NHRA Interview: Tom Compton
By NHRA Communications
Tom Compton is only the third president in NHRA's
51-year history. Compton took the reigns of the company in January 2000
and has taken the sport of drag racing to a new level. Compton has led the
way in securing landmark agreements in television and sponsorship for
NHRA. The 2003 season will mark the third year in a five-year, exclusive
agreement with ESPN and its networks that will bring more than 200 hours
of quarter-mile action to fans everywhere. It is also the second year with
POWERade as the series sponsor. Coca-Cola's sport drink became just the
second series sponsor in NHRA history prior to the 2002 season. In this
Q&A session, Compton talks about what the NHRA has done well, what
needs to be done and why the NHRA continues to grow.
Q: What is the most exciting thing about the 2003
season?
COMPTON: Well, it's POWERade and Coca-Cola's second year
with NHRA. We signed the deal with them in December 2001 and in many
respects, last year was a learning year. We were introducing our sport to
The Coca-Cola Company and the bottling group, Coca-Cola Enterprises all
around the country and in all of our race markets. I think one of the most
exciting things about 2003 is the fact is that they are now very aware of
NHRA and they are excited and enthusiastic about what the NHRA is doing
and what they can do to help sell more POWERade and Coke. I think you are
really going to know we're in town this year more than ever through their
market activation program. This program includes in-store displays, hang
tags on bottles, etc. It's a very exciting time because we have never had
that kind of support before.
Q: What did you think about the first year of POWERade's
involvement and what do you expect from them in 2003?
COMPTON: Obviously you couldn't pick a company that
would be higher on our wish list of companies to partner with than
Coca-Cola. It was almost a dream come true to partner with a brand like
Coca-Cola. It was the first time Coca-Cola has taken one of its products
and made it the series sponsor of any sport in the history of the company.
The fact that they believed in NHRA drag racing enough to enter as the
series sponsor for the first time in the company's history is tremendous.
It was rewarding and exciting to travel around the country with various
people from The Coca-Cola Company, put them on the starting line, take
them into John Force's pit or Kenny Bernstein or Don Prudhomme's pit
areas. It was great to see them light up and understand the connection,
excitement, and unique nature of our sport. We could see them get hooked.
The fact that they like it, the fact that they see the opportunity points
to good things in the future in terms of a long-term relationship. We have
the most loyal fans and our fans will support our sponsors.
Q: How do you think ESPN and its networks are doing as
television partners?
COMPTON: There is the ESPN broadcast agreement and then
there is the ESPN Regional Television (ERT) production agreement and both
are part of ESPN. Starting with the production quality (ERT), the actual
show itself, I don't think anyone could argue that last year produced the
best shows ever. From all the new technology they brought to the party,
the number of cameras, to the story lines, to the pit interviews,
everything they did was much more compelling. It was interesting to watch
because people that aren't familiar with the sport can connect with it as
well as people who are very familiar with the sport. I give ERT incredibly
high marks. They have made great strides in improving how our sport is
conveyed on television and they have done a tremendous job. On the
broadcast side, we are obviously thrilled. We can't think of a better
situation than to be exclusively on the world's greatest sports network
with four to five hours of NHRA POWERade drag racing programming every
weekend. Both ESPN and NHRA are so happy with the relationship that we are
in the process of talking about going beyond the initial five-year term.
Q: What would you change, if anything?
