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Life in the fast lane
An interview with drag racer Cristen Powell
by Connie Blaszczyk
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 Smart, pretty and articulate, she's been called the quintessential all-American girl next door. While that may be true, don't expect to find Cristen Powell hanging out at the local coffeehouse. This 20-year-old craves speed -- not the caffeine-induced variety -- but the sort that can propel you down a racetrack at 300-plus miles per hour.
That's a unique thrill Powell has experienced ten times over in her short and highly-successful drag-racing career. In just two seasons, Powell has gathered some rather sterling achievements: at eighteen, she became the youngest woman ever to win a national event title in top-fuel racing (an event that's been won by only six other women). In 1997, she grabbed the title "Quickest Woman on Earth" with a record-setting run of 4.590 seconds at a top speed of 299.80. And Powell has routinely kicked butt with such seasoned drag racers as Larry Dixon, Jr. and Kenny Bernstein, a racing veteran who happens to be more than three times Powell's age.
Even more astounding than those achievements though is the fact that Powell has done it all in half of her waking hours. The rest of the time she attends classes at Linfield College in McMinnville, Oregon, where she's a sophomore psychology student. Powell relishes the peace and quiet of student life as a refreshing contrast to the fast pace of the racetrack, where she's routinely thronged by hundreds of fans. The duality of this life would be confounding for most people her age, but Powell seems to thrive on it.
As to where she got her will to race, Powell mentions her father, former drag racer Casey Powell. From an early age, he encouraged his daughter's passion for speed, taking her along on frequent trips to the track. And while his support and that of family and friends has been instrumental to her success, Cristen Powell has proven mature beyond her years. She's managed to keep her spirits high through a recent "sophomore slump" in her racing career. She is equally sage-like when talking about the frustrations of searching for a new sponsor. Those hurtles are but small change to Cristen Powell, a woman who routinely takes the lead on the road to success.
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Meet Cristen Powell in this audio clip.
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Cristen Powell
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