From Karting to Goodyear Racing: Jay Chapman on Career, Tires & Grassroots Motorsports

In this episode of Late To Grid, Bill sits down with Jay Chapman of Goodyear Racing to unpack a motorsports career built from karting roots, NASCAR weekends, Grand-Am adventures, MX-5 Cup development, and now supporting racers across vintage and grassroots programs.

Jay shares stories of growing up in a karting family, wrenching and volunteering his way into professional motorsports, and eventually designing and supporting racing tires used across SCCA, NASA, vintage series, and more. He also explains how Goodyear develops products for everything from sprint racing to endurance competition — and what grassroots racers get wrong most often about tires.

Whether you’re a racer, a builder, or just love the industry, this episode is packed with practical insights, human moments, and amazing behind-the-scenes stories.

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Thanks for listening and taking an interest in growing grassroots racing. The Late To Grid podcast shares the stories and inspiration that help listeners along their motorsports journey.

Find all episodes on the Atomic Autosports website.

Chapters

• 0:00 How Jay Chapman got into motorsports
• 0:59 Growing up in karting & racing with his dad
• 2:19 Jay’s favorite karting memories at Mid-Ohio
• 3:52 Talking about his kids and whether they’ll race
• 4:45 Transitioning from karting to NASA HPDE
• 8:45 Biggest lesson learned from karting (and applying it to life)
• 12:04 Life on the road with a pro racing team
• 16:16 How networking shaped Jay’s motorsports career
• 22:02 Goodyear’s involvement with CSM and Solo Nationals
• 41:25 The #1 mistake grassroots racers make with tires

Transcript

0:27

There are a lot of fun ways to be involved in our sport, and you can make a career of it too. And that's exactly what we talk about with Jay Chapman from Goodyear Racing. Plus, we talk about tires. Let's throw the green flag on this episode. You. But as I mentioned, Jay Chapman in the Atomic Auto Sports Studio, it's great to have you on the late, great podcast, Jay. Oh, thank you for having me. It's great to be. Yeah. So when there's a story about how I met a guest, I like to share it. And Jay and I got together because of a really cool project. It was the Goodyear Club spec Mustang build that happened between Strano Parts, SCCA, Goodyear racing, Atomic Auto Sports was involved. There's a couple other companies involved as well, but it turns out that I had met Jay's father years before this, when my daughter race cards and Rick Chapman. Jay, your dad, very well known in the karting community, especially the vintage karting community. And, I'm going to guess you've got, inundated, with racing cards. That's how you got started in this crazy sport. Yes. Yeah. Started at a very young age. Started with, 1972. Margie links with McCullough, 49, on it and just kept going every year since, I've really backed off in the last few years since having a couple boys, but, it's, karting was great for us. Some of the best times at the track with my dad were, you know, going to Mid-Ohio. Daytona. Just traveling around Grand. Just really thankful for karting. It's where a lot of people get their start, and it's just, I call it the purest form of motorsports. I still love hoppin in a car. When was the last time you had the opportunity to, to drive a cart? Oh. Well, the first time recently, just a it was a rental cart, but it was at Quaker City's new, kart track. I was fortunate enough to have my boys take their first laps solo there, so we did a little lead follow, which was the highlight of the day. Being on track with my boys, five and nine was amazing. So that, that's the last time I was in a cart, competitively. We were in Mid-Ohio a couple of years ago, and that's when I set up, and fist and fought and had a great time. That's awesome. What the. What was your favorite kart track to run it. It's still Mid-Ohio. You know, I'm watching what's going on in our industry with, with a facility just down the road from us. And I watch, you know, good friends of mine such as yourself, Dan Dennehy, and watch what you guys are going through. And I couldn't imagine losing Mid-Ohio. You know, it's, been there, the history behind it. And I'm such a fan of, the gentlemen of the sport and what, you know, what Jim Truman did to build that and the red roofs that are there now. It's it's incredible. I couldn't imagine going through what what's happening. But, on a positive note, the time that's been spent with family and friends at Mid-Ohio is like no other. And being able to jump in my truck at any time and take my boys, it's great. Yeah. So you think the boys are going to, follow in the footsteps of car racing? One out of two. I think we all will is really into it, and that's great. The older one, Why? He's enjoying it. I think he's, his passions, other places, and that's great. I appreciate that very much. The younger one is flat out, though. He is. He's going to be the wild one. And and that's great. So he really enjoys it. He loves working on it. And he knows what a Goodyear's Goodyear sign is. And we're driving on the road and he knows, you know, loves to watch racing. And it doesn't matter what kind of sport. You know, what kind of racing's on. He's he's with me watching. Oh that's great. So I am going to come back to karting here in a little bit. But let's talk about your progression from karting into cars. You then