Thanks to Bobby and Lance for a story that allows the casual fan to see "backstage" of the individuals in our sport.
Lance is the person that I hired to teach Richard and I how to run a nitro car in the beginning, along with the sage advice of Joe Pisano. Lance did a good job for us but his addictions caused an early departure, but he has always remained a very good friend of our family. I didn't know how to help him, or if he even wanted help at that time.
One thing I would like to point out is that if you get high on drugs or alcohol tonight, it still affects your performance the next day. And I saw several drivers and crews in the old days that were under the influence while their car was on the track. There are a couple of teams today that are still struggling with performance consistency that haven't awakened to the fact that it is the partying/drinking/drug habits of their crewmembers.
Many teams have random drug testing for their crews now, and you can see the benefits to their team's performance and the quality of the personnel they have. I applaud NHRA's program and wish it was expanded to include more individuals.
Again, thanks Bobby and Lance.
