Cory Lee understands the value of direction. 

Lee believes his life's destiny became crystal clear when he was an impressionable eight-year-old kid, 

"When I was a kid and looked at the early Funny Cars, I knew being involved with them was what I was going to do,” Lee said. "It was a childhood dream, everyone has a dream that they’re going to be a fireman, astronaut or whatever but I said I was going to drive a Funny Car and by the time I was 17, I started driving a Funny Car."  

Fortunately Lee was able to gain both inspiration and knowledge from three flopper legends, Gary Burgin, Ed McCullough and Al Segrini. 

"Very intelligent individuals and very informative to my growing mind," Lee said. "They just helped me excel to the point that I made waves moving up the ladder.  I not only knew how the cars were put together but I started to understand how they worked and my ultimate goal was to drive them."

Lee's first big break came through Harlan Thompson, when the veteran enabled him to field a car and drive it in Europe. From there, he did a tour of Australia and his efforts didn't go unnoticed. 

Tom Hoover, the legendary driver of the Showtime Funny Car, provided his first real domestic opportunity. 

"I got the job, it paid no money but provided valuable experience," admitted Lee. "I took that opportunity and ran with it. I’m at the point now that I’m enjoying the fruits of the labor.  

"I get to associate with pretty cool cats like Del Worsham and some of the contemporaries and I also get to come over and play with the cars that I saw as a youth and just enjoy it all."

Lee will quickly tell you the legends taught him some profound lessons; lessons he uses today. 

"Every one of them had something to offer," Lee said. "Segrini was a clean freak and organization guy but in my mind he just continued to develop what skills I already had.  McCullough’s intensity and aggressiveness taught me about tune up and several others along the way- they all offered something.  Hoover was a hustler.  He showed me how you have to get out there and talk the talk and whatever they want to hear you tell them to get to the bottom line to race Funny Cars.  Everybody offered something and I’ve taken a little bit of the fruits of everybody and made my salad."

Lee pulls double duty as driver for the Hustler AA/FC on the Heritage Series and as a crew chief for the Worsham Family's Funny Car currently driven by Jim Campbell.

"Two different worlds," Lee said. "The NHRA show is a very intense scene over there and it’s all about money unfortunately.  We work pretty hard over there but we don’t have the funding that John Force and Don Schumacher have and it takes a lot of the fun out of it and turns it into a job; one that we enjoy, of course. 

"The nostalgia car is a hoot.  It goes back into the times when it’s affordable and it’s fun.  Honestly, it’s two different worlds and it just balances out my life."

Lee has already begun the process of "paying it forward" by helping aspiring kids like himself. 

"I keep an eye out," said Lee. "There are a lot of good guys.  We really need good crewmembers and there are some of them that think they can get to the driver’s seat but it doesn’t work like that any longer. Unfortunately, it takes dollars.  The days of the young guy working hard and getting to drive a car are long gone I believe.  

"The Nostalgia scene offers that to some degree.  There are some good guys out here unfortunately that don’t have the funding, like Morgan Lucas and others like him that do have the funding from their families or their background. It’s kind of out of balance but there are some good guys out here and I always keep my eye out for them."

And, as Lee will attest, dreams do come true with the right direction.