Tom Compton MIA? (2 Viewers)

[tx_trojan]

Asher's article on Comp Plus hits the nail on the head with regard to how this has been botched.

http://competitionplus.com/drag-rac...mentary-theres-a-rudderless-ship-in-our-world

 

[I was NITRO BREATH]

When you wait that long, it appears to be more of a cover up. If within the week he left they had said he was taking a leave to deal with a family health issue then the vast majority of the speculation wouldn't be happening.

It's kinda like apologizing after you've been caught, it doesn't mean as much

oh man, i think you are so wrong. if within the week he left they said he was taking a leave all the know it alls on this forum would have been spewing the same crap

 

[FABMAN]

Not a big fan, NHRA is not handling the issue very well, and if it was creating problems with the operation of organization then I could see the concern but no body probably would not have missed him if it wasn't reported, so I say leave it be let him take care of what ever it is and move on.

 

[PJ]

oh man, i think you are so wrong. if within the week he left they said he was taking a leave all the know it alls on this forum would have been spewing the same crap

Yes there would be a faction that would still complain or wonder if it was family health or go back to the DUI issue but it's better to be ahead of the game and try to steer the conversation rather than waiting like this. Now they have little control over how this looks and anything they do looks shady then.

Beyond what we meager fans think, how does this look to companies that look to partner with the NHRA on sponsorships (team or sanctioning body level)? It does not come across as professional or trustworthy.

 

[Huge]

Yes there would be a faction that would still complain or wonder if it was family health or go back to the DUI issue but it's better to be ahead of the game and try to steer the conversation rather than waiting like this. Now they have little control over how this looks and anything they do looks shady then.

Beyond what we meager fans think, how does this look to companies that look to partner with the NHRA on sponsorships (team or sanctioning body level)? It does not come across as professional or trustworthy.

I think a company would be pretty impressed when one of the leaders of any organization could take off for a subtantial amount of time and yet the wheels keep on turning without a glitch. Most all successful companies have a backup plan in place.

 

[stitcherbob]

....or the Greek wins a national event.......

here's hoping for both

 

[Jon Asher]

I haven't posted here in a long time, but this thread caught my attention for obvious reasons. Just to avoid any misunderstanding, let me be clear in stating that no one at CompetitionPus.com is trying to dig out and expose any personal situation that might be impacting Mr. Compton. The whole point here is NHRA's abject failure in handling this situation, from their lack of putting out any official notification (there's been NO release of any kind, despite what's been written on a few posts in this thread), to their failure to let their business partners -- the tracks, sponsors, etc. -- know what's going on. No one's trying to embarrass Mr. Compton or his family. That isn't the point at all. This is purely and solely a business situation, one in which one side (NHRA) has failed to inform the other (tracks, sponsors, etc.) about what's going, all this while rumors run rampant over the Net. Those rumors have the ability to strain and damage both business and personal relationships, whereas some even private communication to the involved parties might have held down those rumors. Rumors are not good for business. As I wrote in our post on CompetitionPlus.com, NHRA is actually business partners with the tracks and sponsors, and failing to keep them abreast of what's really going on can put a severe strain on those "partnerships."

Jon Asher
Senior Editor
CompetitionPlus.com

 

[Jon Asher]

One more thing: My sincere hope is to personally witness a national event victory by The Greek before I retire.

Jon Asher

 

[I was NITRO BREATH]

I haven't posted here in a long time, but this thread caught my attention for obvious reasons. Just to avoid any misunderstanding, let me be clear in stating that no one at CompetitionPus.com is trying to dig out and expose any personal situation that might be impacting Mr. Compton. The whole point here is NHRA's abject failure in handling this situation, from their lack of putting out any official notification (there's been NO release of any kind, despite what's been written on a few posts in this thread), to their failure to let their business partners -- the tracks, sponsors, etc. -- know what's going on. No one's trying to embarrass Mr. Compton or his family. That isn't the point at all. This is purely and solely a business situation, one in which one side (NHRA) has failed to inform the other (tracks, sponsors, etc.) about what's going, all this while rumors run rampant over the Net. Those rumors have the ability to strain and damage both business and personal relationships, whereas some even private communication to the involved parties might have held down those rumors. Rumors are not good for business. As I wrote in our post on CompetitionPlus.com, NHRA is actually business partners with the tracks and sponsors, and failing to keep them abreast of what's really going on can put a severe strain on those "partnerships."

