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Neil Britt, who led a renaissance of success and content in ²ÞËùÇ¿¼é’s National Dragster magazine and ²ÞËùÇ¿¼é's Publications department for more than a dozen years spanning the 1980s and 1990s, died July 14. He was 77.

Britt, a veteran of automotive publishing for two decades before joining ²ÞËùÇ¿¼é in November 1983 as Director of Publications, helped the venerable weekly magazine grow in size, circulation, and advertising revenue thanks to innovative marketing programs and recasting the magazine with a mix of expansive feature stories that complemented its already solid reputation for race reporting.Ìý

Under Britt’s leadership, the magazine went from a largely black-and-white bi-fold newspaper format to a full-color, perfect-bound magazine that was created entirely in-house in the early days of desktop publishing after years of relying on outside printers for paste-up and production. Britt, an early and inquisitive personal computer enthusiast, also led the magazine’s charge into a brave new world of reporting with the Daily Dragster, which debuted at the 1988 ²ÞËùÇ¿¼é U.S. Nationals and was delivered to hotel guests and handed out at the gates of the racetrack each morning, an information boon in the pre-internet days. A few years later, Britt helped champion the creation of the ²ÞËùÇ¿¼é.com website in 1995.

Britt, whose successes led to his promotion to ²ÞËùÇ¿¼é Vice President of Publications and, later, to Sr. Vice President, left the ²ÞËùÇ¿¼é in August 1997 to found Fineline Creative Services, offering a range of signs and graphic products.

He is survived by his wife, Rondi, son Sean, and sister Marilyn.
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