If public perception reigned, Bucky and Pat Austin might be better cast as "Clue" game characters, not drag racers. Who's plotting to wipe out whom? Perception has turned a spirited rivalry between uncle Bucky and nephew Pat into a death match. Not true, the two Austin drivers vehemently declare.

That's not to say Bucky hasn't wanted to whack Pat upside the head with the candlestick, or Pat hang Bucky by his feet with rope. Over the course of 15 years of racing against each other, there have been tense moments. But if you don't know the Austins, you may not know how competitive - and successful - they've been in drag racing.

Bucky, 50, is Walt Austin's younger brother. Walt introduced both Bucky, his sibling, and Pat and Mike, his sons, to the sport.

Pat, 35, is one of the National Hot Rod Association's winningest drivers. His 71 national event victories rank him No. 4 all-time among sportsman and pro racers. Nine-time Funny Car champion John Force is the leader with 86. Pat is also a four-time Federal-Mogul Funny Car circuit champion, and leads the points race this season.

Bucky can't match Pat's national event success, but his 200 victories in NHRA, American Hot Rod Association and open match races across the country are second to none around here. He won four NHRA Division 6 circuit titles in a row from 1992-96. In 1994, he became the first Northwest driver to be inducted into the sport's hall of fame.

There's no other family situation in the world of drag racing like this. "Hate each other? That's hogwash," said Gaines Markley, car-owner for former NHRA world champion Rob Bruins of Bremerton. "If you put those two on the starting line, there's no (love) given. Sure, a (heated rivalry) makes for good press and getting attention. But I've been to family functions. Both are there talking it up."

The two drivers share a common thread: Walt Austin. Starting at age 6, Bucky was a pit crew supporter for Walt when the older Austin competed at Shelton Raceway in the 1950s, and eventually became a crew member until age 16. Bucky made his first pass in Walt's gas dragster years later, and Bucky raced briefly for Walt in a few events until 1970, when Bucky left the sport to start a muffler-and-radiator business.

It happened to be the same kind of business Walt got into with his father in 1966 - a business Walt Austin inherited when his father died in 1968 and then built into a series of area franchises. Pat never raced with his father but was always in the pits when Walt ran. Pat debuted as a driver in 1984, and Walt was in his corner from day one.

"Walt, in his career has raised two proteges," Bucky said. "He taught them how to be successful." When Bucky broke away at age 19 to start his own business, the rumors of family disharmony surfaced. For nearly 25 years, Walt and Bucky went head-to-head in businesses until Walt sold his chain of stores in 1994. Bucky still owns 16 stores from Everett to Olympia. Pat Austin has started a company, too, called Pro-Max Performance Parts in south Tacoma.

In business terms, the Austins have been competing almost their entire adult lives. But the rumors of vile hatred for one another flared up when Bucky and Pat started racing in the same NHRA Federal-Mogul Funny Car class in 1984.

The Austins' mix created a stir: Both drivers were intense, sometimes turning into hot-heads amid controversy or defeat. They set up in the pits in separate camps, sometimes at opposite ends of the track. Rarely do the two drivers even chat between sessions because they're busy trying to devise a winning set-up for their cars.

Somehow, out of that, a nasty uncle-nephew rivalry was concocted as a primary storyline at regional and national events. "Announcers at the race track spread that rumor (that they hated each other)," Pat said. "We never said anything bad about each other."

Since 1984, the rumors have taken on a life of their own. Pat admits he's always reasoning with fans and drivers who approach him about the relationship with Bucky. "We've had our tense moments, just the same way as the businesses have been treated," Pat said. "It's competition. It's no different than having a one-on-one basketball game, except we're all grown up. It's never been bad blood."

Mike Ferderer, a Bonney Lake driver who's known the Austins since 1980, said Bucky and Pat, while having an uncle-nephew relationship, have treated it almost like a sibling relationship. "It's like they're brothers," Ferderer said, "and brothers, while they love one another, sometimes have the wildest encounters. They breathe competition."

And rumors breathe fire. Bucky has heard all the reasons why the public thinks he hates - or should hate - Pat and Walt. Walt's businesses were more successful. Pat has been perceived as the golden-boy racer and has had more national-event victories on the track, and even was an NHRA Top Fuel driver for a brief stint with full sponsorship.

"People don't understand the brother controversy, and instead turn it into a thing where Pat doesn't like Bucky, and Bucky doesn't like Pat," Bucky said. "We sometimes don't communicate well... but we're here to compete." That's what happens when two drivers are usually at the top of their divisional standings in the same class and occasionally hook up for elimination-round runs.

"The intensity in either camp can be interpreted wrong, and it has been," Walt Austin said. "(The rumors) are something you get tired of. It's a negative subject, and I don't like it." But they deal with it constantly. "Walt, Pat and I have had to earn everything. When you grow up in that environment... you learn to be a street fighter," Bucky said. "Nobody is there to hand you money, technology or a helping hand."

Bucky said some drivers in the NHRA Northwest circuit are jealous of the Austins' success and focus on fueling the perception of a family feud. The Austins have hoped the rumors would die, and they haven't.

Privately, they've dealt with it. One good thing has resulted from the so-called feud. The overblown, overhyped rivalry has brought the fans out, which has boosted the popularity of both drivers, "When we race each other," I said, "it's the best show in town."