Everyone agrees that motorsports safety is a top priority. It's not just a question of rising liability insurance premiums; it's the fact that the people who are at risk of getting hurt go beyond the drivers to the friends and family of everyone in the sport when visiting motorsports facilities. But what can individuals do to advance safety throughout the racing world? If you ask Tom Weisenbach, he'll tell you we can do quite a bit.

Weisenbach is the executive director of the International Council of Motorsport Sciences (ICMS). Few people are really familiar with that organization, and it's safe to say most people in racing have probably never heard of it. But the Council, spearheaded by Weisenbach, is instrumental in education, collaboration, and advocacy for safety throughout the motorsports ecosystem. The Council brings together safety professionals from all over motorsports to share best practices and new learning, and provides that education and collaboration to anyone willing to listen.

Before the Council, Weisenbach worked for Indianapolis Motor Speedway and INDYCAR as a sales and marketing professional. That was good practice because today, the main thing he brings to his job is his sales pitch that safety in motorsports is good business. We spent an enjoyable hour chatting with him about this vitally important topic.

PRI: How did you come to head the ICMS and focus on safety and motorsports?

Weisenbach: It's a long journey. My opportunities in motorsports have been phenomenal. Everywhere I've gone, I've had a blast and continue to learn a lot and make more relationships. I'm all about the relationships, and I think that's how I got to where I am today.

After some time in sales and marketing, I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do, and I was talking to some friends in the industry. We decided we were tired of having friends and people that we knew get hurt or killed in racing accidents when they could have been avoided. So we started the Motorsports Safety Education Foundation, and that was our first big venture directly into motorsports safety.

We created an incredible online curriculum that used a learning management system. We were trying to get sanctioning bodies and tracks to have their drivers watch our online curriculum. When we created that program, that company, it was on a volunteer basis for us. We all put money in and got some great support from Speedway Motors and the Smith family. We tried to make it work, but we struggled because sanctioning bodies would not commit to having their racers watch our curriculum.

They didn't want to mandate, because then they're liable. So they wouldn't mandate that anyone watch our videos. We had a couple of tracks, Empire Dragway up in New York, and Knoxville Raceway. That was awesome, but it wasn't enough. I had met with Arnie Kuhns of SFI, and we were fortunate to work with his daughter, SFI President Jennifer Faye, as our subject matter expert as we were creating our online curriculum.

Then, in early 2020, I got a call from Arnie. He said, "Tom, I've been involved with this group called the International Council of Motorsport Sciences for years. I'm trying to help them find a new executive director. You've got the energy and the passion for this. Would you be interested?"

I said, "Yes."

PRI: What did you change about ICMS when you took over?

Weisenbach: When I took over, the organization was on its last pint of blood, to use a medical term. It's a membership-based group, and they were down to 72 paying members. They were barely hanging on.

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