Mark Wright’s Blog

I love stories about perseverance and overcoming obstacles.  At Blue Sand as with any business, you face obstacles that have to be overcome.  Success never comes easy but it wouldn’t be worth it if it did.  I like to use sports analogies in business.  I think sports and business work hand in hand because in most cases you are part of a team.  I have used an example of a recent sports story as a form of motivation not only for myself but with the Blue Sand team as well.

For those of you who don’t know who AJ Allmendiner  is, the is a NASCAR driver.  Allmendinger’s story began a few years ago when he made the transition from open wheel racing to stock car racing.  He signed with Team Red Bull, a Toyota based organization making its initial foray into NASCAR.  Allmendinger had many obstacles to overcome.  He had a start-up team, new manufacturer and had never driven stock cars before.  It showed.  His first season was pretty dismal.  He failed to qualify for numerous races and when he did, the finishes were pretty bad.

He started last year with more of the same.  He failed to qualify for races and was replaced by veteran NASCAR driver Mike Skinner on a temporary basis.  Allmendinger could have sulked and pouted but he did the exact opposite.  He was at the track every week learning as much as he could from Skinner and the others.  When he got behind the wheel again, his improvement was dramatic.  He no longer had trouble qualifying for races and started to have some decent finishes. 

You would think things were sailing smooth for AJ but that wasn’t the case.  Red Bull had a hotshot driver named Scott Speed who formerly drove in Formula 1.  Speed was a developmental driver for Team Red Bull and was having some success in the ARCA Remax and Craftsman Truck Series.  Red Bull decided they wanted Speed to be their second driver, leaving AJ out in the cold. 

It would have been very easy for Allmendinger to go back to open wheel racing.  He was a hot commodity in that discipline and his services would have been valued.  Allmendinger continued to move forward.  He signed with Gillette Everham Racing to take over the #19 car driven by Elliot Sadler.  Sadler didn’t appreciate this and filed an injunction keeping him in the car.  Once again it looked like Allmendinger was out of luck.  He finally signed with Richard Petty Racing with only six races guaranteed.  In addition, he didn’t have a spot locked in for the Daytona 500 so he would have to qualify on speed.  He not only did that but finished 3^rd in the biggest race of the season.

His sponsorship was extended another six races.  Since then, Allmendinger has gained additional sponsorship which will take him through the first 26 races.  He is currently 20^th in points and doesn’t have to worry about qualifying on speed.  Speed on the other hand has already missed on race because he didn’t qualify and has not run very well.  He is dealing with the same problems Allmendinger did his rookie season.

Chances are Allmendinger will end up running the entire season.  If he continues to run as well as he has recently, he shouldn’t have to worry about the problems he’s overcome in the last three years.  However if he does, I’m sure he will continue to overcome and be successful.