JIM HUGHES
for them to get it out of the trailer, I was looking
around and I looked at the track and the lighting
and I hadn’t been here for a few years. But it
just hit me how nice this place is and how much
potential it has,” Hughes remembered. “Then I
heard that it was possibly going to be made into
an RV park and we’ve lost so many race tracks
already. I took a look at it and it made sense. At
the time, I sold out of Hughes Performance, and
was looking for my next move. And now here I am.
“It feels awesome. It’s really exciting. It’s a chal-
lenge. It gives me the opportunity to accomplish
something new. I think there’s a light at the end
of the tunnel and it’s going to be very rewarding.”
In the midst of his second full season at the
facility, Hughes says that his years of racing ex-
perience have actually helped him better relate
to the competitors at his own facility, and even
lend a helping hand when they struggle with
the track itself.
“I think it all stems from being a racer myself
and then being a manufacturer. I knew, through
our race team, what product the racer was looking
for. We designed and built products by racers, for
racers, and it made a big difference because we
knew the end result,” Hughes said. “Now, being
an owner/operator at a dragstrip, I also know
the end result that the customer is looking to
achieve. Therefore, I can go out there and try to
fulfill his or her needs.
“When we were racing, we would basically go up
and look at a track, look at the track conditions,
and we would set the car up accordingly. Now,
being on the other side of the fence, we can bring
the track to the cars or to the different categories,
and that’s a really cool part.
“If we’ve got a good track and a guy still can’t get
down, then I have the ability and opportunity to
help him again as a customer to work on his car.
Whether it be the converter combination, the gear
ratio, the tire size, the four-link setup, the chassis
tune-up, whatever it may be. Because of the years
of experience that I’ve had on my own equipment,
now I can bring that to the customer base.”
Of course, it’s not always rainbows and butter-
flies when dealing with competitive individuals.
Sometimes, Hughes finds himself on the other
end of the very same disagreements he would
have with track operators over a decision that
directly impacts the racers themselves.
“Being a track operator, you’ve got so many
different variables that you need to take into con-
sideration before making a decision,” Hughes
admitted. “And that’s the one thing you have to
consider; you’ve got to make decisions that are
not always going to be in the best interest of ev-
erybody. But you have to be consistent on your
decisions.”
Another challenge is balancing the entertain-
ment, or “show” portion of an event, with the
D r a g Il l u s t r a t e d . c o m
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competition. Again, Hughes found himself in
agreement from his days behind the wheel, but
in this day and age of putting butts in seats and
filling the pit area, it isn’t as simple as dividing
the show from the competition.
“For years I thought it was all about the com-
petition. However, the other part of the equation
that the racers look at when they come to an event
is if he or she wants to have a good time with their
friends and family,” Hughes noted. “If they are
not having a good time, then it doesn’t matter if
the points are there. They can win championships,
but if they are not having fun, there’s something
missing from the equation.”
To this point, it would be fair to say that
Hughes’ plunge into facility ownership has been
a success. In 2016, Tucson Dragway held over
100 events, with a similar calendar on tap for
this season. While it hasn’t always been easy, as
many of his contemporaries like to think, it has
been rewarding. And that is what matters most to
Hughes, a drag racer turned track operator who
is using his knowledge on the other side of the
business into a unique environment for his racers.
“Does being a drag racer make me a better track
operator? Absolutely, because it builds passion,”
Hughes said. “And if you don’t have the passion
for a dragstrip, then you look at it as a business
opportunity only. And if you do that, I don’t think
you are in the right business.”