Andy Petree visited Team Rensi Motorsports garage this week to see the paint scheme on the No. 35 Mc Donalds Ford Fusion. Petree was the owner of the No. 55 Chevrolet 2001 Monte Carlo that won the 2001 Talladega 500. The driver of that car was Bobby Hamilton who passed away on January 7, 2007. Hamilton's son, Bobby Hamilton Jr., will be driving the same paint scheme his father drove in what would become his last Winston Cup win in honor and memory of the Sr. Hamilton in the Orbitz 300 Busch Series race at Daytona on Saturday.
Petree sent the paint code and everything from his shop from the way it used to be to the Team Rensi shop so they could surprise Bobby Jr. by honoring his father in this way. Petree was all for it, and he even promised that if team Rensi does get lucky enough to win that he will come over and jump on the hood like he did after that win at Talladega.
Bobby Jr. says there are up and down sides to the paint scheme. Sometimes he doesn't want to be reminded of his dad when he is ready to go to work. But then he says there are good memories of that Talladega win that go with the scheme too. Bobby says when he is inside the car it doesn't matter, because he can't see the color anyway from there.
Five years ago. Wow! Time flys. Things change. Now we have lost Bobby Hamilton.
Today I am concluding my week long period of remembering Bobby at this time of his passing. I would like to think that I have composed these blogs to remember Bobby and preserve these memories in an electroninc format for Bobby's family, as I have been copying them to Bobby Jr.s board. However, it may have just been my therapy. Hopefully they have served all three purposes.
A teammate of Hamilton's at Andy Petree Racing in 2000 and 2001, Joe Nemechek said last week that it felt like he had just pushed Hamilton to victory at Talladega.
Hamilton spent three seasons with the Morgan-McClure No. 4 team before joining Andy Petree's two-car effort for the 2001 season. Rocked that year by the death of Dale Earnhardt at Daytona, NASCAR went to Talladega that April on eggshells. It was the first restrictor plate race after the death of the Intimidator and it was filled with safety concerns, new rules and fear of tragedy around every turn.
Still, there was a race to be run, and Hamilton would be in it. Driving the No. 55 car with young crew chief Jimmy Elledge, Hamilton was enjoying a good first season with the team, and knew the car was good right from the first practice.
Bobby Hamilton parked the car after practice in preparation for the 500. Hamilton headed to the truck. "He wouldn't tell me anything about the car, so I followed him into the truck," said Elledge about that day. "He was changing clothes, and I asked him if we needed to do anything to the car. "I told him it had a couple more horsepower and he said we'd be fine. You had to pry it out of him, but he knew we were going to be good and we won the race the next day."
As the race unfolded that Sunday, an event many feared would be a single-file parade turned into a fun-filled event where the racing outweighed the risks, helping the community begin to heal in the face of the Earnhardt tragedy. In a rare caution-free performance at the fastest track on the circuit, it was Hamilton who came out the upset winner. He led just three laps, yet held off Tony Stewart in an amazing finish to hit the checkered flag first. Hamilton gave it his all in that race; so much so that in Victory Lane, he slowly slid to the ground and needed oxygen immediately after exiting the car. Emotionally and physically exhausted, the veteran asked for a minute, whiped his face with a towel and still had no problem showing both honesty and spunk, a defining feature of his independent streak that endeared him to so many.
"This is emotional," said Hamilton that day after the win. "The media has been really hard on me with restrictor plate races; they more or less said I suck. I think my confidence was beat down. I've always sucked as a speedway driver so, to win here, the critics can just kiss my tail."
Not surprisingly, the win was the first for Hamilton's car owner, Andy Petree. After five years of owning a team and employing seven different drivers, it was Hamilton who became the magic formula capable of taking his program to Victory Lane.
Elledge earned his first and only career Cup win with Hamilton and Petree. "Bobby really meant a lot to me," Elledge said. "He's the guy I won my first race with, and so far it's still my only win. Bobby taught me a lot about a lot of things. When he came to the team in 2001, that team was two years old, and he came in and really embraced the guys. He really had some neat qualities.
"He came over every week and spent the day with us and took us to lunch and stuff. He was a real solid figure that that team needed at the time, and I needed, too. He'd calm me down when I'd get upset."
Thanks for helping calm us down Jimmy . We all miss Bobby. I Can't wait to have a Pepsi with him on the new earth.
