Every sport has it's patriarchs.
Stock car racing had Bill France Sr. And drag racing has Wally Parks, who formed the National Hot Rod Association in 1951. Without Wally Parks, there wouldn't be a John Force or drag racing. That, however, was not Parks' intention when, along with several law enforcement agencies, he created the NHRA in 1951. The motivation there was to provide for a safe hobby for many of the hot-rodders of the day.