Adelphi student, 19, a drag-racing champ

The Facebook requests flood Vincent Nobile's in-box almost daily, appeals from fellow college students and fans eager to connect with the 19-year-old drag-racing phenom.

He may be only a rookie, but he already is a star in the drag-racing world.

The full-time Adelphi University student is a two-time Pro Stock champion just five months into the season, becoming the youngest driver in National Hot Rod Association history to take home the coveted "Wally Trophy" -- a 12-pound statue in the likeness of the organization's late founder Wally Parks -- at Houston's Royal Purple Raceway in May. The trophy is awarded to winners of NHRA national events.

"No one wants to race him right now," said driver Rodger Brogdon, 50, who lost to Nobile in the final round in Houston. "You know if you get him now, you've gotten a bad draw."

The Dix Hills resident won his second title last Sunday when he defeated Larry Morgan in the final round at Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio.

Morgan said the teenager not only is "a lock" to win rookie of the year, but has a good chance of being named the Pro Stock world champion at season's end.

"Right now, he's the Michael Jordan of drag racing as far as I'm concerned," Morgan, 56, said in an interview. "He's doing a fabulous job and besides that, he's just a pleasant, good kid. He is the guy right now. I think the guy will win the championship if he keeps doing what he's doing."

After last weekend's race, Nobile has appeared in the final elimination round in five of his previous 10 races -- a rarity for someone with so little experience.

"I've seen a lot of kids with a lot of talent," said former driver and current ESPN analyst Mike Dunn. "But the key with Vincent is his composure. He blocks everything out and that's what you need to win."

Nobile is in third place in the Full Throttle Drag Racing Series standings, just 61 points out of first, heading into the 14th annual O'Reilly Auto Parts Route 66 NHRA Nationals July 7 to 10 in Joliet, Ill.

Second-generation racer

"Vincent is a breath of fresh air," said fellow driver Allen Johnson, 51, who defeated Nobile at the NHRA SuperNationals in Englishtown, N.J., in June. "He's got a really good attitude, he's having fun and he's got a lot of talent. . . . He's actually one of the top five out there every week, so the potential is there to do great this year."

NHRA officials agree.

"He is very personable, very respectful, one that would represent our sport at the highest levels," said Graham Light, NHRA's senior vice president of racing operations. "I think he's got the potential to be a big star."

There was little doubt that Nobile, the son of a drag racer, would share a passion for race cars.

Vincent's father, John Nobile, a champion in the International Hot Rod Association series, said Vincent would climb into the driver's seat of his father's purple Pro Stock car as a boy and envision his own runs down the drag strip. He'd generate the low hum of churning engine parts deep in his throat and mimic the subtle gear shifts and RPM fluctuations he witnessed again and again. By age 12, he couldn't help but think he could do it, too.

"It helps that he's a second-generation driver," Dunn said. "As a kid you're watching run after run after run. A kid like Vincent, who loves the sport, absorbs all of that."

'Adrenaline rush'

Vincent has tried to explain the thrill of drag racing to his friends, but "it's indescribable," he said. "Seriously."

"It's a major adrenaline rush. It literally puts you in the seat with so much pressure, even if you wanted to sit up, you couldn't. You're strapped in pretty tight. And if you weren't, it wouldn't much matter."

The former Half Hollow Hills East shortstop got his racing license just two years ago -- the same year he was issued a New York State driver's license. But that didn't discourage Mountain View Racing owner Nick Mitsos from taking a chance on the teenager. Mitsos, a longtime friend of the Nobiles, had his choice of half a dozen racers who had experience and the backing of sponsors after parting ways with his previous driver last year.

"I guess I look like a genius," said Mitsos, 67. "I knew Vincent was good, but I didn't know how good."

According to the NHRA, Pro Stock race winners earn $25,000 per event during the season and the world champion gets a $250,000 bonus. However, given Nobile's contract, any money he earns during the season goes to Mountain View Racing. He and his parents agreed Vincent should forgo the money in exchange for the opportunity to drive a high-performance vehicle this early in his career.

"They said, 'We're going to take a chance on Vincent,' so of course we're not going to say, 'Well you have to pay my son,' because Vincent had zero experience," said his mother, Sue.

But Mitsos said if Nobile wins the championship, "big bonuses will be involved."

Juggling a full course load took some getting used to, the business management major said. He arranged his four-day class schedule this past semester so he could leave Adelphi by 3 p.m. on Thursdays, drive home to pick up his luggage and then head to the airport. Fridays and Saturdays are qualifying days and the fastest 16 cars qualify for one-round elimination races on Sunday during the 22-race season. Though it's difficult at times to balance college and a professional racing career, Nobile said, drag racing will remain a hobby until he earns his degree.

"The plan is to do both," Nobile said. "I'd like to eventually make racing an occupation, a full-time job. But I don't think my mom would ever let me drop out of school."

With Marcus Henry

Vincent Nobile Bio

AGE: 19

HOMETOWN: Melville; now lives in Dix Hills

HIGH SCHOOL: Half Hollow Hills East; graduated in 2010

COLLEGE: Full-time freshman at Adelphi, studying business management

SPONSOR/CAR: Mountain View Racing/Dodge Avenger

FAMILY: Father John, 53, drag racer for more than 30 years, member of son's crew, owns trucking company with wife, Sue; sister, Nicole, 22, recently graduated from Providence College

Fast facts about drag racing

Full Throttle Drag Racing Series is NHRA's top division. It consists of four classes of vehicles: Top Fuel Dragster, Funny Car, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle. Long Island's Vincent Nobile races in the Pro Stock division.

Pro Stock cars are referred to as "factory hot rods" because they resemble production-based automobiles. These cars are considered some of the most technologically advanced machines in drag racing and produce about 1,200 horsepower, approximately eight times that of the average street vehicle.

After qualifying, vehicles race two at a time, resulting in one winner from each pair. Winners continue in tournament-style competition until one remains.

An official drag race is either a quarter mile (1,320 feet) or an eighth mile (660 feet).

A device known as the Christmas Tree starts the race.

When the green light flashes, the driver can go, but if he jumps the gun, a red light flashes and he is disqualified.

The time it takes the driver to react to the green light is measured in thousandths of a second. A perfect reaction time is .000.

Races are measured by two performance standards: start-to-finish elapsed time (ET) and speed. The first car to cross the finish line is generally the winner.

According to the NHRA website, "the most popular form of drag racing is a handicapped form of competition known as E.T. bracket racing. In this form of racing, two vehicles of varying performance potentials can race on a potentially even basis. The anticipated elapsed times for each vehicle are compared, and the slower car receives a head start equal to the difference of the two. With this system, virtually any two vehicles can be paired in a competitive drag race."