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One of the greatest moments in John Elway's career and Denver Broncos history occurred on Jan. 11, 1987, in the AFC Championship against the Cleveland Browns.
It's a classic clutch performance at the top of every Bronco fan's memory - The Drive.
The unbelievable 98-yard drive with 5:02 left in the fourth quarter when Elway guided, scrambled, hit targets and drove the game to a tie and eventual 23-20 overtime win to send Denver to the Super Bowl.
Now Elway is adding new meaning to the word drive.
The 46-year-old NFL Hall of Famer has traded his football pads for a blue racing suit and jumped into a stock car to take on 11 other sports, music and entertainment stars in the ABC reality show "Fast Cars and Superstars: Gillette Young Guns Celebrity Race."
As it turns out, Elway can drive just as well in a race car as he did driving toward the Dawg Pound on that cold and gray winter day in 1987.
Elway took instructions from Kurt Busch, one of six pro racers assisting on the show and hit the track as the first in the series to race. He zoomed around the 1 1/2 mile track at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Charlotte, N.C. with a three-lap time of 1 minute, 50.23 seconds. His fastest lap speed was 148.64 miles per hour - just slightly faster than he threw that 5-yard rocket to Mark Jackson for the tying touchdown of The Drive.
It's a classic clutch performance at the top of every Bronco fan's memory - The Drive.
The unbelievable 98-yard drive with 5:02 left in the fourth quarter when Elway guided, scrambled, hit targets and drove the game to a tie and eventual 23-20 overtime win to send Denver to the Super Bowl.
Now Elway is adding new meaning to the word drive.
The 46-year-old NFL Hall of Famer has traded his football pads for a blue racing suit and jumped into a stock car to take on 11 other sports, music and entertainment stars in the ABC reality show "Fast Cars and Superstars: Gillette Young Guns Celebrity Race."
As it turns out, Elway can drive just as well in a race car as he did driving toward the Dawg Pound on that cold and gray winter day in 1987.
Elway took instructions from Kurt Busch, one of six pro racers assisting on the show and hit the track as the first in the series to race. He zoomed around the 1 1/2 mile track at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Charlotte, N.C. with a three-lap time of 1 minute, 50.23 seconds. His fastest lap speed was 148.64 miles per hour - just slightly faster than he threw that 5-yard rocket to Mark Jackson for the tying touchdown of The Drive.
Tennis great Serena Williams and pro surfer Hamilton Laird joined Elway as the first trio to race in the seven-part series that debuted Thursday night.
Laird edged Elway's time by almost a second and a half, while Williams came in at 2:05.17. Three racers will compete in each of the first four episodes, with the fastest two advancing to the next round.
So Williams is out and Elway and Laird are in. They won't be back on the show until episode five set to air June 17 at 6 p.m.
The series is paired up to run an hour before each game in the NBA Finals, which - with the Spurs' unrelenting defense - may only last for three more.
On Saturday, the second episode will hit the screen with skateboarding legend Tony Hawk, rodeo champion Ty Murray and actress Krista Allen - known for her role on "Days of Our Lives," "Baywatch" and the hilarious elevator scene with Jim Carrey in "Liar Liar."
The top two will advance again to take on Elway and Laird in the accuracy challenge involving hitting marked areas and stopping at a pit stop in a time trial where errors count as time deductions. An accuracy challenge? All I can say as an Elway and Bronco fan is: Bring it on.
I'll put my money on the man who threaded needles with passes and who's accuracy accounted for 51,475 career yards, nine Pro Bowl Selections, two Super Bowl Championships and one Super Bowl MVP award.
All he has to do is finish in the top three out of four racers to make it to the finale. On the other side of the bracket, the field of former Steelers' coach Bill Cowher, professional wrestling champion John Cena, NBA great John Salley, volleyball star Gabrielle Reece, musician Jewel and William "Captain Kirk" Shatner will also put forth its top three to compete in the finals.
The final race will be a longer race time trail with a pit stop testing speed, accuracy and acceleration.
If Elway is still in the running, I hope he can take the track last for another chance to perform under pressure, and even if it's not a comeback, he can still get one more win.
After all, there's always a way with John Elway.
Contact Joelle Milholm at 3849124 or jmilholm@postindependent.com.
Laird edged Elway's time by almost a second and a half, while Williams came in at 2:05.17. Three racers will compete in each of the first four episodes, with the fastest two advancing to the next round.
So Williams is out and Elway and Laird are in. They won't be back on the show until episode five set to air June 17 at 6 p.m.
The series is paired up to run an hour before each game in the NBA Finals, which - with the Spurs' unrelenting defense - may only last for three more.
On Saturday, the second episode will hit the screen with skateboarding legend Tony Hawk, rodeo champion Ty Murray and actress Krista Allen - known for her role on "Days of Our Lives," "Baywatch" and the hilarious elevator scene with Jim Carrey in "Liar Liar."
The top two will advance again to take on Elway and Laird in the accuracy challenge involving hitting marked areas and stopping at a pit stop in a time trial where errors count as time deductions. An accuracy challenge? All I can say as an Elway and Bronco fan is: Bring it on.
I'll put my money on the man who threaded needles with passes and who's accuracy accounted for 51,475 career yards, nine Pro Bowl Selections, two Super Bowl Championships and one Super Bowl MVP award.
All he has to do is finish in the top three out of four racers to make it to the finale. On the other side of the bracket, the field of former Steelers' coach Bill Cowher, professional wrestling champion John Cena, NBA great John Salley, volleyball star Gabrielle Reece, musician Jewel and William "Captain Kirk" Shatner will also put forth its top three to compete in the finals.
The final race will be a longer race time trail with a pit stop testing speed, accuracy and acceleration.
If Elway is still in the running, I hope he can take the track last for another chance to perform under pressure, and even if it's not a comeback, he can still get one more win.
After all, there's always a way with John Elway.
Contact Joelle Milholm at 3849124 or jmilholm@postindependent.com.
ABC's Fast Cars and Superstars: Gillette Young Guns Celebrity Race
• Staring John Elway as one of 12 sports, music and entertainment stars racing in stock cars in the reality TV show to see who can be the fastest.
• The 7-part series aired it's first episode on Thursday night and Elway advanced to the next round averaging a speed of 148 miles per hour. • See clips of Elway driving at www.gygtv.com. • Remaining TV Schedule: Saturday (June 10) at 6 p.m., Tuesday (June 12) at 6 p.m., Thursday (June 14) at 6 p.m., June 17 at 6 p.m., June 19 at 6 p.m. and June 24 at 5 p.m. |
