorenson and his crew chief, Mike Shiplett, shot video for a series of webisodes, entitled "Switching Seats," (set to debut on airforce.com in March) in which the NASCAR men compare notes with Air Force pilots. Shiplett shot a scene on Friday with a few Air Force officials and the engine to an F-22, after he tagged along with Sorenson on their 90-minute joy ride over the Gulf of Mexico.
Capt. Justin Ripley flew Sorenson and Shiplett, taking them upside down, refueling in midair, and ramping up to 8.5 Gs. "I always give a smooth ride, like any good Air Force pilot," said Ripley with a Cheshire-cat grin. If he did give Sorenson a jolt, the NASCAR driver didn't let on Friday. He does get a chance to exact revenge, though. Ripley is slated to ride along in Sorenson's No. 43 car in Charlotte in March.
But will riding in a car at 180 mph have an effect on Ripley? Sorenson smiled at the question, then mentioned something about driving up against the wall with Ripley in the passenger seat. "I can definitely scare him."
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