SCORE Journal - The Official Publication of SCORE Off-Road Racing
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1499762
TALKING DIRT By Dan Sanchez, Editor SCORE Journal In celebration of the 100th issue of SCORE Journal, I was asked by SCORE’s VP of Marketing and SCORE Journal Publisher Jim Ryan, to start an editorial page and discuss some insight into creating and organizing this publication. There are lots of things I enjoy about SCORE Journal, but perhaps what I enjoy most is talking to current racers and the legendary ones. In a most recent example, photographer Jack Wright of nMedia3, Jim Ryan, and myself have been visiting with former SCORE owner Sal Fish, looking into his warehouse full of memorabilia and talking with him for several hours at a time. The information on how he came to SCORE International, and how he and Mickey Thompson worked to develop a race series from his perspective gives a greater insight into the day-to-day operations. While Jim and Jack are digging through old photos, issues of SCORE News, Race Programs, and file boxes, I’m sitting down with Sal recording the many stories he has to tell. During this time he’s revealed some of the struggles he and SCORE had to face, and how it seemingly never ended throughout his 39-year career. Some of the side stories Sal tells are funny and even embarrassing for him, but I feel honored that he’s allowing me to hear all of this. He also lets me know which ones I can record and the stories that I can’t publish…ever. After the visits to his warehouse, I often email Sal a draft of my story to clarify a few things. This month’s story on the first 1974 SCORE Baja International was one of them. My team also had a chance to call racers who were there, such as Bobby Ferro. I also called Ivan Stewart. As I told Sal about their comments, it jarred the memories of Sal and he had more to add. It’s a wonderful feeling when someone remembers things from long ago and it made Sal happy that he still had those memories that I somehow helped unlock. That’s one of the things that I like best about working on SCORE Journal and sharing it on these pages. I’m no off-road expert and not a historian, but I am a true journalist. That’s what I do best and as I continue to learn over these past 100 issues of SCORE Journal, I can look back and say we’ve accomplished much more than producing lots of magazines.