went with NASA right as your first step on track. All right. What did you do with NASA? As, as life changed and just started progressing and looking to move out of karting into cars. I had a friend who had an Acura, said, let's go. You know, why don't we go to, Putnam Park? So did the HPD with that and enjoyed it. It was great. And at the time, my dad worked for General Motors, not at Lordstown. And it's kind of the liaison between the plant and the program teams and said, you know, let's see where we can go from here. Then we started going to great and races. So, so did a very, very short time in NASA, but actually was a tire, you know, did tire work for the team while I was there and kind of just enjoyed getting the atmosphere, you know. Sure. So on on track activities, have you been behind the wheel competitively in the last couple of years? Just the club spec Mustang. So. And then, one time racing the car. So I've enjoyed transitioning into the business of motorsport. I do miss the driving, but when we're at the track and seeing the success of our customers, even the success of the club spec Mustang just being there and going through the effort that everybody involved went through to have a successful, fun weekend, that's kind of a win in my book. Oh, yeah. I you know, I love this quote. I always I tend to say it on every episode. Sharon Capelli, a previous guest guy, we raced with, says, you have to find your joy in motorsports and that could be behind the wheel. It could be, you know, with a clipboard at the track, helping out. Whatever the case may be, if we find that joy, we're going to love doing what we love in motorsports. So you mentioned you miss it. What do you miss about, being behind the wheel? Probably the serenity of of just hearing the engine and just driving and nothing in your head. That part I really miss. As as, you know, in a go kart, when you're at full tilt and it's got the harmonic sound to a to cycle that that's that's unlike anything else. So I do miss that. I miss that, competitiveness, the just, you know, the end of the race and being tired and is, you know, whether it was a great day or a bad day, it was still a good day. So, yeah, and it's that aspect of it. Yeah. There's there's nothing like putting the helmet on. And I like to say when the helmet goes on, the rest of the world goes away. Gabby 100% focused on what you're doing with that helmet on. And it's just you're one with the cart, just dancing it around the track. It's it's if, folks if you haven't done it, listen to what you're saying. It is super enjoyable. Even if even if you're just in a indoor rental cart, go do it. It's a blast. Yeah, there is nothing. And being able to put your phone down and just being able to put the helmet on and, you know, just blocking out the world, just that just and just knowing that it's corner to corner and you know, lap time and just focusing on that. It's definitely calling. Oh, absolutely. Before we go from karting and some of the other things into NASA and your work in motorsports, is there something that you learned through karting that you apply to life and perhaps even your career today? A lesson, that idea, advice? I think it's more the organization, the, the work that has to go in to the race or the event or the weekend, whatever it is that you're going towards, the work that goes into it pays off once you get there, whether it's a trade show, whether it's a race event, whether it's the classic Mustang project, whether anything that you put yourself in to to be successful, it's all about the work ahead of time. The work, once you're there, should look effortless. Oh man, I like that. That's great advice. Awesome advice. All right, let's talk about your progression in motorsports. Coming out of karting into NASCAR. And then was the stuff with the Grand Am series and Team Salen. Was that next? Kind of, you know, we started doing the NASCAR and stuff with my dad out of Lordstown and being kind of the connection to the motorsports with the, the S-Class, with the cobalt, at least producing cobalt, some Lordstown Cobalt teams and kind of got to know some and go to the track and, you know, got me a volunteer position and, you know, did a weekend warrior event with, team based out of California with Tom lapper, who still races in SCCA and, got to do Deadman underneath the fire, you know, underneath the fuel rig and help out for six hours at Vir. And that was my first experience, you know, it was, doing it for free and sweating and, fire suit and, you know, but it was cool. It was I was in I was part of the action and and that was awesome to be on a team, to be involved. And then that relationship kind of evolved. We, he said, you know, why don't you come help in another event? So we went out to Utah Motorsports Park, and ironically, right before that in the Akron Beacon Journal, there was a help wanted ad from a race team in North Canton. So. So that Tom knew the automakers and was kind enough to introduce me out in Utah. And that evolved from there. No kidding. Wow. So, so for the younger folks watching. Yes. Help wanted ads. You used to be in the newspaper. We didn't have indeed. And ZipRecruiter at Google Joe's, all this stuff. Yes. So no LinkedIn and and all of that. Yeah. So so yeah. Exactly. And and that relationship, I'm very thankful to the automaker family. I enjoy the fact that I was, trained and, and worked underneath the gentlemen of the sport, you know, Lil Wayne. Joe, Chris, that