COMPTON: There is room for improvement. We were
pre-empted a number of times last year due to other delayed live
programming that preceded our shows. That is the reality of live versus
same-day television. We feel that given the nature of our sport, same-day
is better for us than going live. We will from time to time be pre-empted
for live programming but that needs to be kept to a minimum. They have
agreed to work with us on that and I believe they are serious. For
instance, at the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals in 2003, the show leading up to
our U.S. Nationals finals show on Monday will be a baseball game. But the
baseball game will be either in California where it doesn't rain in the
summer or in a dome stadium. These are the types of things they are
willing to work on with us. We are confident and comfortable that we are
going to be able to minimize unfortunate circumstances. We are also
looking to ESPN to promote us more. We are on SportsCenter sometimes,
which we never were before. We are on RPM 2Night all the time now, versus
infrequently in the past. We've also seen those 'Tomorrow on ESPN' ads
where it shows they will have a baseball game, etc., and then they will
have the 'We've got NHRA POWERade drag racing on at 5 p.m.' They do that
now to some extent but we are looking for more. We want more presence on
SportsCenter, more promo spots talking about the upcoming races and the
fact that they have the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series exclusively on
ESPN networks. We are real happy with the success of our weekly magazine
show, NHRA 2Day. In 2001, our viewership ratings were up 147 percent. We
were up an additional 40 percent in 2002. The inventory for the shows is
essentially sold out for the second year in a row. That shows a lot of
strength.
Q: Why are fans taking a bigger interest in motorsports
in general, and specifically the NHRA?
COMPTON: There are a number of factors that are
impacting that. First of all, motorsports is now extremely popular in the
United States and NASCAR has led the way. That has been a good thing. It
has brought motorsports into the mainstream. NASCAR has been covered just
like baseball, football, and basketball. However, all of motorsports gets
more attention because of it. Secondly, within motorsports, we have the
most unique form of racing for two reasons. We have the most unbelievable
machines and the fastest cars on the planet. The power and the speed on
the track are unparalleled and it just blows you away. We also have the
pit pass where every race ticket includes total access to the professional
and sportsman pits. You can get up close to the stars and cars of the
sport and you can't do that anywhere else. It is equally important as
watching the race itself. The way you experience our events is completely
different. Few sit in the stands for three hours and go home. It is a
whole day, it is interesting, it is never boring, and you can do things
that you can't do anywhere else and see things that you can't see anywhere
else. We also are enjoying more exposure than any other time in our
history. We have a great television package and now we have a great series
sponsor.
Q: You introduced a three-year plan when you first took
the job. Have you accomplished all of those goals?
COMPTON: We've accomplished probably more than I thought
we would. Anytime you put a plan like that together it is directional and
is there to provide focus to make sure you are working on the right
things. You need to avoid any attempt to be all things to all people
because that is a bad strategy. You have to focus on a few things and get
them right.
I think one of our biggest accomplishments was letting
the race community, meaning the race teams, the tracks, our sponsors, and
everyone else involved, know that we were all in this together and that we
wanted to work with them, not against them. We all have a stake in the
growth of the sport. I think that more than ever, the racing community and
the NHRA are working very closely and the results are obvious. We have
been tremendously successful. I can attribute most of that success to the
fact that we are more on the same page than ever before, we support each
other, we understand the big picture. That is a major change from how
things have sometimes been perceived to have operated in the past.
We had an awareness problem and we still do to some
extent, but we have made great strides to start to go down a path to
correct it. We have consolidated our TV and gone from a system that was
very fragmented to an exclusive agreement with ESPN. We have a new series
sponsor now that is about as mainstream as you can get, which obviously
helps awareness. We've refocused on our grassroots and sportsman programs
and member tracks and all of the people that make drag racing possible
around the country. One of the biggest strengths of our company and NHRA
drag racing is the incredible grassroots programs as well as the presence
we have at approximately 140 member tracks around the country. The
programs allow people to enjoy the sport of drag racing on a national
basis. We are more geographically dispersed than any other form of
motorsports, from Seattle to Florida; New York to LA; and everywhere in
between, and that is a tremendous strength. We have hundreds of thousands
of people who race at some level, at NHRA member tracks all around the
country each year. That is something we can never lose sight of because we
wouldn't have the success at the national event level if it weren't for
the strength of our sportsman and grassroots programs and our member track
network. Wally Parks created the NHRA more than 50 years ago to combat
illegal street racing and provide a safer, controlled, organized, and
competitive place for people to race. We can never lose sight of that.
Q: What do you want to accomplish next?
