Drag Illustrated Issue 155, April 2020 | Page 57

D.I. COLUMNIST The Real Deal KINSLER with Tommy D'Aprile FO ® We Do It All 4 EL BARR ire Drive By W April 2020 TE OYO RD C H ow many of you can relate to trying to have a conversation with someone in a loud place such as a nightclub? Or be- ing at the track in the burnout area trying to talk while cars are doing their burnouts? As most of you know from these two examples, not much will be heard clearly in these settings. At a recent race, I was backing up from the burnout and I noticed fuel leaking from the top of the en- gine. Note that we did not have a radio at this time, so as I tried to tell my crew chief there was fuel leaking he could not understand me. Even though I was yelling as loudly as I could and making hand gestures, he just could not decode what I was saying. Now that we do have radios, that conversation would be extremely effective even in a low voice. What am I getting at, you might ask? It’s something I like to call “the value of right communication.” Now, communication can be ef- fective or not. Let me explain. Many of the issues we have in our rela- tionships today are a result of poor communication skills. Someone asks you “what’s wrong?” and you answer “nothing.” Even though there is definitely something wrong, you don’t communicate and thus it gets pushed under the rug. And after a while this rug has so much crap under it that it explodes. Time and time again, I see couples not expressing their feelings to one another and bam, no more relationship. Why do people sud- denly blow up at another person? Most causes are from them not being open and honest about something and then finally they ex- plode. Think of a time in your life when you can see that if you just communicated better it would not have turned into that bad situa- tion that it did. I’m telling you people, communication is one of the most impor- tant roles we have in being effective in whatever we do. Great lead- ers have great communication skills. Great marriages have great communication. Great race teams have great communication and so on. Don’t ever expect that the other person knows what you need or knows your thoughts. When I was a kid outside playing, I would see my dad working on the garage or house and later in the day I would ask him what he was doing over there. He would sometimes have an attitude and say, “you should have been helping me.” I was like, “what? You never asked.” Then he would say, “I shouldn’t have to.” People, we all have to ask or communicate our needs. Please don’t get yourself all worked up thinking someone else knows what you need. The attitude and huffy-puffy sighs from you are just making you look stupid and full of hot air. The truth is that we need to communicate effectively. Tell some- one you need help, tell someone you love them, tell someone they hurt you, tell someone you’re sorry, tell someone something, guys. The longer you hold all the junk inside, the less effective you will be at making positive changes in your life. Men, learn to listen to your significant other when she talks. Sometimes great communication can mean just listening, not fixing. The point I am trying to get across here is that all of us can learn to be better communicators. But a lack of effort will get you nowhere. I know it may seem hard at first, but learning how to talk to others can and will benefit your life. Don’t wait, start today. The choice is yours to make. Email Tommy at [email protected] Zero Failures in 12 Years Since 1st Sale Monster Mesh TM Filters OM Our CUST ifolds Made Man ! Set Records T LS BILLE Huge amounts of premium quality filter media for minimum pressure drop. K-140 Pressure Relief Valve of NASCAR Used on 90% 500 cars Cup and INDY Quick Disconnect Bypass 12AN & 8AN Fuel Rail Largest on the Market WORLD’S Largest Stocking Distributor Kinsler Leak Tester Check engine leakage; barrel valve setting. Most accurate and repeatable on the market hevy BB C Kinsler.com 730 lb/hr @ 50 PSI © ad e R his T Monster Mesh TM Filter 10/3 Element EXCELLENT FOR EFI We service injectors EFI Injectors, Lucas Metering Units, and all makes of Pressure Relief Valves need 3 micron protection, but 3 micron filters plug up too quickly, so most racers use 10 micron, which is too coarse. We made this new element for NASCAR Cup cars: 10 micron premium paper top layer to take out 95% of the dirt, with a 3 micron precision Fiberglass lower layer. Details: Kinsler.com home page. Tel: [phone] [email protected] Handbook/Catalog at kinsler.com Troy, Michigan USA DragIllustrated.com | D r a g I l l u s t r a t e d | 57