On Monday, the NASCAR racing community remembered one of its own and one of its champions, Bobby Hamilton, who died from cancer on Sunday at his home in Mt. Juliet, Tenn. Almost to a person, his competitors, friends and track operators remembered a man that was a fierce competitor and sometimes a gruff taskmaster, but also a devoted family man and a compassionate friend.
Robbie Loomis, crew chief for Hamilton's first Cup Series victory "I won my first race with Bobby at Phoenix. The neatest thing about Hamilton was he kept the fun in racing. We had just as much fun probably through the bad times as when we won, [we just] enjoyed it more when we won. I remember the night he won. He went back to the hotel and ordered pizza and was happy as could be.
"Hamilton was never about the TV or interviews. He got in there and did his deal. I think that was the neatest part about it. A lot of drivers come in nowadays and try to emulate someone's style or they try to wear long hair or short hair or sideburns. Hamilton just came in and stayed true to himself and never wavered from that.
"Hamilton was a unique guy. He was special. He did his deal, and I think if you look at the way his cancer went it was just like the way he lived his life. He did it quietly and nobody knew a lot about what was going on. He just did his deal. Now he's up there in heaven probably thinking he's glad it's over with."
Jimmy Elledge, Hamilton's crew chief for his 2001 Talladega victory "Bobby really meant a lot to me. He's the guy I won my first race with and so far it's still my only win. Bobby taught me a lot about a lot of things. When he came to the team in 2001 that team was two years old and he came in and really embraced the guys.
"He really had some neat qualities. He came over every week and spent the day with us and took us to lunch and stuff. He was a real solid figure that that team needed at the time, and I needed, too. He'd calm me down when I'd get upset.
"It's a huge loss, but you just never know. A couple years ago he was the champion, then he's diagnosed with cancer and bam, it's done. I hate it for the whole family. He got a special treat with his little granddaughter. When Dale [Earnhardt] passed away I know how I felt that my kids never got a chance to know him. The time he had with his granddaughter was precious, and that's the way you've got to look at it."
Sterling Marlin, Nextel Cup driver and Tennessee native "Bobby was a great guy and a good friend. This sport is really going to miss him. He was a hard, clean racer and a really talented driver. We started racing right about the same time and he was a fierce competitor. He knew what he wanted to do and he made it happen.
"But at the same time he'd give anyone the shirt off his back. He was a sincere man that genuinely cared about people. We flew a lot of miles together to and from races and test sessions and made some good memories together. Everyone in the racing world will miss him."
Joe Nemechek, Nextel Cup driver and former teammate "It's hard to put into words how you feel when something like this happens. It's just hard to believe. It seems like yesterday I was helping to push Bobby to victory at Talladega back in '01 [2001 Talladega 500].
"It hits close to home when something like this happens. It's like when I lost my brother [John Nemechek, after a Craftsman Truck Series accident in 1997] -- anytime you're close to someone and you know them well it just makes your heart hurt.
"Bobby was a heckuva racecar driver. He was a family man and loved his kids and his grandkids. It's a sad time. He'll be missed, but we'll keep him in our thoughts and prayers."
Mark Martin, Nextel Cup driver "Bobby was one of the most down to earth people that I have ever been around. He treated everyone the same no matter who you were or what you did. He was just a really good guy.
"He was a very unique person and he was a great competitor on the racetrack, and it's just a huge loss for everyone in the racing family and our thoughts and prayers are with his family at this time."
Grant ####, president, Talladega Superspeedway, where Hamilton scored his fourth and final Cup Series victory "Bobby Hamilton was a true racer, an 'old school' racer, and his contributions to NASCAR over the years encompassed much more than statistics in a history book.
"Bobby will always be remembered at Talladega Superspeedway for his exciting win here in 2001. In a race that was caution-free for [its entire] 188 laps, he secured his fourth and final win and brought Andy Petree his first victory as a car owner in the series.
"He made quite an impact on the sport, as well as the people he touched on a personal level and will certainly be missed. We will continue to keep the Hamilton family in our thoughts and prayers during this difficult time."
I am in shock. I just read this news on CBSsportsline.com and had to stop and share the news with my wife who was shocked like I am. I think we both wanted to cry, for though Bobby does not know us, we knew him.
I was under the impression that Bobby was cancer free and that the cancer had recently reappeared. I assumed he would beat it or that it might be a long battle. But that's what Bobby wanted me to think. He was a private man and he did not want us to worry about him. He also never was one to complain. That's a tough old southern man way of doing things and I would expect nothing else than that out of Bobby for he was a good old southern man.