COMPTON: Going forward, we still have to work on the
awareness with The Coca-Cola Company and our other partners. One of the
things we are going to do is work with our partners on what they can do
with their NHRA affiliation, not only to help them sell more product, but
also promote the NHRA. We need to use the NHRA association more
effectively to help their businesses, which will, in turn, help the
awareness of the NHRA. We can't do this ourselves.
We know a very high percentage of new people that come
out to our events for the first time are blown away and enjoy the
spectacle and want to come back. So the challenge is to get people to come
out for the first time. We are going to work with our partners to run
programs that get that message out and make the relationship with the NHRA
even more productive. That is one of our greatest opportunities and a
primary focus going forward.
Q: What do you think about having the 90-year-old
founder, Wally Parks, as one of your resources?
COMPTON: We have a living legend right here. If you want
to know why something is the way it is, why he organized NHRA the way he
did, or what our mission is, he can tell you directly. He's a tremendous
resource. I look up to Wally and it is really rewarding to see the man who
created the sport over 50 years ago tell our team that we are going in the
right direction, that he supports what we are trying to do. It is an honor
to work for him. I really can't put into words how much it means to be
able to work with a person like Wally, someone I respect so much. I don't
know of many people who have had the opportunity to work for someone who
really cares about what they are doing and cares so much that they are
still doing it at 90 years old! Most people have been retired for 30 years
at that point. It's his absolute passion.
Q: What are the chances of NHRA expanding its schedule?
COMPTON: As I mentioned earlier, we are, by far, the
most geographically dispersed motorsport out there. Given the way Wally
started the company with the Safety Safari helping to organize car clubs
and working with local law enforcement to combat illegal street racing all
across the country, we were national from the start. We are currently in
most of the major markets in the country. With that said, we are not
looking to expand the schedule anytime soon because we want the economics
of racing to stay within reach of as many race teams as possible. I was
told 10 years ago that 18 was the limit and the next year we added a 19th
race. Now here we are at 23. We might go to 24 if the right situation came
about, but we are not really in a hurry to increase the number of national
events.
Q: The Summit Sport Compact Series is expanding rapidly.
How important is that series for the NHRA?
COMPTON: It is very important. It represents a new wave
of young drag racers. Wally would tell you it is very similar to what was
going on in the late '40s and early '50s when he created the NHRA. That is
what we are about, grassroots racing. We are about providing a safer,
organized, competitive place for people to enjoy this great sport. There
are a growing number of people that really enjoy the sport compact cars.
These types of cars make up a significant percentage of what is on the
road today. These young drivers are just as passionate about what they do
as the hot rodders were in the '50s. This is just the next stage. It is
here to stay and will continue to grow. There is a tremendous amount of
sponsor interest out there. We were fortunate enough to be able to put
together a great TV package for the sport compact drivers to help with
crucial exposure for the sponsors. We think NHRA ultimately will be known
as the premier sport compact drag racing sanctioning body as we are with
all other forms of drag racing.
Q: The 2003 season will feature some added racing
elements. Why does the NHRA feel the need to add more features to the
national events?
COMPTON: We are always trying to put on the best show
possible. We want our fans to walk away saying, 'That was the best
motorsports show I have ever seen in my life.' But, having said that, each
of the new features is a little different. The Extreme Rush (Chicago 1,
Dallas) is an opportunity for the sport compact racers to compete and
showcase what they do, their sponsors and the series at an NHRA POWERade
drag racing event. It is a natural way to expose the series and this
unique type of racing to the masses. We would be remiss if we didn't take
advantage of that opportunity. Understand, however, we are not planning to
combine these two series. They are distinctly different.
The Nitro Harley situation is really completely
different. The Nitro Harleys is exciting. Harley-Davidson came to us and
asked us what we would be willing to do with the Nitro Harleys. Our Pro
Stock Bike category is one of the four premier POWERade categories and
always will be. But we thought, for added entertainment, at some of the
venues where the Pro Stock Bikes aren't competing, we'd showcase the Nitro
Harleys at three events. We are not creating a new series with the
Harleys.