Jon Asher
Senior Editor
CompetitionPlus.com

I haven't posted here in a long time, but this thread caught my attention for obvious reasons. Just to avoid any misunderstanding, let me be clear in stating that no one at CompetitionPus.com is trying to dig out and expose any personal situation that might be impacting Mr. Compton. The whole point here is NHRA's abject failure in handling this situation, from their lack of putting out any official notification (there's been NO release of any kind, despite what's been written on a few posts in this thread), to their failure to let their business partners -- the tracks, sponsors, etc. -- know what's going on. No one's trying to embarrass Mr. Compton or his family. That isn't the point at all. This is purely and solely a business situation, one in which one side (NHRA) has failed to inform the other (tracks, sponsors, etc.) about what's going, all this while rumors run rampant over the Net. Those rumors have the ability to strain and damage both business and personal relationships, whereas some even private communication to the involved parties might have held down those rumors. Rumors are not good for business. As I wrote in our post on CompetitionPlus.com, NHRA is actually business partners with the tracks and sponsors, and failing to keep them abreast of what's really going on can put a severe strain on those "partnerships."

Jon Asher
Senior Editor
CompetitionPlus.com

"Not trying to expose any personal situation" Really ??? You're not trying to embarrass anyone ?? Well you've done a pretty good job of both. If your motives are so pure why start the ball rolling?? Oh, because NHRA has failed to apprise its "partners" of the situation. How is that any of your business?? Poor excuses indeed from a writer from an internet magazine (??) that is slightly higher on the credibility scale than DRO. Faint praise guys but that's all I can think of after this BS post

 

[SundayNiagara]

"Not trying to expose any personal situation" Really ??? You're not trying to embarrass anyone ?? Well you've done a pretty good job of both. If your motives are so pure why start the ball rolling?? Oh, because NHRA has failed to apprise its "partners" of the situation. How is that any of your business?? Poor excuses indeed from a writer from an internet magazine (??) that is slightly higher on the credibility scale than DRO. Faint praise guys but that's all I can think of after this BS post

I wish there were more reporters like Jon Asher. Peter DeLorenzo of the http://www.autoextremist.com comes to mind.

 

[stitcherbob]

One more thing: My sincere hope is to personally witness a national event victory by The Greek before I retire.

Jon Asher

Having followed both Jon's and the Greek's careers with much interest, I have to ponder....who will retire first?

...a man in his mid nineties can skydive, usually strapped to the back of a younger jumper......can one also possibly run 3's at 300's in the quarter? Maybe strapped to Larry Dixon or Antron Brown?

 

[Nitro Cane]

He is in the 405 racing with those clowns on Screet Outlaws ...

 

[Nick Name]

He is in the 405 racing with those clowns on Screet Outlaws ...

But I think he got caught, so they pull his NHRA license for a year.

 

[Jon Asher]

Barry:

I know this is a waste of bandwidth, but I'll nevertheless respond to your rant.

"Not trying to embarrass anyone?" Not in the slightest. I have no reason to do something like that, and neither does anyone else affiliated with CompetitionPlus.

"...why start the ball rolling?" Our site wasn't the first to post something on the situation with NHRA. In fact, our first post on the subject was far from inflammatory, but merely outlined what we knew at the time, which was very little, but the rumors had to be addressed.

Regarding NHRA's partners and "How is that any of your business?" It's our business because the business of drag racing is our business. Further, as journalists we have a responsibility to report the facts about our industry, regardless of whose toes we might be stepping on. If CompetitionPlus.com limited its reporting to an endless string of elapsed times and speeds we would not be doing our readers justice.

Is that what you want to read about? Only the so-called "good news?" That's not reality.

