GENERALLY SPEAKING

It's Sunday night and I was just going through some Burk's Blast's since the first of the year. Just wanted to tell you how much I enjoy your insight, humor and "putting it to someone" when they have it coming.

Keep up the good work!

Thanks,

Scott Quick
ex GM / VP of Operations
Brainerd International Raceway

MORE CONTINGENCY

Hi Jok.

I just finished reading all of the letters DRR received regarding your editorial about the contingency program requirements. For several years I worked for the TRW Replacement Parts Division and helped the Motorsports Department representative, George Sedlack, at all the NHRA events on the West Coast. The company's product verification procedure at that time was to check every car in the staging lanes prior to the first round, not to "Police" the racers but to quantify the effectiveness of the program. We couldn't care less if the decals were on the eventual winning car during the first round just so that they were on the car during the last round. From an advertising perspective the only two cars we cared about was the winner and the runner-up.

One NHRA race in particular was a little amusing, Albert Padron (RIP) won the Super Gas title at Pomona, (Can't remember if it was the Winternationals or the World Finals events), driving a Vega station wagon that didn't have a single decal on it until the final two rounds.

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In fact, it didn't have any decals on the right side of the car, even while the NHRA photographers were taking pictures in the winners circle. At that time there were no grandstands on the right side of the track and Albert made every effort to be certain that no one walked around to the right side of the car. To all his friends that donated decals to Albert for those last two rounds....well done guys.

I've worked both sides of this issue and firmly believe that if you purchase the product, if you install and use that product and if you have the decal on WHEN it counts, and that's the final round there is no reason to deny contingency payment, and there is absolutely no reason to deny payment for other products that were properly displayed as outlined by the IHRA or NHRA Contingency Program guidelines. The essence of these programs is have racers buy your products and for you to be able to tell the world that they WON using your product.

I know many racers that fully complied to these standards and still never, as in NEVER, received contingency payment. At a time when car counts are dropping and it's becoming far more expensive to compete enforcing "decal slapping" penalties is not a good idea.

Bob Mendenhall
Lakeside, CA

CONTINGENCY FOLLOW-UP

I wonder if the companies that he was accused of "slapping on" used any winners photos for their advertising. Better yet maybe all publications should black-out any decal that decided not to pay this (or any) racer and only the sponsors that paid should be visible in the photos. Wonder how they would like that?

Tom Drake