Camrie Caruso was game. She zipped on more than 35 pounds of full fire-protection gear, including air tanks, which is approximately one-third of her body weight.

She joined Pro Mod drivers Lyle Barnett, J.R. Gray, Jerico Balduf, and Mike Thielen Thursday for an afternoon of firefighting skill tests and challenges that Funny Car driver Chris King orchestrated. King is a Chicago firefighter (just like Top Alcohol Dragster driver Johnny Ahten is in Los Angeles), and he put them through their paces, including the challenging “up and over” drill. That consisted of sprinting up five flights of stairs, running across the top of the training facility, then dashing down five flights of stairs down to the main floor, all while carrying the tools of the trade with them.

After that exercise, which could exhaust even the fittest of racers, they received instruction about how to properly breach a door, and they took turns simulating pulling a 150-pound person from a fire. They had some taxing “fun” when they handled a pressurized fire hose and shot water across the training facility, but they also underwent a multi-stage obstacle course. What the group seemed to enjoy was the chance to use a variety of cutting and prying tools to open several automobiles in rescue fashion.

Surprisingly able to stand and smile after all that workout, the drivers posed for a photo with the famed Chicago skyline as a backdrop.

King said, “This has been a dream of mine for a long time, to bring my life as a firefighter to my life as a racer. Bringing these two together is something I've tried to do for a long time, but I'm glad we were finally able to pull it off. It's exciting. I got goosebumps just thinking about it. This is what I do day in and day out. I live for the fire department. I live for drag racing. To be able to combine these into one thing just makes my day. I love it. I really appreciate Camrie, Lyle, JR, Jerico and Mike taking the time to try this out.

“I think today opened their eyes a little bit to what firefighters do every day for the community and it gave them a different perspective on things,” said King, who will be making his 2023 Funny Car debut this weekend. “I hope they had fun, too.”

Caruso said it certainly raised her awareness. She called it “a cool experience that was definitely eye-opening to see what firefighters and first responders have to deal with and the challenges that they go through every day to save people's lives.

“It doesn’t matter what kind of fire it is, these guys are really getting a workout. The work they do is amazing. I really appreciate Chris setting this up, and I also want to thank all the Safety Safari staff for being at the track and being ready to help us. Wearing all the gear today showed me I might need to spend more time in the gym, but it was a great afternoon.” 

King said, “Everything I do, I do 100 percent. And whether it is racing or helping others, I want to give it my all. … I started racing motorcycles when I was 10, and I moved over to drag racing at Great Lakes Dragway. Going fast and competing has been in my blood my whole life. I have a lot of people to thank for helping me along the way, including Funny Car pros [and champions] like Frank Hawley and Jack Beckman.”  

This Funny Car program is one King, a Top Alcohol Funny Car driver, said he has been working on since his last race two years ago. He said, “I want to test myself against the best of the best, but I also want to make sure my operation goes A to B with quality parts and a professional-looking team. I have to thank Howard Cams, Competition Products, Red Line Oil, and Reid Rocker Arms for coming on board and helping make this happen. We plan on doing at least six, and maybe more, races if everything works out. We are trying to secure sponsors every day.”

King’s current plan is to race Norwalk, Denver, Topeka, Indianapolis and St. Louis.