The DME Pro Street bike driven by Joey Gladstone proudly has the number 1 on it with good reason: they’ve earned it.

In IDBL action, at the April 24 IDBL Pingle Nationals, Spring Nationals, Joey Gladstone set a new world record in Pro Street for his DME team with a blistering 6.74 at 218.90 MPH. Yes, the IDBL had another great race with great attendance, but no news tops the 6.74 at over 200 MPH by a glorified street bike. It’s no wonder some T/F bike racers watch these drag bikes and walk away shaking their heads. Modern marvels they are these P/St bikes.

And in keeping up with the IDBL, on April 22 the offices of IRG Sports + Entertainment announced the appointment of a new “President and General Manager” to lead the IDBL motorcycle drag racing sanction. They have appointed media personality Jack Korpela to take the helm and lead the sanction into the future. Jack has a wealth of experience in the sport, of motorcycle drag racing, he owns and operates the website Cycledrag.com, which has served the motorcycle drag racing community for over a decade. Jack was happy and eager in fact to answer questions recently about his new position as the head of the IDBL.

Perhaps the most important question I served to Jack during our interview was, “Will the IDBL be expanding its racing in 2017, and if so, where and to which tracks?”

To this Jack replied, “There are currently six events on the 2016 IDBL schedule; I think that’s a good number, give or take a race. IRG Sports + Entertainment has some of the best tracks in drag racing, any of which would be a good choice. Exactly which ones may be under consideration right now is a matter of discussion. I feel the bulk of the series needs to remain at its original home, Maryland International Raceway.”

The IRGSE PR announcement of 22 April states in part “The IDBL is the nation's largest motorcycle drag racing series hosting professional and sportsman classes at six events in 2016. The future of the IDBL includes an expanded schedule along with TV and digital coverage of the premiere motorcycle drag racing series.”

With this in mind, and knowing Jack is already a TV personality with years of experience, I asked him, “Does the IDBL have a TV or live-streaming package in the works for IDBL races?”

Jack responded to this question with “All parties within the IRGSE understand the importance of TV and the impact it can have on the sport. The advancement of this is very important and under development.”

In reading this one must understand that of the time of this writing, Jack was only in the hot seat a matter of a few weeks, so this answer is very understandable. If the resources of IRGSE can bring good television coverage or at the least, solid Live Streaming to motorcycle drag racing, there’s no telling how big the impact can be on the sport.

Motorcycle drag racing world-wide is becoming hugely popular, growing in leaps and bounds every year. There are new Top Fuel bikes under development all across the globe. The popularity of the sport is poised at this time to explode. If the sport can be well presented to the masses, there is every reason to believe that the sport as a whole can suddenly experience unprecedented growth. The sanctions had better be ready for this or they will blow it.

With Top Fuel motorcycles being the most visible attraction to spectators, I asked of Jack, “How long before IDBL announces the addition of Top Fuel motorcycles to its classes?”

He replied with “Myself personally, I’d love to see a class of T/F with the IDBL, and the number of T/F bikes are growing annually, but it’s all about timing.”

In July of 2014, the IDBL had Larry McBride and Dave Vantine doing some exhibition racing, which produced the sport’s first side-by-side 5-second passes. So with this mind Jack was asked about the return of these two into IDBL events, will they play a role in 2016 entertainment?

“Yes, we will see Larry at the WPGC Bike Fest Elmer Trett Shootout in July. We will see Larry and Dave in October as well,” he said.

In closing out the interview, I asked the new IDBL president a fun question that gives great insight about Jack’s vision for IDBL, “Do you foresee one day motorcycle drag racing returning to coast to coast drag racing as it once was with the NMRA?”

Jack responded with “It would be great, I’d love to see it I also understand the incredible financial and logistic strain you put on a racer when you ask them to travel across the country. Racers will come from everywhere for a big enough race. Keith ‘Scooter’ Kizer proved that with the AMA/PROSTAR World Finals. At one point he had 800 motorcycles and enthusiasts from all over the world. That’s a goal for me to shoot for.”

There is a wealth of resources and ambition in place for the IDBL and its racers to work with; what will become of this mix will present itself over time.