Recently Frank Hawley, founder and instructor of Frank Hawley’s Drag Racing School, was invited to speak for a group of NASA employees of the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.

The offer to conduct a lecture was extended to Hawley after Chip Kroll, a NASA engineer attended a Super Class at Frank Hawley’s Drag Racing School’s Gainesville, Florida location in June.

In his free time, Kroll races the Friday Night Street program at Baytown, Texas and attended Frank Hawley’s class while working to acquire his NHRA license. After the lecture he decided the topic may be appropriate for colleagues at work and approached management about how to invite Hawley to talk to them.

Recently Frank Hawley, founder and instructor of Frank Hawley’s Drag Racing School, was invited to speak for a group of NASA employees of the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.

The offer to conduct a lecture was extended to Hawley after Chip Kroll, a NASA engineer attended a Super Class at Frank Hawley’s Drag Racing School’s Gainesville, Florida location in June.

In his free time, Kroll races the Friday Night Street program at Baytown, Texas and attended Frank Hawley’s class while working to acquire his NHRA license. After the lecture he decided the topic may be appropriate for colleagues at work and approached management about how to invite Hawley to talk to them.

Once the offer was extended to Hawley, he graciously accepted and plans were made for his trip to Texas.

On Thursday December 10th, Hawley spoke to a room of approximately ninety attendees made up mostly from the Avionics Systems Division.

 “To me, there are numerous similarities to the extremely fast decisions that need to be made by folks who hold highly technical positions and those of drag racers,” Hawley said. “Many of the same things I teach to my students during a Super Class were conveyed during my lecture for the NASA employees, with maybe a little more emphasis on items that would apply to the general population. Everyone deals with stress in their lives. Some, of course, have a lot more than others.  If you work in an environment where you may be challenged with making critical decisions it can help to have a better understanding of your own human performance capabilities and develop methods with which you can train yourself to handle these situations more efficiently."

The trip was not Hawley’s first time visiting a NASA facility, but it was his first time being invited for a speaking engagement.

"I am a huge fan of the space program and the folks that make it happen.  I have photos of the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo rockets in my office. On a clear day in Florida you can see the shuttle launch from the track in Gainesville.  We have even stopped classes for a few minutes to watch it. The chance to spend time with these folks at this facility was a great experience," said Hawley.

“I thoroughly enjoyed my entire visit to Johnson Space Center,” he added. “During my time there, I was pleased to be able to share with them the things I’ve learned throughout my career. It was a very enlightening experience for me and I sincerely look forward to any opportunities to return in the future.”

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