Rare holeshot loss sends Coughlin packing (NHRA/JEGS)

Rare holeshot loss sends Coughlin packing

PHOENIX (Feb. 21) --  Four-time Pro Stock champion Jeg Coughlin Jr. has 
made a living at the starting  line of NHRA drag races, routinely cutting down 
his opponents with superior  reaction times at the Christmas Tree. He is 
considered by most to be one of the  best pure drivers in the 59-year history 
of the sport.

But every once in  awhile even the best get beaten, as was the case Sunday 
afternoon at Firebird  International Raceway near Phoenix when upstart Greg 
Stanfield stole away a  holeshot victory from Coughlin with a slight 
headstart on the launch pad. It  wasn't that Coughlin's .037-second reaction time 
was bad; it was that  Stanfield's .021-second jump was better. At the other 
end, Stanfield took the  win with a 6.656 at 206.29 mph to Coughlin's quicker 
but losing 6.649 at 201.31  mph in his JEGS.com Chevrolet Cobalt.

"We got beat," Coughlin said. "We  were definitely tracking him down and it 
would've been very, very close at the  finish line but the car broke free 
down there and I almost wrecked. I thought I  was going over for sure. 
Fortunately, I felt the rear end lifting up after I put  it in fifth and I knew 
what that could lead to so I instinctively threw the  'chutes. Just when I 
thought I was gonna flip the 'chutes hit real hard and that  pulled me straight.

"As close as the finish was, we might have pulled it  out, but I might have 
been on the lid also."

Coughlin estimates he  deployed the parachutes 300 feet before the finish 
line and an onboard G-meter  showed the initial tug took place 100 feet 
before the stripe. 

A  supporter of USA Bobsledding, Coughlin will now head to Vancouver to 
cheer on  the U.S. men's and women's teams at the Olympic Games. Coughlin met 
and  befriended several members of the squad via the annual Geoff Bodine NHRA 
vs.  NASCAR Bobsled Challenge, which raises money to make top-flight, 
made-in-America  sleds for USA Bobsledding.

--30--

Information regarding JEGS Mail  Order can be found at _www.jegs.com_ 
(http://www.jegs.com/)  and  for media/fan resources checkout _www.teamjegs.com_ 
(http://www.teamjegs.com/) . 

Media  Contact:
Scott "Woody" Woodruff
JEGS, Director of Media &  Motorsports
Office: 800.345.4545 (#3, ext 412)
Mobile:  614.595.1820
Fax: 740.362.5507
Email: _jegspr@aol.com_ (mailto:jegspr@aol.com)  or 
_scott.woodruff@jegs.com_ (mailto:scott.woodruff@jegs.com)