All the Right Reasons
Value And Values Go Hand In Hand For Rich Bailey And His Sponsors
By Matthew Brammer

In drag racing, professional teams come and go, all chasing the “all-mighty” sponsorship dollar -- drag racing's lifeblood for survival. Television coverage and return on investment are what today's sponsors look for when assessing the value of any motorsports program, and pro classes can offer value based on qualifying, television interviews, and personal appearances - but the sportsman racers, weekend warriors, and Friday-night bracket racers have a huge hurdle to overcome.

With the exception of the Top Alcohol classes, television coverage is nil for sportsman racers, and local press coverage is often limited to typical "local driver makes good"-type features. Occasional mentions on Torco's CompetitionPlus.com or other drag-racing specific publications brighten the overall lack of coverage for this huge group of teams. Although many sportsman drivers seek sponsors and tout fan attendance and over-the-road trailer visibility as major selling points, company sponsorship for teams at this level is generally limited to either a fan who loves racing and has the wherewithal to fund a driver's adrenaline habit, or a business owner who uses the guise of advertising to write off his hobby.

 
In this light, the success of Oregon-based Top Comp driver Rich Bailey is truly stellar. Bailey's dragster is known as the Capitol Auto Group Dragster and has been that company's sole entry in drag racing for years.
 
As Bailey puts it, "I'm in the sixth year of a one-year deal.”

His focus on fan interaction, community involvement, and an overriding passion for providing value to his sponsors is truly a model for teams aspiring to attain that elusive sponsorship.
 
According to Bailey, the key is actually very simple: Always look for places to add value and exposure for sponsors, and don't wait for them to come to you. If you aren't doing it or they have to ask, it's too late.

A decade of experience

"I've been racing for about ten years," Bailey said.  "I race in Top Comp -- a class that started up here in the Northwest, and it's basically a mixture of Top Sportsman door-cars and Top Dragsters that were IHRA. Basically, it's really-fast bracket racing. You can run anything in it - altereds, dragsters, even blown-alcohol funny cars. As long as it doesn't go any faster than 6.50 (seconds). The bump spot is usually around a 7.70 and it's a staggered start, handicapped race like bracket racing, but you do have to qualify to get in. It's the fastest 48 cars from there.

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"I started in nostalgia racing with a front-engine dragster, but I got out of that because I couldn't fit in the car any more,” Bailey laughed. “I remember being at Woodburn Dragstrip at the last big race of the year, and the tech guy looked at me and said, 'You know, you can barely fit in that car - you might want to think of doing something else next year.' I found a beautiful purple Super Comp dragster, so I went ahead and bought that car.

"I raced that for two years, but I got tired of that because every race was like "Groundhog Day" - we were running 8.90 all the time and looking for that .001 light - it just got boring for me. At that same time, they had just opened up the Top Comp class which was more appealing because we could basically go as fast as we could - so we switched to that class the next year.
 
While advancing through the classes, Bailey has been able to keep his sponsorship and strengthen his relationship with the companies working with him. Even after driving his dragster into a wall at 150 miles per hour a few years ago, Bailey has maintained a thriving relationship.

"We're on the sixth year of a one-year deal for Capitol Auto Group. I think the reason they are still with me - through thick and thin - is the value they get for their money,” he said.
 
"I think when you have sponsors, you just can't expect to run a beneficial program if you're not willing to do the public relations that's demanded of you.
 
"Capitol has never asked me to do any PR at all - in fact, when they first came on board, they didn't know what they were getting into. I thought we had a two-year deal, and they said, 'No, we want a one-year deal.' I knew that I only had one shot at this, so I threw in the kitchen sink so they would feel like they got a good return on their investment," he said.

Bailey's strategy is to hit the big races, and spend the rest of the time working in his community. He regularly visits schools, hospitals, hot rod 'cruise-ins,' and even is a guest on KBZY-1490's Auto Tech Talk.  
 
"They call me about once a year to come in and do a show, and I'm interviewed by the host for a whole hour," he said.

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Wheeling and dealing

"When I had the nostalgia dragster, I went to an oldies radio station and asked them to give me advertising air time. I knew I could sell that air time and package it with associate sponsor spots. I went to the promotions manager and asked if he was interested in sponsoring a car. He asked me to bring the car by.

