For the weeks that this thread has been going it’s been interesting to read.
Alan was trying to do the right thing, I believe, with his original post, because he knew the rumors were actually causing some problems.
The whole al-Anabi rigs-without-lettering rumor is a perfect example of how these things can and sometimes do get out of hand.
We need to get real about this and similar sites. It’s not as if there are thousands of people on this board. I think it’s a few hundred at best, so what’s posted here, or what we talk about here isn’t really impacting a huge audience. Certainly rumors can hurt, but to suggest someone might lose a sponsor by something posted here is to suggest that the potential sponsor is so thin-skinned as to be paranoid to the max.
I’m not going to “prove” this in any way, but I do know for a fact that a “name” competitor who enjoyed a very long term relationship with a major sponsor often regaled me with stories of the hate mail the sponsor received after every single race. They weren’t fact-based attacks, but merely personal opinions being offered as facts. The sponsor wisely ignored them.
I know of other instances where fans absolutely made up stories about racers that they would then forward to the sponsor in the hopes that the sponsor would try to smooth things over with a free T-shirt. I know that’s happened because I’ve read a lot of those letters. They’re pathetic, with their intent being obvious from the first paragraph. Some have actually said things like, “If I had a So-And-So T-shirt I wouldn’t tell this to anyone else.” Pathetic.
Personally, I believe Virgil Hartman is incorrect in what he wrote about Bernstein’s retirement decision, but it’s his opinion and he’s certainly entitled to it.
Regarding his “big push by racers to expand the allowable number of cars per team up to the US Nationals, then it just went away,” is patently false. The push was coming from one individual, and one only. His proposal was soundly rejected by the PRO board of directors by a vote of 11 to 1. Even one of his own drivers voted against the concept. Two days later both resigned from the PRO board.
Regarding the statement that AJ doesn’t want to own a team, unless everything I’ve been told directly by the principals is untrue, AJ owns every stick of furniture, every connecting rod, every truck, every car, everything. He is not working for the Sheik. The Sheik is sponsoring the cars, but is not the team owner.
By the way, the guy who said I should stick to photography really got me. And to think I’ve been trying to become a published writer for the last 46 years!
I’ve been kind of surprised at the way Alan was attacked for his post when, in point of fact, his posts have often been among the most cogent ever seen on this board. Although many people perceive some major problem area between Alan and myself, it doesn’t appear to exist in the real world. Alan has sometimes objected to the things I’ve written about NHRA, but those objections were never from the company perspective, but from his perspective alone, and he had every right to object if he felt so inclined.
Alan not only does a credible job announcing for NHRA, he, like Bob Frey, seriously researches before he starts talking. We should respect that and his professionalism.
But hey, have you heard the one about Pat Minick AND Gary Dyer AND Ed Rachanski all coming out of retirement to run brand new versions of their 60s Chicagoland Funny Cars on the complete Full Throttle series trail this coming season? They’re determined to prove to today’s young punks that they still have what it takes.
And you heard here on Nitromater first!
Jon Asher
Senior Editor
CompetitionPlus.com