robert gee nascar
Our RR member Dennis Andrews made a point to give thanks Tim Leeming in a recent Darlington Labor Day Southern 500 mail service for recognizing and naming automobile owners - in the example of the detail post, Reid Shaw who would field cars driven past Dennis' dad, Wayne Andrews.
In another post I posted photos of Dale Earnhardt winning the first ever race in what is now the Nationwide Series driving a #15 Wrangler Jeans car owned and prepared by the late Robert Gee at Daytona in 1982.
Gee was Earnhardt'southward one-time father-in-constabulary and grandfather of Dale, Jr. and Kelley. A teddy bear of a human being with a gruff scowl worse than Earnhardt's, he had a heart of gilt and helped many aspiring racers. Robert Gee besides loved to party and to sing. He called everybody "guvnor."
Gee had a shop backside his pocket-sized home on Hudspeth Road in Harrisburg, NC inside earshot of Charlotte Motor Speedway. In the pocket-size store, side-past-side, were two NASCAR superspeedway Late Model Sportsman cars - 1 for Dale Earnhardt and one for Darrell Waltrip. They were sleek and fast. They won. They were cute cars.
Nosotros put our Wrangler Jeans bluish & yellowish colors on Earnhardt'due south Robert Gee ride. He won big races at Daytona, Charlotte and Rockingham wheeling that automobile.
That wasn't the first time, though, that I had seen Dale Earnhardt in a Robert Gee car. In 1977, Robert Gee and Dale Earnhardt showed upwardly on a frigid Nov Thanksgiving weekend with their #17 Camaro at Wilson County Speedway and won the Southern Late Model 200 giving a severe whipping to other North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia regulars in their Novas, Chevelles, Mustangs and Fairlanes.
SOUTHERN Belatedly MODEL 200 - TOP 10 RESULTS - WILSON COUNTY SPEEDWAY
Wilson, NC
200 Laps - Half Mile Dirt Track - 40 Cars
November 1977
(Every bit Reported in the side by side day'south Wilson Daily Times)
1) Dale Earnhardt Kannanapolis, NC #17 Robert Gee Camaro $2,500
ii) Tommy Houston Hickory, NC #95 Nova $i,500
3) Monk Tate Ruffin, NC #86 Nova $1,150
4) John Matthews Raleigh, NC #16 Chevelle $ 850
5) Earl Arnold Raleigh, NC #i Nova $ 650
vi) J.E. Bristles Bailey, NC Nova $ 590
seven) Dennis Smith Goldsboro, NC Nova $ 400
8) Sam Ard Asheboro, NC Pontiac $ 300
nine) Tommy Tudor Emporia, VA Chevelle $ 200
10) Stick Elliott Shelby, NC Mustang $ 150
When we moved Dale to the Richard Childress Winston Cup performance in August 1981, Robert Gee went along to hang bodies on the superspeedway Wrangler Pontiacs for RCR.
At one fourth dimension, A.J. Foyt would permit nobody merely Robert Gee practice any fabrication work on his Grand National and Cup cars.
Nigh people would not guess that Rick Hendrick'due south first ever NASCAR win came with Dale Earnhardt behind the bike.
Dale start introduced me to Rick Hendrick in the garage at Charlotte in 1982 as "a fellow who wants to go NASCAR racing." Rick asked if I'd explain sponsorship and promotions by a big sponsor, which I did.
Past 1983, Rick Hendrick had bought into the Robert Gee Superspeedway Tardily Model Sportsman operation. When Dale Earnhardt won the May 28, 1983 Mello Yello 300 NASCAR Budweiser Late Model Sportsman race in the blue & yellow #15 Wrangler Jeans Pontiac at Charlotte, Rick Hendrick was co-owner of the team. It was Rick Hendrick'southward first NASCAR win . Dale Earnhardt drove the car and I sponsored information technology for Wrangler.
Before 1983 was over, Hendrick had formulated plans to become Winston Cup racing in 1984. He couldn't get Dale Earnhardt as his driver, but he did inquire if Dale could assist shake down his new equipment, with the fabrication done by Earnhardt's former father-in-police, Robert Gee? The answer was "Yes" and Dale Earnhardt gave Rick Hendrick'due south Winston Cup cars their initial shakedown at Charlotte Motor Speedway in late 1983. Robert Gee would go on to caput up fabrication for Hendrick Motorsports until his death from a 2d stroke in 1994.
In 1984, With Geoff Bodine in the driver's seat and Robert Gee building cars, Hendrick would win in his first flavor of Winston Loving cup. The initial win came in the fall race at Martinsville.