Stopping to think, I am amazed looking back at the way Bobby put everything in order before passing. He announced that Ken Schrader will drive the 18 next year and that Chase Miller will drive the 4. What a way to go out. The last thing a man does for his family is make sure things are set up so that after he is gone it is as easy as possible for his family to carry on.
I have seen the love Bobby had for Bobby Jr and vice - versa. It was easy to see in both their eyes. And their eyes are both gleaming in front of me on the Fastenal poster on the wall behind my computer that I talked the guys at the local Fastenal store out of just this past summer.
During the summer of 05 I talked to the owner of the race track in Carthage Tennessee about buying the race track there. Bobby was looking into it too. Wouldn't it have been great to have been able to partner with him even at a 10% level.
God be with and bless the Bobby Hamilton family at this difficult time. Thanks so much for the memory I have watching Bobby win in the Kodak 4 in 1998 at Martinsville with my three year old beautiful little blonde daughter on my knee yelling "Go Bobby! Go Bobby!"
(The tears are flowing and I can't get my breath. I love you guys.)
O.K. I am back after gathering myself for a few seconds.
Later while watching another race, my daughter got her Bobby's confused and decided she liked the green Bobby better than the yellow Bobby. She is a Bobby Labonte fan to this day at age 11 and had to have a Bobby Labonte shirt when we went to the Vegas race last year.
I'll never forget the Sage Burning Gang (on the old MMM (Morgan Mc Clure Motorsports message board)) and all the efriends I have gained from that and all the realities we have shared with one another in our own little real worlds. In my mind I am Burning Sage for Bobby Right now.
The Bible talks a lot about wine. I am sure there will be wine in heaven. Maybe I can have a glass with Bobby one day when I get to meet him there.
Cheers!
Bobby Hamilton dies of cancer at 49 Jan. 7, 2007 CBS SportsLine.com wire reports
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Bobby Hamilton paid his early bills driving a wrecker, got his NASCAR break driving a car used in Days of Thunder and won the 2004 Craftsman Truck championship in his own truck.
Following his death Sunday of cancer at the age of 49, Hamilton was remembered for his love of the sport, kindness and blue-collar persona.
Nextel Cup driver Sterling Marlin, a fellow Tennessee native, said Sunday night that a lot of people didn't get to know Hamilton well, but that the driver who started with nothing and never had the best equipment would be missed.
"He would give you the shirt off his back, and he helped me out a lot through the years," Marlin said.
Born in Nashville in 1957, Hamilton got his start on local tracks and qualified fifth in his first Cup race at Phoenix in 1989 with a car used in the movie "Days of Thunder." He drove in all of NASCAR's top three divisions, making 371 Cup starts and winning four races in what is now the Nextel Cup series, including the 2001 Talladega 500.
Bobby Hamilton won a handful of races on NASCAR's top circuit and an '04 Craftsman Truck title. (AP) The death was shocking to people who had not seen him recently. His racing team announced only last month that Ken Schrader would drive its truck this season.
"NASCAR is saddened by the passing of Bobby Hamilton," said Jim Hunter, NASCAR's vice president of communications. "Bobby was a great competitor, dedicated team owner and friend. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all of the Hamilton family."
Hamilton won 10 times in the truck series, including four victories in 2004 when he became the first owner-driver to win a NASCAR series title since the late Alan Kulwicki won the Winston Cup championship in 1992.
"I think at the end of the Cup deal, he was burnt out on the system. But he always had a good vision," Marlin said. "He always wanted to do things his own way, so he became his own boss, got into trucks, and it worked out well for him."
Hamilton was diagnosed in February with head and neck cancer. A malignant growth was found when swelling from dental surgery did not go down.
He raced in the first three truck races of the season, with a best finish of 14th at Atlanta Motor Speedway, before turning over the wheel to his son, Bobby Hamilton Jr. The senior Hamilton then started chemotherapy and radiation treatment.
Liz Allison, widow of former NASCAR star Davey Allison, co-hosted a local radio show with Hamilton that started in January 2006.
"The thing I loved about Bobby Sr. so much is that he treated everybody the same. It didn't matter if you were one of the drivers he competed against or a fan he'd never laid eyes on before," Allison said.
"He didn't have a pretentious bone in his body. I think that's why people were drawn to him. He was just very real and had a way of relating to everyone."
