Chicago winner Coughlin gets taste of turns

LEXINGTON, Ohio (June 14) — Fresh off his 35th career Pro Stock victory at
Route 66 Raceway in Chicago, Jeg Coughlin Jr. spent an off day making high-speed
turns around the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in the back seat of Indy racer
Stephan Gregorie’s IRL test racer.

“What a rush!” the two-time Pro Stock champion said after three laps around the
13-turn circuit, where he reached estimated top speeds of 160-plus mph. “The
concentration these guys and girls need to get around a course like this at
those speeds is just incredible. We need several minutes of intense
concentration to make a quarter-mile pass. These guys stay at that level for two
hours or more. It’s just phenomenal.”

Coughlin has taken numerous laps around Mid-Ohio in the past as part of the
various driving courses they offer. But it wasn’t until the Indy Racing League
drivers arrived in town to test for the Honda 200, which takes place July 22,
that Coughlin had a chance to make the quickest passes the track can hold.

“The feeling of speed and the various G-forces you experience around the corners
are really cool,” said Coughlin, who routinely posts quarter-mile runs of 6.6
seconds at 210 mph. “Being in the back seat, your view is somewhat restricted,
but it’s still awesome. I guess I’ll have to take the wheel myself next time. I
think that would be fun to try.

“Stephan is obviously a very talented and experienced professional driver. He
made it look easy. When you come off that back stretch at 160 mph and go into
that turn it gets your attention, especially the first time through, but those
cars are just glued to the track. They’re very different from a Pro Stock car.”

Coughlin’s father, Jeg Coughlin Sr., also experienced a lap around the course
with Gregorie. According to his decorated son, he enjoyed the experience quite a
bit. “He thought it was very cool,” the younger Coughlin said. “He had a big
smile on his face when the helmet came off.”

Currently second in the POWERade points standings, Coughlin and his JEGS.com
teammates return to more familiar surroundings June 22-24 at the 38th annual
ProCare Rx NHRA SuperNationals presented by R2B2 Motors at Old Bridge Township
Raceway Park in Englishtown, N.J.


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