family, what they the lessons that they taught me in motorsports still pay off today. So motorsports is such a new, unique business. Unlike a lot of businesses out there, their ability to teach a lot of, you know, how to go about things. And which was you very thankful. Yeah. Do you think you would have followed a career in motorsports if, your father wasn't so involved? I don't think so. I don't know, yeah. You know, I've done it for so long. You know, everybody says I don't know anything else. And I really don't. There's, you know, I've. I've made the transition into a corporate position here, which is great, but it's motorsports is such a unique, different business to be in that I don't think, I don't know, it's all I do, really, is all I know. So I appreciate it. And I'm very thankful to be able to make a career out of it. Oh, yeah. So let's talk about the what you did with Team sailing. A bit. And the first question I have with that is, what's it like being on the road with a brand and team traveling from, you know, city to city, track to track, dealing with what happens at the track and trying to prepare for the next weekend. What was that like? It was it was, a life lessons left and right. From the first event down in Daytona, where we only were able to do a few laps and unfortunately, we lost an engine. So that was my first 24 hours experience was probably 24 laps, I believe it was, which was very unfortunate to the highest of highs of us, winning at Laguna Seca and, our old thing, Cameron Wayne driving. That, was was awesome. But, you know, we had we had other things that happened on the road. You know, you go back to back from like, Montreal to New York, and you'd set up in a hotel parking lot and watch the team prep cars, or you have incidences like a trailer that came off of a hauler one time and went downhill and, having to adapt and, and deal with, with any type of problem like that. It was it was cool. It was very, very surreal at times. And for the rotary fans listening and watching, that was the last time that Laguna Seca cycle, when you mentioned was the last time a rotary engine won a professional race. Was it? That's, That's what I understand. Yes. Very interesting. Yeah. And if that's not right, then my sources are wrong. But I was unaware of that. But very cool little bit of history there. And put that on the resume. Yeah. Yeah. No. Very cool. And then, then after team sailing, you moved, into MX, five. I did, I moved into the Mk5 program and, very, very thankful for Glenn Long, who was a great, Freedom Autosport was a great partner, team talent. We worked together on a lot of, at track activities. We shared pit boxes for many years. And that relationship as as Grand Dam and IMSa came together and and things changed. I was able to transition my career into going down to the MX five Cup program at its inception, being one of the first four brought into that project. And, make the move to North Carolina, move, long road racing from Raleigh, North Carolina, into Statesville, North Carolina, picking up an old NASCAR shot from Travis Carter. Where in the original Jimmy Spencer Smoke and Joe's team was based out of which was, a historic effort in itself to see some of the history there and, watch that program where it is now and the success that it's been that it's had over the years. That is, wow, the stories probably from that, that area of the country in that move. How did the opportunity come together with Amex five Cup? Glenn and I were sitting in tech and we had the Porsche Caymans at the time, and he was with the Amex five Cup program, and we were both sitting in tech. I forget where we were and believe it was leave. It was Sebring, I think. But we were both in in tech and, you know, things had just changed a lot inside of team sailing. I mean, IMSa and and Grand Slams merger as you know, changed the the landscape of motorsports. And some teams didn't became much more manufacturer based. And just just over all the change and just the opportunity present itself, you let us let me know. Hey, there's something coming up we want to talk about it. And so we chatted about it and it just was good timing for both of us. That's one thing that seems to weave itself into my conversations with folks on the podcast is networking, talking to people, building relationships. And at the time, you don't think you're networking, but you're developing a relationship with someone that you know could potentially open doors. And that's exactly what happened here. Wow. To be one of the first for a part of that program and look where it is today. Why do you think that series is so popular? You know, the thing, the guys that put the effort into the car, I was doing more of the logistics of moving companies and doing some help with the, with the development. But really, there was two gentlemen that were very, very, very invested in that and really put the effort in and really knew how to build a racecar. And those who built a real, proper racecar from a great platform that wasn't presenting, the effort then that went behind the parts department and logistics of moving, you know, how to move vehicle to get vehicles and, and the quality control and everything like that. It wasn't easy. Every day, but there was a lot of effort, a lot of hard choices and decisions made that produced a great car, a great platform for racing. You know, the long family, still are involved in motorsports, which is great. The programs now with sports performance