His son also replaced him on the radio show to fulfill his obligation.
By August, he returned to work at Bobby Hamilton Racing in Mount Juliet, about 20 miles east of Nashville. It was his fourth race shop, a facility lacking for nothing and built to prove he could stay in Tennessee and compete in a place he kept so clean he often walked around barefoot.
Doctors indicated his CAT scans looked good. But microscopic cancer cells remained on the right side of his neck.
"Cancer is an ongoing battle, and once you are diagnosed you always live with the thought of the disease in your body," Hamilton said in an article posted on NASCAR's Web site last month. "It is the worst thing you could ever imagine."
That was about as much as Hamilton shared with anyone outside his family and close friends.
"I love what I do; I love this business," he said in March 2006 when disclosing he had cancer. "NASCAR has been good to me, and I just don't feel comfortable when I am not around it."
Hamilton's Nextel Cup wins, in addition to Talladega, came at Phoenix, Rockingham and Martinsville. His best season was in 1996 when he finished ninth in the season standings. He won his first Cup race that year, at Phoenix.
Hamilton drove in the top-level NASCAR series from 1989-05, earning $14.3 million and racing to 20 top-five finishes.
He became a full-time driver-owner in the truck series in 2003.
Another NASCAR favorite, 1973 Winston Cup champion Benny Parsons, was diagnosed with cancer in his left lung in July. He was checked into intensive care last week at a North Carolina hospital.
In addition to Bobby Jr., Hamilton is survived by wife Lori and a granddaughter.
AP NEWS The Associated Press News Service
Copyright 2005-2006, The Associated Press, All Rights Reserved
2004 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Champion Dies at 49
01-08-2007 Mt. Juliet, TN
Bobby Hamilton Racing is saddened to announce that its owner Bobby Hamilton Sr. passed away this afternoon at his home in Nashville, Tennessee from complications of Cancer.
“He will be greatly missed as a husband, a father, a grandfather, an owner and a friend,” said the Hamilton Family. “We want to thank everyone for their love and support of our racing operation and the outpouring of care and concern during his cancer battle. One of Bobby’s greatest loves in life was racing and we will continue on in his honor.”
Hamilton won four Nextel Cup Races and the 2004 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Championship.
- Bobby Hamilton Racing Photo
Visitation Information:
Tuesday January 9, 2006 The public may pay their respects to Bobby Hamilton, Sr. on Tuesday, January 9, 2007 5:00 pm thru 8:oo PM - Doors will be open to the public.
Location: Hermitage Funeral Home 535 Shute Lane • Old Hickory, TN 37138 Telephone: 615-889-0361
A Winner On and Off the Track. A Good Friend. A Champion.
Bobby Hamilton, Sr. (1957 - 2007) 2004 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Champion
We will forever remember two conversations with Bobby Hamilton. The first was following his victory at Daytona in 2005. In all of the commotion that followed the victory lane ceremonies, and really in deciding whether Bobby was the winner or Jimmy Spencer, we never had a chance to do a winner’s interview with him. Many drivers would just say ‘tough luck, catch me next week’ and be done with it. Not Bobby. We were able to reach him by phone and he invited us to his motorcoach to do a complete interview. It was a memorable night for many reasons, but to cap it off spending a few private moments with Bobby and Lori was a perfect end to an incredible weekend at Daytona.
The second conversation is the last we had with him at Atlanta in October, 2006. Bobby requested that we come in and do an interview to talk about a wide range of topics, including the health of his race team and his own personal health. He was always open and never shied away from any question asked of him. He even went out of his way to do a plug for TruckSeries.com, saying whenever he couldn’t be at the track he relied on our site to keep him updated.
Bobby was a great guy, and always treated us with respect. Our heartfelt condolences go to his family and his extended family at Bobby Hamilton Racing. He was a friend to our website, a terrific champion, as hard-nosed a driver as anyone out there, and it was always a pleasure to work with him. He will be missed.
- Charles Krall and Steve Keller, TruckSeries.com
01-08-2007
Bobby Hamilton: 1957 - 2007
John Close, CloseFinishes.com
Bobby Hamilton poses with his 2004 championship trophies (High Sierra Photo)
Racers accept death on the speedway. It's mortality off the racetrack they have trouble dealing with. Such is the case today as the motorsports community struggles with the passing of Bobby Hamilton, Sr. Hamilton, 49, died Sunday around 3 p.m. at his home in Nashville, TN losing a year-long battle with cancer.
