Make a sophomoric crack about his sponsor putting the varoom
back in romance, and you might as well question his Arkansas
roots. The eyes don't dart to the ground. Rather than his
face going flush with embarrassment, Mark jumps into a
passionate spiel about men's health and the need for folks
to get medical checkups.See, Mark drives the No. 6 Viagra car -- and he's comfortable with it.
"People who haven't really thought about it or aren't very educated in that area can't help what they think or say," said Mark, calmly. "And believe me, I was one of those. But once you get into it you find out it is a serious thing. It is not a joke. It is a prescription drug that is used in cases of people who have health problems."
It's discreetly called a men's drug, Viagra is. Bob Dole, ex-senator and presidential candidate, has pitched it. Up in Canada, former hockey great Guy LeFleur is the latest celebrity spokesperson.
And in this macho sport of stock car racing, where sponsors sell John Q. Public on the value of downing a cold beer and lighting up a smoke, Mark and his corporate money guys are missionaries of good health and clean living.
Weekend after weekend, the Pfizer Corporation trucks its 50-foot mobile health unit to Winston Cup tracks, positioning it strategically in a nearby parking lot. The "Tune-up for Life" hauler is an oasis of health amid the noxious fumes and deafening sounds.
Inside the cheery screening trailer, lab technicians check blood pressure and administer blood cholesterol and glucose tests. Men are also given a "sexual health inventory" questionnaire that focuses on erectile function.
More than 20,000 race fans passed through the hauler last year. By season's end, officials expect this year's number to top 30,000.
"Yeah, just like everybody else, [Pfizer] is marketing a product at the racetrack, but they're giving race fans free physicals and health checks," Mark said. "A lot of these people won't take off from work and go sit in a doctor's office to have a checkup. When you're over 35 years old they need to be going regularly. And they don't."
So here, the mobile unit and a team of local physicians show up at the racetrack to offer health screenings. Winston has its packs of free product, the Air Force has its recruiting booth and, well, the makers of Viagra offer 10-minute screening sessions -- proving there's room under the NASCAR tent for everyone.
"It's important to stress this unit is not a primary health care facility," said Geoff Cook, a Pfizer spokesman. "It is a screening unit. And the main message to folks going through is 'Look, you have this information and now you need to do something about it.' So it is kind of a starting point."
Pfizer officials recognize the race crowd has almost unparalleled brand loyalty. Of course, it also doesn't hurt that at least 60 percent of NASCAR fans are men, according to industry statistics.
And it's the right population to hit with a delicate health message.
"Having someone like Mark being able to stand up and talk about men's health concerns, encouraging them to do this, will hopefully change the dynamics a little bit and get men to recognize that admitting to having health issues isn't a sign of weakness," Cook said. "It should be seen as a sign of strength and intelligence. But there is this cultural perspective of being a strong man and not needing to see a doctor. It doesn't make any sense at all."
Mark, 42, was part of the Pfizer promotion team last year, but it was only this season that the pharmaceutical firm signed on as primary sponsor of the No 6. Ford Taurus.
The price range for primary sponsors run between $5 million and $15 million, with industry sources pegging the Viagra deal near the top along with UPS (sponsors of Dale Jarrett's No. 88 car) and Du Pont (sponsors of Jeff Gordon's No. 24). The deal with Roush Racing is for five years, although Pfizer has an out it can exercise after the third season.
But why marry a race team and a pharmaceutical company?
"It was inevitable that they would come to our sport," said Geoff Smith, president of Roush Racing. "What they were trying to figure is how to maximize the return on investment when they only have a 17-year maximum period of patent recoverability [before a drug like Viagra goes generic]. That is when you started seeing pharmaceutical companies going directly to the consumer with TV ads.
"So the sensitivity of people talking about medication or whatever was slowing being beaten out of America. You name something a male or female has that can be treated with a drug that you haven't seen on TV. You can't do it. So they moved to full, integrated marketing programs, and that meant sponsorship."
Almost a season into the deal, Mark has no complaints.
The sponsorship move from Valvoline to Viagra hasn't cost him any fans. They're his fans anyway, he declares -- not the sponsor's. And as proof, his merchandise sales are up from last year.
"Obviously, it's not an automotive product [like Valvoline], but it has brought a lot of doctors and pharmacists into my fan base," Mark said. "There are pros and cons to everything. From a personal experience, it is different.
"It means a lot when my sponsor is giving free health screening to my fans and everyone else's fans. I get stuff all the time like, 'You saved my daddy's life' or whatever. Or 'Because of you, my dad went to the trailer and found out he was on the verge of having a stroke.' That means something."
