Austin Coil & JF (1 Viewer)

[Dragracer]

This has been one of the more interesting discussions recently.
I think there are a few things that need to be remembered.
Coil was very good at what he did and was highly compensated for his work but was still an "EMPLOYEE". He did not have any worries about sponsorships, making payroll, firing people, all those things that a business owner has.
Yes, Coil made Force's car run and is one of the reasons John won the championships he did. Yes, one of the reasons. Without the money and John's driving and the organization behind him it wouldn't have happened.
There comes time when a business owner has to make hard decisions. John decided to reduce pay rather than lay people off - I applaud John for that. When that happens there are going to be some unhappy people and normally the people that get the biggest cuts are those who make the most. It's simple math - take 10% away from everyone and who gets the biggest cut - the highest paid. Also, when the business is not going the way the owner thinks it should he makes changes. Not everyone is going to agree no matter what you do. Having Neff move over to John's car was one of those decisions and it is John's decision, it is his business. Do these type of changes make people upset - Yes they do but the business owner is exactly that -the owner and the decisions belong to him. All the risk at JFR is with John, no one else. Additionally, a business like this is not run by a vote. There is only one vote - his.
I have been involved in drag racing since the mid-50's and have never yet seen a team that has stayed together as long as the relationship of Force/Coil. It had to end eventually and if Coil disagreed with the direction of JFR and John's decisions then he had two choices 1. Put up with it or
2. Leave
Coil's decision was to leave. Remember - he was an EMPLOYEE..
IT WAS HIS CHOICE!!!!

 

[Ted]

To George, Rex, Mike, Milt, and all you other business owners out there- Thanks for creating and sustaining those jobs.

 

[George.]

This has been one of the more interesting discussions recently.
I think there are a few things that need to be remembered.
Coil was very good at what he did and was highly compensated for his work but was still an "EMPLOYEE". He did not have any worries about sponsorships, making payroll, firing people, all those things that a business owner has.
Yes, Coil made Force's car run and is one of the reasons John won the championships he did. Yes, one of the reasons. Without the money and John's driving and the organization behind him it wouldn't have happened.
There comes time when a business owner has to make hard decisions. John decided to reduce pay rather than lay people off - I applaud John for that. When that happens there are going to be some unhappy people and normally the people that get the biggest cuts are those who make the most. It's simple math - take 10% away from everyone and who gets the biggest cut - the highest paid. Also, when the business is not going the way the owner thinks it should he makes changes. Not everyone is going to agree no matter what you do. Having Neff move over to John's car was one of those decisions and it is John's decision, it is his business. Do these type of changes make people upset - Yes they do but the business owner is exactly that -the owner and the decisions belong to him. All the risk at JFR is with John, no one else. Additionally, a business like this is not run by a vote. There is only one vote - his.
I have been involved in drag racing since the mid-50's and have never yet seen a team that has stayed together as long as the relationship of Force/Coil. It had to end eventually and if Coil disagreed with the direction of JFR and John's decisions then he had two choices 1. Put up with it or
2. Leave
Coil's decision was to leave. Remember - he was an EMPLOYEE..
IT WAS HIS CHOICE!!!!

I guess you could look at it that way, but who wins?
The final decision is always the owners, but I would rather look at my key employees as team mates. Were all trying to pull in the same direction, and in order for all of us to benefit and we all have a specific job to do to make it work as one. I can't speak for others, but if economic challenges did arise, I think I would rather lay a few newer people off, rather than disrupt the compensation of my best team contributors. Look who ended up leaving at JFR, was it worth the trade off?
Who knows, maybe it was, maybe it wasn't. Time will tell.

I think, and I would bet others will agree, that business is sort of like driving a boat. You can turn the wheel, but the boat doesn't actually start turning right away. The bigger the boat, the longer it takes to turn. If you turn the wheel too far, you can't recover instantly, so you better be watching and reacting before that iceberg actually approaches.
Maybe the iceberg was forming for quite some time between them, and nobody was watching how close it was getting. Others know it's there, but don't address it before it's too late. That's where the empty chair thing was such a joke because I am sure all of the signs were very apparent beforehand..
Who knows what happened to JF or AC. It may end up being the best thing for all involved. For the time they had together though, it was a great ride for the NHRA, and I am glad I could watch it..

 

[Dragracer]

People that have talked with Coil say he made his decision at the beginning of the year so what happened with moving Neff to Force's car didn't make any difference. There were many changes happening at JFR, some have already happened like making Hight president, etc., and others that will become evident in the future
.
The rigors of doing the full NHRA schedule for as many years as Coil did would wear out anyone and Coil isn't a youngster any longer.

John had to make a decision on the long term future of JFR and obviously Coil did not like where he fit in and his reduction in pay. Too bad, he did a great job during his years there.

Some business, when the money coming in is reduced, would rather cut wages rather than lay people off, others will do the opposite. I believe taking a pay cut and keeping everyone working is the better method. We don't need any more people unemployed than we already have.

 

[claysmoker]

Does anyone besides me think that Coil might be ill? He hasn't been looking too well for the last year or so.

 

[Nick Name]

If that was the case, he would have told John.

 

[Dragracer]

That would be too bad. If you are ill that's when you want your friends around.

 

[DrRocket]

Does anyone besides me think that Coil might be ill? He hasn't been looking too well for the last year or so.

Well, I seem to remember Austin fell illl in Sep of '09. I remember Ashley saying "Get well and come back soon Austin. Dad's driving us all nuts!"
I can't remember what the problem was, or if they even ever announced what happened. It seemed to me then that even when he returned after that, he started dialing back his activities. For instance, he no longer staged John after his return.

He lost weight. But some people take that as a sign of sickness. However, I'm guessing the weight came off as a result of doctor's advice. I mean, he wasn't exactly "petite." But then, back in "the old days" they used to call us "Men of substance!"