Hamilton broke onto the NASCAR Winston Cup scene when he drove one of the camera cars for the movie 'Days of Thunder.' Piloting the No. 51 Exxon Chevy fielded by Rick Hendrick for Paramount Pictures, Hamilton qualified fifth for the for the 1989 Autowerks 500 at Phoenix (AZ) International Raceway. His car, several hundred pounds heavier than those of his competitors because of the additional camera equipment, provided many of the shots that eventually were edited into the runaway success movie that introduced the sport to millions of people.
Hamilton's Cup career started in earnest a year later when he qualified Gary Bechtel's Diamond Ridge Racing No. 68 Pontiac eighth at Charlotte for the Coca-Cola 600 eventually finishing 39th after crashing out of the event on Lap 102.
Eventually, Hamilton would make 371 NASCAR Cup Series career starts posting four wins, 20 top-5, 67 top-10 finishes and more than $15 million in earnings. Included in his career highlights were winning the 1991 Cup Series Rookie of the Year award and giving Richard Petty his first win as a team owner in 1996 at Phoenix.
Meanwhile, Hamilton's NASCAR Busch Series career totaled 86 starts and featured a win at Richmond (VA) Fairgrounds Raceway in 1989.
Bobby Hamilton's 2004 No. 4 Dodge. (High Sierra Photo)
In recent years, Hamilton became synonymous with the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series - his efforts culminating with winning the division's 2004 championship. In all, Hamilton totaled 102 Truck Series starts scoring 10 victories - the first at Martinsville (VA) Speedway in 2000 and the last at Mansfield (OH) Speedway in 2004. His biggest win in the Truck Series came in the 2004 season-opening Daytona 250 - the first-ever night race for the trucks at the 2.5-mile superspeedway.
All his statistical accomplishments aside, Hamilton will long be remembered as a hard-nosed competitor on the track and a 'regular guy' off it. Never afraid to challenge NASCAR authority, Hamilton passed through pit road on three consecutive laps at the appropriate speed to protest a pit road speeding penalty imposed during a Truck Series event a couple years ago. Hamilton could care less that the action dropped him down in the final running order - he had already lost the race because of the infraction and there was a point to be made.
While Hamilton could be one of the division's most vocal critics in the garage area, it was never offered in malice and always directed for the betterment of the sport. In that spirit, he helped countless individuals - including this writer - gain a foothold in NASCAR giving them a chance to work on his race teams or suggesting them to someone else.
In the end, Bobby Hamilton loved racing - especially the home he found in the Truck Series at the end of his career. In an interview this writer conducted with Ted Musgrave at Daytona last February, Musgrave stated "I asked Bobby Hamilton why he decided to come to the Truck Series and he told me 'It's a place where you can wear your jeans and your T-shirt, hang out with your guys, go to the track, practice, qualify, race, go out for a burger, and bench race afterward. This is the way it should be.'"
At just age 49, Bobby Hamilton shouldn't be gone from our ranks. He should be at Daytona next month giving it his all behind the wheel on the track and mixing it up with "his guys" off it.
Sadly, that won't be the case.
Auto racing has lost a champion driver and - more importantly - a quality person. Bobby Hamilton will be sorely missed and fondly remembered by all whose path he crossed.
01-08-2007
Richard Petty Comments on the Passing of Bobby Hamilton
TruckSeries.com Report
Bobby Hamilton was the driver of the famed '43' owned by Richard Petty from 1995-1997. He won for Petty Enterprises in 1996 at the Phoenix (Ariz.) International Speedway and also at the North Carolina Speedway (Rockingham) in 1997. Richard Petty commented on the passing of Bobby Hamilton.
"The entire Petty family and organization is saddened by the passing of Bobby Hamilton. Bobby was not only a huge part of the racing family, but of the Petty family as well. He will always be a part of our family. He had a heart of a champion and that affected everyone around him. You could always count on Bobby. He was just that type of guy. He never let you down and gave you everything he had on-and-off the track. His family is in our hearts and prayers."
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Bobby Hamilton won a handful of races on NASCAR's top circuit and an '04 Craftsman Truck title. (AP) The death was shocking to people who had not seen him recently. His racing team announced only last month that Ken Schrader would drive its truck this season. 
Bobby Hamilton Racing is saddened to announce that its owner Bobby Hamilton Sr. passed away this afternoon at his home in Nashville, Tennessee from complications of Cancer. 