Based on your statement that seeks to limit what is our business and what isn't, it's but a small step to reach the point where you might begin complaining about our having run the Dixon crash sequence from Gainesville, or the Lamattina crash video from Australia because, you might argue, such exposure is bad for drag racing. That's the kind of complaint that journalists heard from NHRA in decades gone by. Every time any photographer had a crash 'n burn photo published they could count on hearing from NHRA, usually in the person of Wally Parks himself, with complaints about how such photos were damaging to the sport.

If those photos and videos were ultimately damaging, you'd never know it by the way ESPN cuts up every crash sequence and provides it via satellite to any station that wants to run it. If those videos were ultimately damaging Diamond P Sports wouldn't have released that string of top-selling tapes titled "And They Walked Away."

One more thing. What I wrote appeared as an editorial, not a news or feature story. Those words were my opinion, and mine alone.

No one from CompetitionPlus.com is out to "get" or "expose" anyone or any thing regarding NHRA. But it's worth considering that, in your world, where this topic is nobody's business, things like the Watergate break-in that ultimately resulted in the resignation of a sitting president should not have been reported on. In your world the illegal domestic spying by the NSA shouldn't be exposed to the public. In your world the gambling on NBA games by imprisoned former referee Tim Donaghy shouldn't have been exposed. In your world politicians accepting campaign money from the very corporations they may be passing laws about shouldn't be talked about.

That's a pretty darn insular world, and not one that's realistic.

Jon Asher
Senior Editor
CompetitionPlus.com

 

[SundayNiagara]

Barry:

I know this is a waste of bandwidth, but I'll nevertheless respond to your rant.

"Not trying to embarrass anyone?" Not in the slightest. I have no reason to do something like that, and neither does anyone else affiliated with CompetitionPlus.

"...why start the ball rolling?" Our site wasn't the first to post something on the situation with NHRA. In fact, our first post on the subject was far from inflammatory, but merely outlined what we knew at the time, which was very little, but the rumors had to be addressed.

Regarding NHRA's partners and "How is that any of your business?" It's our business because the business of drag racing is our business. Further, as journalists we have a responsibility to report the facts about our industry, regardless of whose toes we might be stepping on. If CompetitionPlus.com limited its reporting to an endless string of elapsed times and speeds we would not be doing our readers justice.

Is that what you want to read about? Only the so-called "good news?" That's not reality.

Based on your statement that seeks to limit what is our business and what isn't, it's but a small step to reach the point where you might begin complaining about our having run the Dixon crash sequence from Gainesville, or the Lamattina crash video from Australia because, you might argue, such exposure is bad for drag racing. That's the kind of complaint that journalists heard from NHRA in decades gone by. Every time any photographer had a crash 'n burn photo published they could count on hearing from NHRA, usually in the person of Wally Parks himself, with complaints about how such photos were damaging to the sport.

If those photos and videos were ultimately damaging, you'd never know it by the way ESPN cuts up every crash sequence and provides it via satellite to any station that wants to run it. If those videos were ultimately damaging Diamond P Sports wouldn't have released that string of top-selling tapes titled "And They Walked Away."

One more thing. What I wrote appeared as an editorial, not a news or feature story. Those words were my opinion, and mine alone.

No one from CompetitionPlus.com is out to "get" or "expose" anyone or any thing regarding NHRA. But it's worth considering that, in your world, where this topic is nobody's business, things like the Watergate break-in that ultimately resulted in the resignation of a sitting president should not have been reported on. In your world the illegal domestic spying by the NSA shouldn't be exposed to the public. In your world the gambling on NBA games by imprisoned former referee Tim Donaghy shouldn't have been exposed. In your world politicians accepting campaign money from the very corporations they may be passing laws about shouldn't be talked about.

That's a pretty darn insular world, and not one that's realistic.

Jon Asher
Senior Editor
CompetitionPlus.com

Post of the year!

 

[nick name]

Post of the year!

What was that saying about a battle of wits?

I'm like Asher, out of the shadows for a moment.

 

[parrotwhisperer]

I am not trying to start anything but it is possible NHRA considered all of the points made by Jon Asher and others months ago and decided silence and no comment was their best option. It appears that may be the case. Considering their relationship with advertisers, banks, and all of the entities it takes to run a business that is probably not good. Maybe NHRA has told their business partners something they have not made public but it seems doubtful all of those partners would keep a secret this long.
Again, not trying to start something but does anyone know the California law/judge's options for repeat offenders?
I am not one who thinks Compton has been sacked based on job performance. Something else is going on and it is something NHRA has determined they will remain silent on. NHRA should rethink that strategy now. Even if the absense is related to something private some public statement is needed.

