Q&A

• Talk about how Oakley's eyewear and outerwear help you in racing. Well, Oakley a lot like racing is a trend setter, innovator, always coming up with something new and cool... and there are no optics around that I know of that even compare to Oakley. Including all the tests I have seen (HDOAAA®), for years I wore all of the competitors glasses. I ended up buying Oakley's well before they sponsored me because one they were cool, and two they are a great product. I never would go back because I fear if I did, I would end up cross-eyed. You see, the more I got to be involved with Oakley, the more I learned about their technology, and the tests they do with their optics. You know the doll at Oakley that shows the laser eyes test and displays how far off some of these are brands that you think are the latest, and are really harmful for your eyes. So, that, and I always admired people that wore Oakley shoes and clothing because they are so off the cuff and they are the trend setters and a couple of years later people are trying to copy that same look... and by then, Oakley is already onto the next level. That is one really neat thing about being associated with Oakley, that you are a leader in all that type of stuff.
• That is great, let's hear a little more about Jim's involvement, and his support of you and your team. I was three time world champion in top fuel, and switched to funny car and ran seven races and split with who I was working with and Jim stepped up and said, "No we are going to put you in a car, and help sponsor it." I knew Jim back from when I raced top fuel, and he was always a big supporter of Gary Scelzi, and had confidence in me. The neat thing about Jim, that most people don't realize, especially struggling threw a season like we have, after winning a world championship the year before, is that he has our back. Our team brought Jim his first win in funny car, his first world championship, and several world records, for speed and ET. But when your down is the most important time when you need support, and that is why I am glad Jim is not only my sponsor, but my friend because he is very supportive and very upbeat, and he understands that you have these hills and valleys. He is there for you; he doesn't kick you when you're down and definitely pats you on the back when you do have a good weekend. So, I don't run and hide from Jim whether I have had a good weekend or a bad one. It's always good to hear from him because he always has some positive input and that is a big thing out here.
• Gary tell us a little bit about the technology behind your car. Whenever you talk about drag racing, people automatically assume you have two equally prepared cars and you go out and race a quarter mile, and the fastest car wins. But there is so much that goes into these cars. All these things have to be in sink, so that your car can perform a 4.7 second run at 330 mph... because if your timing is just a tenth of a second off, it could make the difference between a record setting run and a tire smoking run. So there is a lot of technology, a lot of exotic materials that go into these cars.