Where?s Alan Reinhardt?

[Dan Bennett]

Originally Posted by reig3

Definitely miss Lewis Bloom announcing and stats!

This may look like I posted twice in a row, and I know we're getting a bit off track. But it's my chance to share something about Bob Frey. I spent a lot of time with most of the announcers during my days with DRC working in the tower.

I doubt that many people know, but Bob has the most extensive drag racing computer database I know of - miles ahead of anything else and something he's spent countless hours on. He has a massive literature collection that any facts had been harvested from, and he actually updated his program every day. Not monthly, or after a race was over. Daily.

And considering how slow the NHRA was to embrace technology, and the staff cuts after they did, I'd bet it's better than what they have.

A group of us would often go to dinner after the day ended and it was great conversation. But Bob was always the first to leave by a bunch. He'd go back to his room, update the database, and do extensive research for the next day's announcing. Yes, he had a great memory but a lot of info was from the hours of research and prep he'd done the night before.

I consider Louis a good friend, and there were few people I knew who were as motivated as he was/is. But unless he came up with his own after I left the tour, his information came from Bob's records since he sort of took him under his wing when the "kid" at the time first started annoucing. Not a slam on Bloom in any way since he was one of the best. More trying to shine a light on Bob.