 

[SundayNiagara]

Drag racing needs more reporters who are more concerned with reporting on the sport than getting a Christmas card from Glendora.

 

[Jon Asher]

Steve Allred:

You make an interesting suggestion, but your scenario seems somewhat questionable only because of the timing. Mr. Compton was at the Gators, and dropped out of sight the week following. I know for a fact that at least a couple of business things that he'd planned on being a part of the week after Gainesville didn't happen, but the people involved in those situations were notified by NHRA that Tom wouldn't be available. No explanation was offered, but the people involved weren't just left hanging.

I know of no NHRA business partners who have received any sort of communication from NHRA regarding this situation other than the useless "respecting Tom's privacy" emails that have gone out to an extremely limited number of people. Believe me, we've been asking and no one's been told anything.

I also know that, as of last week, some of those business partners had been actively seeking information from NHRA, and their phone calls weren't being returned.

I also think you're correct: Something else IS going on, but what that is remains a secret.

The whole point here is the lack of communication between NHRA and its business partners, and nothing more. No one intends to embarrass Mr. Compton and/or NHRA. There are thousands of people whose livelihood is dependent upon a successful NHRA, and CompetitionPlus.com certainly falls within that category to a great extent. We are not business partners with NHRA, however. We sponsor no programs, no race cars and no events related to NHRA, so the organization has no obligation of any kind to keep us informed about anything. But the same doesn't hold true with their "real" business partners, and many of them are asking important, pertinent questions, questions that NHRA should have long since answered with a press release containing factual information about what's really going on here.

Years ago the largest Oklahoma City newspaper exposed the mayhem that was taking place in and around the football dormitory at the University of Oklahoma. If memory serves me here I think the charges leveled by the newspaper included a failure by the police to adequately report criminal activities which went so far as to include drug-dealing out in the open by some scholarship players right inside the dorm. The outcry was immediate and loud, and a number of the newspaper's advertisers actually cancelled their accounts because they were outraged that the newspaper would report on transgressions at their hallowed university. Put another way, those advertisers didn't want there to ever be a negative word written about the school and its teams, but that's not how modern journalism works. Everything is fair game when it comes to reporting -- as long as the story is accurate and comes from more than a single source.

Within a couple of weeks the outrage had died away and the advertisers returned to buying space in the paper because they not only needed to reach the newspaper's readers, their potential customers, they also realized that by exposing the craziness that was taking place the newspaper was actually forcing the university to face the problem head-on and work to correct it, which they did.

Back in the day Babe Ruth was a national hero who was revered. It wasn't until many years later that we learned he was, in point of fact, a heavy-drinking, non-stop womanizer. Ty Cobb was another revered player whose rabid anti-Semitism and homophobia didn't become known until decades later, when his intimates were no longer afraid to speak up. Hell, we didn't know Mickey Mantle had a serious drinking problem until he was gone.

When I first started to write about drag racing I did the same thing everyone else did, and never reported on anything negative. The most negative things we'd talk about were someone's blown engine. We never dug into what was going on behind the scenes, never wrote about the sponsors who left drag racing vowing to never return, never talked about the employee who got railroaded out of a job unfairly. Things are different now. Everything is fair game as long as the story is factual and can be backed up. We aren't seeking scandal, but if it's there and we can prove it, we're going to report it.

Now, that's for articles and feature stories, not editorials, which are the opinion on the writer and have a far different level of expectation from the reader, who should know and understand that these are personal opinions.

Don't be angry at anyone or any entity that's asking pointed questions of NHRA. Rather, direct your ire towards NHRA itself for having failed to address whatever this situation is head-on in the first place, which would have stopped the rumors, stopped the speculation and, depending on the circumstances, might have rallied everyone around NHRA in support.

Jon Asher
Senior Editor
CompetitionPlus.com

 

[nwspeedshots]

What's wrong with heavy-drinking womanizers...?