His delightfully disjointed television interviews might suggest that he has a scattershot approach to his Castrol/AAA Ford Funny Car operation. That simply isn't true. He knows exactly what he wants - and one constant he wants to preserve is a relationship with COMP Cams.
"I know they've been around for a million years, and I know they're going to be here with my kids," Force said, referring to son-in-law Robert Hight, as well as daughters Ashley, Brittany, and Courtney.
 John Force |
OK, so he exaggerates a little. But he's not stretching the truth when it comes to his satisfaction with the 30-year-old Memphis-based company that prides itself on real-life reliability.
"They've been around a long time, Force said. They do all the trade shows. I run into them at a lot of the cars shows I do. So I know they're going to grow. And that's what's important."
Besides, Force said, "There was competition out there that we were racing against that was doing very well with the product. We knew that the product was going to be fine, and we knew they could deliver."
Cost-effectiveness, he said, also is an ingredient. He asks of a potential parts supplier, "Will they allow my employees - my brain trust - to work with them to get new technology?" COMP Cams passed his test. "They were open: 'Let's talk about cams.' I couldn't tell you what a cam mold was. But they could. And they would work with us, just like Ford does."
He said he started winning consistently when he hooked up with Ford "because I got the technology. So COMP Cams has to offer that. If vendors keep telling us what they want and they don't want our input, then we're wasting time. I don't want a product, no matter how much they pay, unless I like the product. And I've turned down a lot of deals because I don't want to push that product because I don't believe in it.
John Force Tours COMP Cams Facility 
Home sweet home for John Force despite his business savvy, this is the one place Force truly feels at home
John Force prepares to add his signature to the autographed hood in the COMP Cams lobby a tradition that spans
several decades and includes the signatures of racing notables such as Dale Earnhardt
Scooter Brothers, Ron Coleman and John Force explain the challenge of fielding incoming tech support calls which
often exceed 1500 incoming calls a day during peak times
The tour stops-in to oversee the COMP Cams R&D efforts, including Spintron testing shown in the background
Force visits with Kenny Arendale - the very first employee ever hired by COMP Cams and a master cam grinder with
countless NHRA & NASCAR championships to his credit
Force graciously signed autographs for employees throughout the COMP Performance Group complex
Ron Coleman and Force listen as Quality Assurance personnel discuss the rigorous checks that products are
subjected to before being shipped
Production manger, Tommy McIntyre, meets with the multi-time NHRA champion
Force, Scooter Brothers and drag racing technician Buggy Johnson discuss the finer points of camshaft design
Personnel in the COMP Cams packaging department share their job responsibilities with John Force
Force and COMP cams president Ron Coleman trade business stories on the walk between buildings
John Force discusses the challenges of NHRA drag racing with COMP Cams partner, Scooter Brothers
Linear Mode
