Southern California drag racer John Force moved to outpatient care weeks after a frightening 300-mph crash that left the 16-time NHRA champ hospitalized with a traumatic brain injury, his family said this week.
The 75-year-old Force, who was born in Bell Gardens and lives in Yorba Linda, was back home Monday after 15 days in a Virginia hospital and a stint at a rehabilitation center in Arizona, his family said.
“He finally gets to sleep in his own bed,” daughter Ashley Force Hood said in a statement issued by John Force Racing on Tuesday. Daughter Brittany Force shared an Instagram post with a snapshot of her father smiling and giving a thumbs up from his hospital bed.
Force was discharged from the Barrow Neurological Institute, where he had been rehabbing since early July, according to the statement. He will receive outpatient treatment and speech, occupational and physical therapy for lingering short-term memory and cognitive issues while recovering at home, the statement continued.
“Peace out Phoenix! After 30 days my dad is finally heading home where we will continue outpatient therapy,” Brittany Force posted on Instagram. “These next steps to recovery will definitely be a family effort!”
On June 23, Force suffered a traumatic brain injury, fractured his sternum, and hurt his right wrist in a crash during his first-round run in Funny Car eliminations at Virginia Motorsports Park. After his engine exploded near the finish line, the car crossed the strip’s centerline and collided into the driver’s side left concrete guard wall. The car then careened back across the track and collided with the other wall. Force, who attended Cerritos College, was conscious and communicating with emergency personnel immediately following the catastrophic incident. He was evaluated by an NHRA medical team before being evacuated off the course.
