I’ve got a great job. Really, I do. Everyday is a reminder of things that are important. Here’s what I mean; Last week I was doing an interview with USAC Sprint Car driver Mike Spencer. We were talking about Sprint Car driving tips. One of Mike’s tips was to find a mentor. Someone that you respect and want to learn from. The seriousness and sincerity in Mike’s voice as he talked about finding the right person to learn from was, quite frankly, a learning experience for me.

Keith Dorton stays busy with his shop and helping writers with technical publications, but you can still have access to him through technical conferences.

Keith Dorton stays busy with his shop and helping writers with technical publications, but you can still have access to him through technical conferences.

I get to talk to some of the brightest people in the automotive industry on a daily basis. That’s my job and it’s easy to take that for granted, especially if you are just doing a job. But…here’s the reality of the situation. Everyone reading this right now has the same opportunity to talk to the same talented people that all of us in the media do.

Sure, I make contact with Marketing Directors and Vice Presidents of Advertising often when researching an article. But more often than not, these leaders of industry direct me to their technical department for specifics on the parts or components. When I say Technical Department, what I mean is the people that staff the tech lines at the company. Yup, you heard right, the same people that answer the phones when you call the tech lines.

The people that are manning the tech lines are not the receptionist types, sitting behind a computer, asking what year, make and model car you have like the clerks at your local parts stores either. These are very talented racers and car builders that companies have brought in to take care of very specific technical questions that their customers have. Make no mistake about it; these people are very talented and we all have access to them. Anyone can get great technical advice for just the price of a phone call.

Don’t get me wrong, there are some of the biggest and brightest minds in the business that are harder to get in contact with. People like Doug Yates, Keith Dorton, Dr. Dean Hill, Ron Shaver and Gary Stanton. Understandably, these folks are a little more difficult to talk with because their time is rapidly absorbed with running businesses and developing new products…

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