Q: Will there be any expansion into new categories in
the future?
COMPTON: To some extent, the national events are a
collection of just about everything in drag racing. But when it comes to
whether we are going to expand the POWERade series at the professional
level beyond the four categories, the answer is absolutely not. Everyone
is vying for television exposure and you can divide up the pie only so
many ways. That doesn't mean we won't have other types of vehicles racing
at national events in the future, like the Pro Mod exhibition series. We
have a separate television show on ESPN2 for the Pro Mods, so they are not
diluting the television exposure that the POWERade teams share. For the
professional teams to secure adequate sponsorship, they need exposure. Our
plan is to keep the four POWERade categories the way they are. Those will
be the focus of our national event race shows on ESPN. For other things
that we do, to the extent that it is warranted, we will have additional
ESPN television coverage, like the NHRA Summit Sport Compact Series, like
the NHRA Lucas Oil Sportsman Series, like the NHRA AMS Pro Mod exhibition,
or the NHRA Extreme Rush.
Q: Kenny Bernstein retired in November and Shirley
Muldowney is running her farewell tour in 2003. What do you think about
the two losses?
COMPTON: It's true Kenny Bernstein won't be behind the
wheel and certainly he was one of the most successful drivers in NHRA
history. But he is not going away. His son Brandon will be in the race car
and Kenny will be out there at each and every race promoting the Budweiser
Top Fuel dragster and the NHRA. I'm real happy about that. I think Brandon
is going to be a great star too. He's a wonderful young man, he is an
excellent driver, he has a lot of personality, and I think he'll do very,
very well. I don't think we are losing anyone, I think we are gaining
Brandon. When it comes to Shirley, she is still an icon. We are thrilled
when she competes at an NHRA national event because fans line up outside
her pit to get her autograph and it's longer than any other line out
there. Simply put, the fans love her. I have a feeling, however, she will
find a way to continue to be part of the sport as well.
Q: Is the NHRA worried about losing stars and
experiencing a lack of talent to fill the gap?
COMPTON: I love it when someone says, 'Isn't NHRA
getting old?' Because the answer is 'not at all.' If you look at our
demographics, we are younger than ever before and getting younger every
day. We have a strong contingent of personable and talented young drivers.
They are very exciting to watch on and off the race track. In fact, we
probably have the best group of younger drivers than at anytime in modern
history. NHRA's fan base is also getting younger, which is another very
attractive part of the sport. When sponsors see the demographics of our
fans and drivers, they see an unparalleled mix of gender, ethnicity, and
age. This sport is getting more popular, it is growing and the competition
is getting tougher and tougher. Our Pro Stock class has photo-finish races
every week and the top 16 qualifiers out of an average field of nearly 40
cars are separated by a couple hundredths-of-a-second. This sport is as
healthy as it has ever been and I guarantee that you are going to hear
more and more about NHRA drag racing as we continue to be discovered as
the most incredible and unique form of motorsports on the planet.
Q: Do you have additional goals for yourself as the
president of the NHRA?
COMPTON: Of course. I have already mentioned some of the
business goals. One of the things you have to do in my position, however,
is establish credibility. People have to believe that you are giving them
the straight scoop and then you have to back it up with actual
performance. We have been fortunate enough to do both. Each year, as time
goes on, there will be new challenges that will be facing us that we are
going to have to deal with. The only way you can have confidence that you
are going to be able to successfully tackle these challenges is to know
that you have a great team. At NHRA, we have a great group of people. We
have about 230 full-time employees that are very dedicated and love what
they do. We have more than 3,000 part-time workers that help us run our
events around the country. We are fortunate to have such dedicated and
talented people. I don't think anyone can compete with the talent we have
in terms of putting on great racing and great shows. We are a dynamic
organization that is always looking for ways to improve upon our great
product and we are not afraid to try new things. The future has never been
brighter.
NHRA Communications