I’m one of those who, in the interest of good corporate governance, had been saying for years NHRA needed to add “outsiders” to its Board of Directors. That is, people not dependent on checks mailed from Glendora, Calif., to pay the mortgage and feed the family. As opposed to the “insiders” like Tom Compton, Dallas Gardner, Peter Clifford and Graham Light.

That said, I’m sure I’m not the only one who said, “What?!” when Ken Clapp and Michael C. Cohen were elected to the Board last December.

I’ve never met Cohen, a Los Angeles attorney. But I’ve known Clapp a bit over the years, as a key NASCAR West Coast operative, and confidant of Bill France Sr. and Jr. Clapp -- an energetic 72 -- has owned as many as a dozen short tracks and says he’s promoted more than 8,000 days of events ranging from stocks to drags to AMA, World of Outlaws, Indy Cars and just about everything in-between.

Roger Burgess bought three new Solara bodies for Melanie Troxel's Funny Car team but then declined a proposal from Toyota's motorsports marketing department for a formal affiliation based on "cost benefit."
 
In a pre-season interview with CompetitionPlus.com presented by Attitude Apparel, Troxel said of the team's possible relationship with Toyota, "We're hoping it will grow into something" from a technical, marketing and publicity standpoint.
 
During a telephone interview Tuesday, owner Burgess explained his position.
 
"The Toyota agreement, like any manufacturer agreement, says if we do business with you and put our sticker on your car you can't put another manufacturer sticker on your car," Burgess said. "For the amount of money they were offering, or shall I say the amount of value they were offering, I could not commit to going exclusive and not talk to other manufacturers."

Sheryl Crow sang a song which suggested, “A change will do you good”.

As a lifelong drag racing fan and respecter of the technical attributes of a Pro Stock car and what it takes to race one competitively, I wonder if Crow’s song could or would be appropriate for the NHRA’s Pro Stock division.

After all, the last time a significant engine rules package was introduced was 30 years ago.

Following a 1981 season where the NHRA Pro Stocks were continually upstaged by their lesser known IHRA mountain motor brethren [i.e. Warren Johnson, Rickie Smith and Ronnie Sox] the sanctioning body brass decided the time had come for a change. Out was the pounds per cubic inch formula structure and in was the IHRA’s basic premise of big inch motors at 2,350 pounds.

Man, does NHRA miss Budweiser.

No, I don’t mean because of the free beer.

I mean because of the massive activation Bud bought and brought to its sponsorships of Kenny Bernstein and the sanctioning organization. As I explained in my January column, activation is what a sponsor does to capitalize on having its name on a car, race or series. I’m amplifying activation this month because it’s the essential Business of Racing word you need to understand to be a more knowledgeable fan.

Yes, my friends, those were the days. Those 30 record-setting years when the King of Beers helped make Bernstein the King of Speed. You knew the NHRA circus was coming to town because, if for no other reason, those colorful Bernstein cutout-standups would be positioned where the Budweiser was in supermarkets, convenience and liquor stores, bars and restaurants. And who can forget the TV commercials showing Bernstein’s Top Fueler launching off an aircraft carrier and Shuttle-like from Cape Canaveral?

 
Make this a New Year’s resolution:

Add the word “activation” to your drag racing vocabulary.  

It’s as important as “holeshot” and “horsepower” to understanding what makes drag racing work. In fact, it’s so important, I’ll focus two columns on activation: Some of the experts explain the basics and tell case studies this month; in February, I’ll  say why it’s something NHRA needs a lot more of – and I mean a LOT more.

Simply put, activation is what a sponsor does to capitalize on having its name on a car, race or series. A high-speed billboard is no longer enough to spread the news. The days of sports marketing being little more than slapping on a decal or sewing on a patch are as long-gone as the Cajun Nationals.

You don’t have to be a Larry Dixon, Top Fuel or even a drag racing fan to feel very bleeped-off right now.

You just have to have a basic sense of respect for the sport.

Jimmie Johnson was announced Wednesday as Driver of the Year, as determined by an 18-member national media panel. The five-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champion received 10 votes. John Force got seven nods and Kyle Busch one.

Dixon didn’t get a single vote. Not one.

This is a much bigger deal than Santa leaving NHRAers a lump of coal.

It is an outrage.
 

The green lights on NHRA’s competition Christmas Tree have gone out until February. Yet, it’s the time of year when we all see a lot of green, mainly in the form of holiday decorations or gift-buying money racing out of our wallets.

I’ve been thinking a lot about green in recent weeks. The news, and I admit, some post-Pomona mental wandering, have taken me down this road.

Let me start with what is the politically-correct green: As in, environmentally friendly. Most sanctioning organizations beyond the 1,000-foot/quarter-mile confines of Planet NHRA have taken up the cause, at least for the purposes of PR.
 

I've said it before and I'll say it again: Mike Dunn is the best racing analyst on TV.
 
Sorry, DW.
 
Somehow, Dunn's eye is sharp enough to see what went right -- or wrong -- on sub-four second runs. Before the replay. And that's watching a monitor in the ESPN production truck. That's correct: He never has a direct view of the track.
 
Dunn, with 22 NHRA National wins -- 10 Funny Car, 12 Top Fuel -- also tells it like it is. Remember last year's U.S. Nationals? Somewhere, Howard Cosell is smiling.
 
I sat down with Dunn last month in the ESPN compound at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and asked 10 questions. His answers have been edited slightly for length and clarity.
 

Almost 10 years ago, in another forum, I wrote a column about NHRA’s 50th anniversary commemoration. The banner headline:

“A Golden Opportunity, Up In Smoke”.

I asked this question:

“When’s the party going to start?”

I said that the promised season-long celebration of speed reminded me of a host who entices guests to attend a dinner with a fancy engraved invitation, then turns cheap by trying to pass off weak tea as bourbon. One Top Fuel champion whispered to me the 50th was a “flop.” When I expressed my disappointment to someone with multi-decades of experience dealing with the sanctioning group, the response was: "You're not surprised, are you?" 

Sometimes, as a child, I’d speak out maybe a little too strongly in family settings. It was, I guess a sign of what was to come later in life.

Anyway, when I stepped over the line, my grandmother would issue me a loving but stern directive - “Remember your place, young man.”

Her words raced back into my mind as I reported – and reflected – on NHRA’s maneuvering in response to NASCAR’s major schedule realignment for 2011.

Let’s be honest about it: What we have just witnessed was NASCAR reminding NHRA of its place on the U.S. motorsports map.