"I drove the car over to the radio station and unloaded it - just like Kenny Bernstein did when he got the Budweiser deal. The promotions manager came out and saw the car. Then he went in and got the whole staff and showed them the car. Then the general manager came out to see it," Bailey continued.
 
"Now, he was a really tough sell. He looked at the car, then looked at me. He looked at the car again, and then looked at me again. Then he saw an RFC sticker on the car and said 'What's that?'
 
"I said, 'Well that's RFC - Racers for Christ. They hold chapel services at all the major races, and we're involved with them.'
 
"He smiled and said, 'Put the car in the trailer and come inside.'
 
"And that's how I got my first deal. An hour later I came out of his office with about $15,000 worth of radio time that I could sell to support the car. I went to business-to-business and sold sponsorship and radio ads," Bailey said.
 
Bailey's success grew from there as he progressed in the sport. He continued to add value and get in the public as much as possible. In Salem, Oregon, fans with any interest in cars or racing most likely have seen the Capitol Auto Group car and possibly even sat in the seat and had a picture taken. Bailey said it's amazing how much people love to touch and feel a race car.
 
Sharing his secrets

With such a successful program, other drivers frequently ask Bailey how he manages to keep Capitol and his other sponsors – Royal Purple and Supervinyl Signs, to name just a few – on board with him and his program. Because of his love for drag racing and his passion to continually improve, he freely offered advice for teams looking for sponsorship.

"My suggestion for any racer trying to grow his program is to build it up,” he said.  “Some guys will go out and try to get sponsorship and they don't even have a car.  I don't see how you can do that - it's hard enough to get sponsorship with a car. I don't think a company will look at them seriously.
 
"You've got to start with the basics, put together a good clean program and get the track time," he said.
 
"The second thing I tell people is 'You’ve got to get out there -- in the public. Add value to what the sponsors get. Do the things that will get you visible in the public,'" Bailey said. "Then you can approach sponsors and show them what you're doing and what you can offer.  Build it from the bottom up.
 
"Another thing, just because someone has spent some money on a fancy racing car doesn't mean that corporate America owes them anything. Like I said, I think it's all about what we as drivers and racers can do for them.  We're all competing against everything from Little League and Girl Scouts to Minor League Baseball for where companies spend their dollars. Value is what it's all about. We're in the business to make our sponsors happy," he said.
 
Changing his community - a fan for life
 
Bailey truly doesn't behave as though anyone owes him anything. He translates his sense of responsibility into acts of kindness in his community.

"We do a lot for kids with cancer, which is a passion of mine. I love to help those kids, because I know they need a boost. When we find out about a situation, we get a hold of their parents and invite them to be a member of our crew for a day. I offer a day at the races for them - giving them a shirt, letting them sit in the car, things like that. For me, it's the kind of thing that has changed my life."
 
With a pause to collect his thoughts, Bailey said, "I'll never forget Caleb.
 
"He was the first boy we ever invited out. He had a really rare form of cancer. He came out for a day and had a really good time. Later we found out that, although he had been in remission for a while, he took a turn for the worse.
 
"I took the dragster out to his house, put the car up on jack stands, started it up and put him in the cockpit. I let him rev up the engine and stuff. When he got out, you should have seen the smile on his face.
 
"Anyway, he knew that he was dying. He went into the house and brought out a baseball hat, his own baseball hat, and he gave it to me. He wanted me to have it.
 
"It gets even sadder," Bailey shared, almost in a whisper.
 
"Just before he passed away, he told his dad that he wanted to wear the racing t-shirt that I had given him in his death. And he did that.
 
"That really impacted me a lot. Here's a nine-year-old boy who is dying, he knows he is dying, and he wants to wear my t-shirt when he dies. It really blew me away.
 
"The only reason I even tell that story is to show you the impact we all can have," he said.

Bailey has put action into his words and his beliefs, and has touched many lives - from his "crew for a day" program or staging a rally and raising more than $5,000 for a family without medical insurance.
 
Although recognition isn't his motivation, he acknowledges that the things he has done has opened doors - including the door to the Governor of Oregon.
 
"I was invited along with Top Alcohol Dragster driver Kim Parker to a dinner at the Governor's mansion because of some of the things we'd been able to do," Bailey said.
 
"In the end, it all comes back to one thing. If you want a sponsor, you really need to get out and be a part of the community," he said.
 
Rich Bailey is living proof that a sportsman can get good sponsorship and make a difference in his community.   

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