down in Daytona area, this the first gentleman, Andreas, that's still been there since its inception. And, it's still they're still producing great products and, you know, putting on great races. Wow. And then was it, after MX five Cup that you moved to Goodyear? Was there anything in between? There's a brief stay with Anderson Promotions, with the, who is the sanctioning body over Indy Lights and Road to Indy and Amex? I've got so got a little bit of the sanctioning body side of it that, you know, sort of learn how that operation went. But then the opportunity presented itself to come back to Akron, and that was, hard to pass up, you know. Yeah. Where was Anderson Promotions? Where were they located? They're based out of Florida. But, with the being sanctioning body, everything at it was, you know, way before Covid. But to be remote and to do what we were doing was, you know, how everything went once Covid hit and we it had just it was normal business, you know, at the time I had a garage and go GoPro Motorplex and I would do meetings from, from there all the time and just kind of worked out, you know, we did a little stint of helping go go Pro Motorplex and some parts and did some karting there and had a garage and just kind of did what I could do to make things meet. Yeah, it's kind of led into doing the flying for Anderson. And then that just led into the opening with Goodyear. Oh my gosh, that's cool. I didn't realize that you had, a garage at GoPro, which is now, trackhouse. Right track. Yep. Yeah. Yeah. Friend. Through grand and through long road racing, through Freedom Autosport. He was a driver. His life was changing. We happened to know the right people, and it's a let's transition. That's to me why he's leaving. So I was able to get in there with, you know, being down there. And then as I transitioned out of one car to another car, I was able to help with, I don't want to say production, but assembly of the new fleet that came in and then that fleet had some challenges. So we were able to help satis, you know, correct some of the problems with the carts and keep them alive for a while as they transitioned into even another brand of cart. So just, just kind of helped make things mean at the right time and gave me something to do. And, yeah. So that been, you know, that kind of led into the availability to go to the track with Anderson Promotions. And I was I was with the MX five program and actually was at the time, you know, it's great because I was working with VP Goodrich at the time with their tire and still friends with their sales manager that have since retired. But, you know, it's cool that I always saw that side of the industry before I even came to Goodyear. Oh yeah. Wow. We could really go down some some rabbit holes with Indy Lights now next and all that kind of stuff. But let's, let's talk about, I guess, how we met and then get that, a little bit, you know, how we met a little bit deeper and then talk about Goodyear Racing and how you guys support grassroots racing. So I mentioned at the start of the show, you and I met through the CSM build. And so for folks that don't know, SCCA came out with a pretty standardized rule set, or in focus on the Mustang part of that, the CSM club spec Mustang, it can run in time trial, or it can run in, autocross solo events. And it's a really neat program. Like I said, standardized rule set, build sheet. And it just levels the playing field. And, so that's how you and I met. Yep. And, we got the car ready. You took it to pri? It's been all around the country. Well, it's been on the road doing different things, but for the listeners, I got the spend and I said, get to. Didn't have to. I got to spend a week with Jay and his team at solo nationals. Topeka. Rhino, Lincoln, Nebraska. And, yeah, it was it was great to hang out with you there. See the car in action. You had four drivers. We're going to talk about that in a minute. Now, you were one of those drivers. But I got to tell you, we hadn't been close to the CSM community until that event. And we being Atomic Auto Sports, what a great group of people. I could see why you want to be part of this, but did you think it would grow into this where there's this just great community of drivers and people that are surrounding the solo part of CSM? You know, to, to go back to the inception, you know, I got the phone call from Dan Dennehy and it's time Dave Ogburn work for us. As a test driver. And hey, there's this new class coming. You guys have a car. Is there any way we can build it? So went in and said, hey, can we build a car there? Like, sure. And even before the sure, I'm parts are arriving at my house, you know, there was a list of things that ended up here. And then Dan said, you know, hey, Atomic Auto Sport's going to donate their shop. We're going to do a one day build. No. Okay. So we got all the parts out there, and one day you guys did a full assembly to the very first club spec Mustang. That was cool. So we have a very first car ever built this back. And it has. We did. We took it to PR, I got to show it off there. We got to show it off for the first on track at the Proving Grounds in Akron. Got to showcase the car there and then that that little bit of time then built into us going to the solo that's, you know, we went from playing at the Proving Ground to the Super Bowl for this. So that and and very eye opening. But yes, what a great community of people, that drive these cars that showed up, that were