Alicia Anderson Brings DragInsights to Life
Sportsman racing has been enhanced in recent years by the introduction of DragInsights, an easily accessible hub of information that allows racers to make data-driven decisions and take racing to a new level. At the helm of DragInsights (draginsights.com) is Alicia Anderson, a technology and software specialist who has a deep and forever tie to drag racing.
[Editor’s Note: This story originally appeared in DI #189, the Women of Power Issue, in July/August of 2024.]
Anderson dated NHRA Division 2 Stock Eliminator racer Rusty Johnson, and the two worked in the same industry. Their joint interest in technology and software, along with their interest and investment in racing, spawned the original idea for DragInsights. After Johnson passed away suddenly in 2020, Anderson took on the project as a labor of love.
“He and I always talked about having some kind of system where people could see their numbers,” explains Anderson. “That’s just how our brains worked. How do we get all these numbers together where we can slice and dice them without having to put together a spreadsheet every week? We talked about making an app and made a prototype, but we were so busy in our day jobs.”
After Johnson’s passing, she could not let the idea of DragInsights go.
“The first thing I did when I decided I wanted to pursue this was figure out who I wanted to work with and have as partners,” says Anderson. “My knowledge of drag racing only goes so far, and it’s very elementary compared to some who have been in this sport for so long.”
Anderson called Evan Smith, a longtime drag racing journalist and photographer. She also called racer Bobby Fazio, a mathematician by trade.
“We talked about it before as an idea, and they got it,” recalls Anderson. “Somehow, I talked both those guys into working with me. I’ve also known Jeff Parker’s development work for a very long time; he’s an extremely gifted database architect, and lucky me, that’s what I needed to put together [a website] that could serve up the information in a user-friendly way. I couldn’t do it without these people.”
Anderson and Parker worked on the technical side of things, while Fazio and Smith served as consultants on what features needed to be incorporated. They also helped with marketing and promotion ahead of the first-version launch in September of 2021.
“It’s been off and running ever since,” says Anderson. “The next March, at the Gatornationals, we rolled out the paid version. Everybody can come in and look at their own stats, and the paid version allows access to all the other drivers in the database.”
The database includes qualifying, class, and elimination runs for most every NHRA Sportsman racer dating back to 2015. Although they don’t have access to historical data, over 9,000 drivers are in the database. Everything from what lane drivers are most successful in, to what their average reaction times are at a specific track can be easily drummed up, allowing racers to fashion a strategy plan, round by round. They can also track their own trends over time and make adjustments as they get off pace.
While some may be perturbed at their stats being offered up to all for review, Anderson has found that DragInsights has been very positively received by nearly everyone.
“I think drivers understand the benefits of something like this,” she says. “They immediately connected with the reason that this would exist, and of course there are people that don’t feel like they need that information to race, but it’s really leveling the playing field. Racers have been very open to sharing feedback and ideas. These drivers are nice and smart people.”
Recently, DragInsights has developed a contingency program, as well as a Division 1 sponsorship, and Anderson is eager to see how else she and her team can grow and serve in the world of drag racing.
“We try to be in the community as much as we can – it’s not about take, take, take, it’s about giving back and being present and alive in the drag racing community, day to day,” emphasizes Anderson. “That’s what we’re really passionate about. This is about the community of drag racers and, selfishly, it gives me a place in that community again. I don’t know what it’s going to look like in five years, but there are opportunities in the future for it to evolve. I’m already very happy with what we’ve been able to accomplish.”
This story was originally published on August 7, 2024.
The post Alicia Anderson Brings DragInsights to Life first appeared on Drag Illustrated.
