I feel so sorry for Kenny Bernstein!

[Billy Nees]

NOT!! Poor Kenny apparently can't afford to race on his own dime anymore and the poor guy is going to have to pack it in if a new "Corporate Sponsor" can't be found! Many of you on here probably don't remember or know the great ironey in this.
Way back in the 80s Poor Kenny and Don Garlits were in a bit of a struggle over the direction that the PRO should be taking and it was "Corporate Kenny" vs "Car Guy Garlits" with the winner basically deciding which direction the future of Drag Racing was going to take. What the arguement all came down to was that Garlits wanted to make it a rule that you had to finish the race with the engine block that you qualified with and if you broke the block then you were done. His reasoning was very sound, if you had to save the block then you couldn't lean on it too hard which would save parts and money and keep the racing more affordable for all concerned. "Corporate Kenny" wanted to hang the cost and spend whatever it would take to win! Well, Kenny won control and costs went crazy and the rest is history. Fast forward to 2009 and the big corporations are leaving, Garlits is in a Stocker and NHRA wants the Sportsmen to bail them out. Oh yeah the Sportsmen, back in the 80s when the PRO and NHRA sided with "Corporate Kenny" NHRA decided to take the Sportsmens Proxey away so that we would have virtually no say at all in our sport! Now we get to bail them out. Now THAT'S ironey!

[Larry Munk]

Maybe POOR KENNY wants the one block rule now? Stuffs tight all over hope sportsman bailing with thimbles helps.LOL
BTW I live a couple of miles from AHB in Williamsburg and you can see the effects of INBEV at Busch Gardens already. Little things but it's starting.

[Tim H]

Yup, don't feel sorry for KB one little bit!!!

[X-TECH MAN]

Maybe its time for KB sr and KB jr to get a REAL job.

[John Leichtamer Jr]

Billy

I know one person that feels real bad about K.B. It's the guy that drives the "CHAP STICK sponsored Ford CJ. Mr. $210.00 extra Ken Miele."

Hammer

[bill dedman]

That's not a Cobra Jet.
It's a '67.
Cobra Jets didn't arrive until the '68 model year.
As I've said beffore, calling those '67 GT500 Shelbys "Cobra Jets" is like calling an SR-71 a Piper Cub...

Kinda moot now that the boost babies have arrived, though... LOL!

[Rich Biebel]

I wouldn't feel sorry for Kenny Bernstein if he lost his bankroll to Bernie Madeoff !!!........Would be perfect if he did. He's the King of Corporate SuckUps. Garlits is a true racing icon and hero. Bernstein is not even in the same league......I don't care how many races he's won or how many championships......I won a Budweiser sponsored race....couldn't even find a beer to drink! I drink Imports anyway..... Bud is not King of anything with me!

[Tom Goldman]

Well stated,Billy! ....I've always felt the same way about Bernstein, always the perfect corperate suckup during all those interview's. ......never showed the emotion of someone who was excited about winning,only satisfiying the corperate masters........Winston,for good or bad,at least gave a lot back to ALL the racers. ...Never saw Bud do much of anything for the unwashed masses of Sportsman racers ! ..........Oh well,I dont drink Bud anyway..................Tom

[Freddie]

I dont feel sorry for any of these "PRO" racers, it is because of the excesive ammount of $$$ that these racers need is why the sportsman racers are suffering. Used to be able to get oil, spark plugs or other small freebies from most of the companies out there, but not since the cost for them to be involved with the pro cars has skyrocketed. Yet it is the $$$ from the sportsman racer that is paying for them to race.

[treessavoy]

If you think Kenny is the only suck-up in drag racing you are extremely brain damaged...all the pro's are that way and if YOU have a significant sponsor you're a suck up too!

I have the pleasure to know Kenny and if you think he was born with a Bud in his mouth you couldn't be more wrong! Kenny worked his way up by racing on his own dime. He started out by running his own wrecker company in Dallas with him doing all the work until the business went big. He then sold that business and started Chelsea Street Pubs in Malls throughout the Southwest. He sold the business and went Funny Car racing on his own dime. After a race one weekend he trucked his entire rig up to the Bud plant so that when everyone came to work on mon. morning the whole plant saw his car and rig as they came to work...and that got him his sponsorship...and he worked his *** off to keep it!

While you are gloating you missed the point completely......if this can happen to one of the most successful race teams what do you think other sponsors are thinking now? Would your sponsor be financially better off if he didn't have to give you money?

This is the crack in the dam and I believe we're going to see a lot more of this....from top to bottom.

Jim