enthusiastic, that we were there and just enjoyed our participation. And that's what we did. We participated. We definitely got to see the skill level that was out there, which was awesome. But that's exactly what we wanted to do. We wanted to come and be part of the crowd, understand their enthusiasm, their, how much they enjoy it. And it was a it was a great experience. Yeah. It, seeing your team, let's talk about who you had in a second. But everybody on the team got faster, got quicker. Each session. You were learning. People were giving you tips, on what to do different things during solo nationals. So who did you bring to be on the team with you? We'll start with the ladies. We, we brought a girl scout who is our sports car designer. Inside the race. Division. She's trackside. Great. Really awesome customers. Great support, designs all the the race tires that are used on sports car here in the US. Came from soapbox derby, did a couple track days with, with, Mid-Ohio school. Then a partner, was able to bring her to. So she got to do some laps there and then straight into the solar nuts. We also brought Stephanie Anderson, who's a B spec racer. Family makes a living out of motorsports, with X Factor Racing and was just a really, really good fit. Her and Nicole have worked together over the years with B spec. Just a just a great person. Fast and B spec up top five all the time. Always in the front. So it was a great, easy selection when they said we needed a pro driver to come with us. So she came up and supported that for us. And then on the gentleman side, we brought, Noah Feldstein, who's the actual designer behind the supercar three tire. That's the spec tire on the classic Mustang. Coronado crosser has a Mazda that he races and, was a perfect fit when we said, hey, we've got this, got this, you know, plan to go to the soul that you want to go. So he raised his hand and said, yeah, let's go. So that was great. And then, myself, since, you know, since we put together the program, we had the car figured out was the perfect tire warmer. So I'll go first. And it was, it was a fun it was very eye opening. Was, a lot of learning, a lot of, meeting the membership, a lot of fun. Yeah, it certainly was. It's a long week. And, but it is fun. And folks listening, if you've not been to solo nationals and auto crash, autocross is your jam. You got to get there. Even if you just want to go and spectate and see and learn. But it is racing during the day and it is a party at night. One thing I wanted to bring up. Go ahead. Jay. No, no, no, what? It was, a very, very fun atmosphere to be in. I think that was the biggest takeaway from it, is that there are a lot of people there and having a lot of fun, and, that's not always the case in motorsports as a business. So it was great to see that. It was great to participate in that. Yeah. For sure. So from the minute, so it was Matt and myself from Atomic Auto Sports. We rolled in Monday and from the minute we rolled in to the point we rolled out, all people want to talk about was Goodyear and thinking, you know, people work before you and your team arrived. People are coming over. They just assumed we were with Goodyear. Thank you. You know, we were getting thank you for the support. And so we'll come back later and thank the real people, you know, thanks for getting involved with this. Thanks for promoting. Thanks for being here. It meant a lot to the competitors that that Goodyear did this. Goodyear was not only just producing tires for the program, but then you guys were there in the trenches with them, so to speak, during solo nationals, to learn and take back everything that, that you could what was maybe one of the big things that was shared with you that you brought back to make things better for the program or the tire, The, the life cycle that the competitors utilized, really, truly understanding how many runs they're getting on the tire, what the feel of the tire, what they're liking. You know, what the attributes of the tire are that they like, taking that back and understanding why it's such a good fit for the class, I think was the most important thing to hear the competitors come over. And I hate to say brag, but brag about how many, you know, how many runs are getting on these tires. And that was that was incredible. And and that's something that we here in Vsba, you know, that they that the amount of runs that they get on their spare tire and that the, the fall off is so minimal, I and you know, to hear all those positive attributes of the tire that was was great to hear. And it's coming from the actual competitor people, people we had never met, you know, people we never raced against. And, that that part was great to hear. Yeah. One thing I want to, compliment you on is during the week, you had a lot of people coming up to you outside of Club Spec Mustang and people who were road racers, people who were autocross ers, people who wanted to talk about Goodyear tires. You were working the whole event. You were taking notes. You were having conversations with people. I know you were doing zoom calls from there. You know, a lot of people look at and say, hey, man, this is wow, how cool. You got to go and play with a mustang for four days in the central part of the U.S but you were hustling. You were trying to get as much info from people. You were talking, you were having conversations, trying to grow relationships. Does that sometimes take away from the, the enjoyment of a career that you're always on? Yeah, it has its moments. You know, there's times, there's been there's times