Then ... when you run across all those winning teams and drivers at Hendrick Motorsports and the big success of Rick Hendrick in racing, you need to think dorsum to Dale Earnhardt's tardily father-in-law, Robert Gee and his footling shop on Hudspeth Road near Charlotte Motor Speedway. And, when you see Dale Earnhardt, Jr. win for Rick Hendrick, don't you "young" fans be surprised to acquire that he wasn't the first Earnhardt to win for Rick Hendrick in NASCAR.
Back a few years ago, NASCAR.com did a story nigh Robert Gee. Information technology's good reading. However, information technology doesn't brainstorm to scratch the surface of who collection for Robert Gee over the years or who he helped. One of Robert Gee'due south drivers on the clay circuit was our ain RR fellow member Baton Scott .
Robert Gee Pied Piper of NASCAR
Along Highway 29 at the corner of Morehead Road stood a little diner, The Apollo - merely, across the street was Charlotte Motor Speedway. During race dates, everyone from drivers, crew chiefs and parts cleaners could be found eating breakfast or dejeuner. It became a magnet for the hopefuls looking for work and the break needed to get into their honey NASCAR. From at that place they would be sent to a house effectually the corner where a tough looking large guy cigar in mouth would be working on fabricating cars.
This man was ROBERT GEE , the man whose son in police force would get 7 times Winston Cup champion Dale Earnhardt and grandfather to Dale Earnhardt Jr and Tony Eury Jr. He would likewise play a big part in the lives of Darrell Waltrip and Rick Hendrick, along with many others helping them get a human foot in the door,
Robert Gee was the best trunk man of his era. Independent teams would flock to him for help where he would labor over the cars as if they were his children. The cars were and so well made, there was never any question as to whether they would fit the templates, every bit they always did.
He had no didactics in aerodynamics, just he could await at the race car and effigy out how to reduce elevate. He was a perfectionist. Its no coincidence when a youngster called Rick Hendrick needed work on his car he headed to Gees body shop. Mutual respect was presently forged betwixt them, and years later on the two would come together with a fledgling HMS operation. Hendrick sponsored Gees dirt track automobile and they co-owned the Busch car in which Dale Earnhardt won Hendricks first ever NASCAR race.
Rick Hendrick employed Gee as his fabricator on the loving cup cars by day and Gee worked at his ain shop at nighttime working on their Busch cars. Rick idea so much of him, that when Gee suffered his strokes, Hendrick kept him on the payroll and was a fixture at the hospital. It was during those difficult times the ii families grew closer together and a strong bail was formed.
Whilst working on Ken Schaders automobile in January 1994 Robert Gee suffered his commencement stroke,and so a second and fatal stroke arrived in Oct that same yr.
Following are some of the people who got their suspension into NASCAR due to Robert Gee:
Brett Bodine worked as a fabricator under Gee waiting for his ride,he became race winner and now a NASCAR executive.
Darell Waltrip fielded his cars out of Gees modest backyard shop for three seasons, he went on to get 3 time champion.
Jimmy Makar lived with Gee for four months when he first got into the sport, went on to be vice president of Joe Gibbs racing.
Tony Eury jr . - at sixteen hung circular his granddads shop learning the trade says you learned the lesson, no thing what you did, you did information technology the best.
Robert Jr and Jimmy , Gee'due south sons, today hang bodies in Dale Earnhardt Jrs JR Motorsports shop.
Dale Earnhardt , the former seven times champion, was married to Gees girl Brenda (1971-77). He oft went to his in-police force for help. It was Roberts connections that got Earnhardt his first ride in loving cup, promising owner Johnny Ray if he wrecks the machine I will sort it out. Earnhardt raced information technology to the front, but was defenseless upwards in a crash. Gee was true to his word he rebuilt the machine.
Dale Jr says he felt intimidated past him. Grandpa Gee ever looked tough. Cigar in mouth, at the grill cooking, you felt if you got to about the big homo he would slap the southward##t out of you. He was scary for a kid. He looked similar he was about to bite your caput off. Inferior finally learned what a kind generous and gentle human being his grandfather really was when he got to know him whilst Gee recovered from prostrate cancer.
After Dale Earnhardts death in 2001, Kelly and Dale jr. turned to Hendrick for advice. They remembered the stiff bond of trust that had formed and how well their granddaddy had been treated.
Jimmy Gee remembers People who knew my Daddy, knew what he had done in NASCAR. He but loved to assistance people and assistance go folks started. Joe public dont have a clue the affect he had on racing. He now lives through his friend Rick Hendrick and grandsons Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Tony Eury Jr. They do it for him, with every lap they plough on the track.
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"Any Day is Proficient for Stock Motorcar Racing"
updated by @dave-fulton: 11/22/21 04:14:23PM
Source: http://racersreunion.com/community/forum/stock-car-racing-history/26907/jr-not-1st-earnhardt-to-drive-for-rick-the-robert-gee-dale-earnhardt-rick-hendrick-connection-led-to-dale-earnhardt-scori
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