Pro Stock Car
Jeg's Mail Order

Questions and story by Dwight Drum
Photos by Gary Larsen and Dwight Drum
Web work by Gary Larsen

"Troy"

The Coughlin family is an ever present big yellow on the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series circuit. Jeg's provides speed via the mail and on the track too. Troy Coughlin echoes his family spirit and good sense of humor in words told to Zoomster.

Dwight chats with Troy Coughlin:

Probably I miss most being around the people and the fans and qualifying…just about everything. The off season is short. We finally think... Oh great. We're done racing for the year, now we can concentrate our efforts 100 percent on the engine program and back at work at Jeg's mail order. Two weeks later it's like…Hey, let's go test it. (laughs) My home life is great, no doubt about it, but I miss the people, fans and everything that goes on."

I told myself I was going to be a race car driver when I was scratching my head in jail after street racing a couple of times. (laughs) My dad thought it would be a good idea if I started racing too!"

"Focus and the rhythm of what you have to do. Usually the thought pattern of what you have to do is over Friday afternoon, and doesn't come back again until after the race. Once you get zoned into what you have to do and you're in the race car, you could have a headache, a back ache, but then you get in the race car and there are no problems. It's a whole different world with no distractions. You have a problem outside and get in the race car... no problems! I work hard Monday thru Thursday with a plan... the plan is to run it Friday thru Sunday with no mistakes. When you get in the race car the plan is thought out. Now you just go do it. It sounds easy, but it's not easy."

"The love for the sport. We have the best of both worlds with working at Jeg's and selling parts and racing with these parts. I think the deal of having the best of both worlds and a family that supports it is second to none. I just love it...nothing like it."

"I'm a nice guy!"

Oh yeah, when we started testing at the beginning of the season, I could see the light coming through the clouds, because there was light at the end of the tunnel with the race program...at least with my car and hiring new people. It's night and day difference. We have already made more good straight runs this year then we did all of last year. That's how it should be."

"I think I'm a good driver. I look up to my brother Jeg Jr because he's been in a lot of circumstances on the starting line, going down the race track and stuff like that. I know his preparation for racing and he's a very strong headed competitive person. You can see the people who made the mistakes that cost him the qualifying or cost him the races. You can see that in the driver's attitude. You can see it on facial expressions, their discussion with you is different. There's a lot of ways to tell a good guy from a bad dude. "