you get a Sunday night, 9: 29:35

00 call from a competitor who's leaving a track and wants to talk right now because they've got, you know, two hours of windshield time ahead of them. So. So there's that. But again, it goes back to putting that helmet on. And even though it was brief by road racing standards, still that couple minutes that you got to put the helmet on to go out and do your lap and, you know, rethink the course and, you know, that serenity of, not having to worry about work was great. But yes, that's that's the role we have of going to the track. We did it differently than any other manufacturer didn't win tires that the solo that we brought. You know, we brought your team, which was great. We brought branding on, you know, the awning, the flags and the set up. And, you know, we did all that to encourage people to come over and talk to us about what they're doing because we don't, you know, this is their Superbowl. This is we want to understand what you know, what they need from us, what we can do for them. And, and, to make it worth going out and doing all this. We're you know, when we looked at and we called Hayward and said, hey, we want to go to the salon at one said, you got a car, you might as well bring it. So we did the work. Got it, got it. We were able to make it happen. And, it was definitely the way to go. But it was it was super fun. We did that class picture with the entire group, and to watch them come together in the effort, you guys helped, parking cars and doing all that. Something like that doesn't organically happen very often, but the enthusiasm inside the group, it was just awesome. So, so, but it's moments like that that the work then becomes secondary and it's worth doing all that because of those type of moments. Yeah. So for listener, this club spec Mustang is is known as the Yellow submarine yellow with blue graphics. Jay, what's next for that car? We are in the process of some investment. Additional additional parts and pieces that are required. The locking diff that needs to go in the back because, that would have helped us out on and the solo nets, four point harness some seats. Going to go visit track first here relatively soon and get some parts and get some safety equipment moving forward. And yeah, I think we're going to go to level two, and I think we're going to try some solo stuff. Some, some solo stuff with it. We'll do some, some track days and hopefully utilize it for some other projects inside of Goodyear. But, we've gotten the go ahead for some investment. Yeah. Should be close, you know, closer to a attract a car than than it is now. So that's that's all positive. That's exciting. All right. Well, let's, let's talk a little bit more about Goodyear Racing and, that's your full time job. You work with Goodyear Racing some people are going to be drooling about what you're about to talk about, how you spend your time, the programs you work with and all that other stuff. It really is, neat. Any career you've built with that. But at the highest level, people are familiar with Goodyear right on the side of NASCAR tires. Used to do IndyCar. A lot of big, big series. But what is your focus with grass roots racing and Goodyear racing? My focus is on the vintage market. Inside of sanctioning bodies, HSR, Hesburgh, Bcda these vintage groups that are continuing our legacy with, Can-Am cars. Indy cars, classic NASCAR's. These vehicles that were on track, vintage Trans Am and vintage F1. You know, classic representations of different periods of time that Goodyear was heavily involved in. So we still produce a lot of tires for that market. Vintage F1 tire loose streaks are still a super popular the late 70s vintage Trans Am Group, GTO, GT2 cars, GTB cars, a period of course, 1962 and such. So let's go to the track and to be able to support those those customers that have those that rolling pieces of history is super exciting, super cool. I get to see that, you know, that style of cars that we would not get to see on track if it wasn't for these, these teams, these people keeping them alive. So so that's a major portion of our grassroots effort. And then also SCCA, we've kind of focused over there with our open competition and we'll, we'll racing, be specs been great. The community is awesome. We love the relationships that we build inside of that group. And the open competition stuff. It's it's you're either on top of the world or you're back to work trying to make something better. So but again, goes back to seeing the successes of our teams when we when we when we're successful to maybe. Yeah, let's talk about vintage racing for a moment. So when you are making these tires for these vintage cars, are they, vintage looking tires with today's technology or are they built just like they were back in the 50s, 60s, 70s? No, they're they've definitely progressed over the years. There's, the the look may be the same, with our vintage blue streak for instance, they're still inside the mold where the blue streak used to be put in. The letters are still sprayed on white on the side of the tire. Keep that, that vintage look to them. But no, the chemicals and the materials that's progressed over the years. And as the racing has changed, we've adapted the product to, you know, more styles, sprint racing. Sometimes seat cycles are more important, sometimes speed is more important. So it kind of just