Silver wanted to create a product that would help other racing enthusiasts have a more exciting race-day experience. He was a race fan with a knack for gadgets and electronics so he placed an advertisement in a newspaper and began selling scanners to race fans as Christmas gifts. It didn’t take him long to realize he was onto something. His hobby quickly became his business.
Shortly after taking that gamble with a newspaper ad, scanner sales were booming, and race teams were requesting in-car communications equipment. Racing Electronics started selling race communications equipment in 1989, and today, the company is the premier race-communications supplier for just about all major forms of motorsports and every sort of short-track racing.
Racing Electronics is the official race communications provider of the International Hot Rod Association (IHRA). Through their official partner status, Racing Electronics provides all radio equipment for IHRA officials and the IHRA safety team.
“Racing Electronics takes pride in being the industry leader in motorsports communications technology,” Racing Electronics vice president of Motorsports Services Kevin Hughes said. “We challenge ourselves to provide professional-grade, reliable communications equipment and services across an array of Motorsports series and a variety of conditions. As a longtime partner of the IHRA, Racing Electronics has collaborated with the series and its competitors to create solutions for some of the most demanding conditions in motorsports, and we’re proud of the partnership and relationships we’ve forged.”
In 2005, Racing Electronics relocated from Atlantic County, N.J., to Concord, N.C., to be at the center of racing. The company employs some 80 workers at its North Carolina facility producing headsets, wiring harnesses and other equipment. Racing Electronics prides itself on the workmanship of its “Made in The USA” products and constantly looks for ways to improve its products and provide higher-quality products for its customers, whether they sit in the stands, the cockpit or atop the war wagon.
Nearing the end of its third decade, Racing Electronics is the No. 1 race communications company in the world, and the original company mission remains: provide quality equipment at the right price with outstanding customer service. Stay true to the mission, and a gamble can pay off - a brilliant idea can transform a hobby into a business.