depends on the application. One one major application that we're working on currently is our classic NASCAR tire that will go to law next year. That's, it's a classic limo. So over the July 4th weekend, classic NASCAR, it's going to be a premier race event at Classic Lamar. So there's a group of cars from the US going over there and a group of cars from over there going to participate. That tire. We've put a lot of newer technology in with that vintage look. It'll have the white lettering, you know, be very throwback styling, of period for a lot of the cars. So that's a very exciting, project we're working on currently. And if I remember correctly, tires like that are handmade, right? Everything produced in Akron is still predominantly handmade. You know, there's very there's some automation, but not a bunch. The, the tires still have the tag inside that says proudly produced by the builder of the tire, which is great to see. And, yes, we can go right into our factory here in Akron. Go downstairs, go see the tires being produced. Watch them go through all the different processes, whether it's assembly, curing, final finish, watch that final product, you know, get on the be placed on the trailer and go to the track. So it's very, very neat that it that still it's, it's made here in the States and, and is so hands on very cool. You know tires are arguably the most important part of the, the race car because it's what comes in contact with the ground. It's transferring power, for acceleration. It's it's there for grip, for turning, braking. So the, the listener has a lot of tire questions. So what would you what advice would you give to someone that's involved in grassroots motorsports, whether it's road racing, time trial, autocross, as they go to select a tire that, that they need to compete, What is your focus and is it just are you at the stage where you just want to turn laps and you just want to be out competing? I know we all want to win, and that's great. And sometimes winning needs to be secondary. Sometimes just getting racecraft under you is the most important thing you can do. And there's racecraft that you get from attract a Twilight, some type, some type of HPD day. And then there's racecraft when you're actually out there racing and competing and maybe not running up in front, maybe running in the back. And multi-class racing presents its own challenges. So maybe you find what your goal is, and kind of whether it's I got to put a lot of heat cycles on my tire, my budget right now allows me to go out and just turn laps and get, you know, be out there, be participating. So maybe, you know, certain tires better for that application or is it speed? Is it? I'm bolting on stickers every time I'm out because my goal is to win. So there's that aspect of it where there's the support. Maybe you're on a stage where you're searching for maybe that little extra tent and having the trackside support, tires on and having the conversation with the engineers. So what changes can we make to optimize the performance of the tire? Can we make. So sometimes the support is is a higher value, to some and maybe that extra time because you're going to be able to, to develop and and optimize the tire, just on the car in order to achieve that, that extra speed, you need. One thing that you got, you and, Nicole had shared with us at, Solo Nationals was, some interesting perspectives on tires. And one of them that I still think about all the time is when racing in the wet. You want to fill it with dirty air. What did you mean by that? Well, we want to get you want to get you want to be able to hold and produce as much heat as possible. A lot of people will go out and they'll purge all their tires and in hot conditions, and that's a great idea. Whether it's karting or whether it's it's big cars, that's a great step to do. If you're over inflating tire that they're gaining more than you expected, doing that consistent, application is great when it comes to rain racing. It's a different application. You know, you're constantly having water pull heat out of the tire. So anything you can do to keep that tire warm helps. So having having a human, atmosphere inside the tire to help generate the heat, it's, it's just one of those small steps that's easy to do. But it just helps a little bit. That's, you know, it's every little bit counts. It's just optimizing every aspect of the racecar. And it's just one little step. Folks, if you were to hang out with these Goodyear folks for even half a day, your mind would go boom. Because all the little things that you never think about tires. This is what they eat, sleep and breathe. J when you go to events and you see folks, you know, let's say amateur racers, grassroots racers, what's the biggest mistake they make with tires? Lack of consistency. I don't care what you're racing in. If you mount the tires with something like a soap that we don't suggest you do, but if that's your process, do it every time. Instead of, you know, we suggest using a paste something without any type of water in it, something that doesn't help introduce oxygen inside of the time. But if you consistently are doing something consistently, do it right and do it consistently every single time. That consistency of just doing you, you get to learn how much air pressure builds in the tire. You get to learn, you know, you know, by if they sit in the sun all day how much they're going to gain, things like that, just consistency. And sometimes you just don't see that. Sometimes it's all over the board and you can see that they can't predict what's going to happen. So that predictability of consistency is good. Wow. Yeah. Something so simple. A lot of people do don't even think about it. So, folks, if you're taking your tires to get mountain balance at a shop, for your racing purposes, you want to ask them what are they using for lube? So, as you mentioned, you know, there's a some shop, some shops will use, Dawn and, and water mix some shops will use a specific paste that gets put on. So J the pace is the better way to go. Yeah. We're fortunate in Northeast Ohio to have Atomic Auto Sports have, stupid fast racing. You know, just as a couple local places that you can go take tires, have them mounted for your racing application, and having those those companies there that know these little ins and outs is great. But yes, for the for the guy, that's that's taking them to a local tire shop that's, you know, maybe supporting them, maybe a will mount all that stuff for you as part of a sponsorship program, making sure that they're doing it with, you know, the proper pace instead of non liquid too. So, you know, doing things like that will definitely be a better, will give you a better result in the long run. Yeah for sure. What's, what's headed down the way in terms of tire technology. Any any big things coming, coming out. That we are constantly developing, constantly reevaluating our tire lineup. Two years ago, we had a fantastic run off. We had success that we hadn't seen in many years. This past run off wasn't near successful. Different things happened on track that just didn't fall our way in a couple classes, and that's okay. That's racing. But that also drives us to go back to the drawing board and relook at our entire lineup and say, where can we make gains? So, you know, we currently have multiple test plan, you know, the SCCA Super Tour has went through some changes, in scheduling for the next year. So that has presented us some time to evaluate some products. And so we're going to take advantage of those changes. You know, as hard as they are some to watch these changes inside of SCCA happen. It's, it's part of the business. And you just look at what opportunities you have and, and adjust. So that's what we're doing. And just reevaluating some products right now. Got it. Is there anything we didn't talk about that you wanted to. You know the classic Lamar classic NASCAR going to Lamar. That's the big the big takeaway. We're super proud of that project. HSR John Doonan really put a lot of effort behind this, this growth of the sport. To see those cars on track is, is amazing, you know, to see, an old Dale Earnhardt car or Tony Stewart car. You know, to see these old representations. Richard Petty on on track and to see gentlemen buying them and restoring them and getting them back to a condition that probably, probably was as good as they were, when they were racing, period. And then still being able to enjoy them and see the different areas and cars, that's that's big. And to see that grow to a global level so quickly is incredible. How to folks learn more about that. What's happening with classic LeMans? HSR icon is going to be the best place. There's a lot of effort going in there. I'm sure as we get closer to the event, it'll be on racer. Inside HSR doing great. Great work putting out on social different partnerships that they gain. What's going on? It'll be, it'll be very neat to see on a global level, to see what cars are out there in the eras and to run, to run, you know, in Lima with a car that, you know, hadn't race there in years. It's it's amazing. Oh for sure. And if folks want to learn more about Goodyear racing and, tires in general, what where do they go to do that? What do you recommend? Race goodyear.com. The site that's been around for a while, but you can click through and get your catalog in there. Also Goodyear Racing on Facebook, Instagram, a lot of efforts going into our social program, which is great to see. We've brought in new talent that it was working all the time to increase our exposure, with motorsports. Luckily, one of our social media managers is from the, the amateur side of racing. He's a big in the NASA group and came to us. It's just been great. All right, last question. Nope. Think back to the think back to the karting days. Were you ever late to grid? Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Com. Last minute changes to the last minute, you know, let's, let's, you know, we're watching the weather, watching the weather. Let's make a quick change. Whether it was, I believe was a clutch change, something, something late. But, you know, as road racing starts with, you know, the standing flag, we had to start from pit lane and had to make our way through. And there was, there definitely was, but it was worth the change. So, you know, it's but. Yes, I have to say two grand, probably more than, I do appreciate the honesty. Jay was great having you on. You covered so much stuff. We could probably talk for another three, five hours, for sure. So we'll have to have you on again. Maybe after classic moments, we'll hear all about pre as well as what happened. Overseas. But thanks so much for sharing your journey. Sharing insights into Tires and Goodyear. No, thank you so much for having me. This is great. It's, it's been great working with the Auto sport and, definitely look forward to more adventures down the road with it.