Tag Archives: Geoffrey Bodine

*I don’t care if he doesn’t outright own the team anymore, it’s good to see The King in Victory Lane. Seeing him with a shot at a championship will be even better, whether the 9 wins it or not (and whether it’s a legit championship method or not). NASCAR is better with Richard Petty as a focal point. Congrats to the 9 team!* _— BudBoy09_ *A:* I don’t think anyone reading this column disagrees with a word you said, buddy.

The year was 1994; I was only 13, but the whirlwind of the Brickyard 400 remains as vivid in my mind as if it happened yesterday. From the moment the cars first hit the track for practice, drama was in the air for fans and drivers alike, with everyone putting their best effort into becoming the first name on Indianapolis’ newest racing trophy. An eye-popping 86 cars made official qualifying attempts through two rounds, transforming even the drama of making the field into national news; for, unlike now, NASCAR’s qualifying rules of old gave just a handful of teams guaranteed entry into the race through their small but effective provisional system. That put all drivers on an even playing field, opening the door for open-wheel legends like A.J. Foyt and Danny Sullivan to crack the starting lineup and hope to translate their skill behind a stock car on racing’s biggest stage.

Jimmie Johnson ran down Denny Hamlin with 15 laps to go. He then moved the No. 11 car aside, with both cars getting sideways and smoking the tires before Johnson pulled ahead to take the lead. There’s nothing so wrong with the new NASCAR racing the sport’s oldest racetrack can’t fix it. Cars and drivers running side by side and nose to tail? Can I get a hallelujah, brothers and sisters?

Rick Hendrick's team has fielded cars for some of the iconic names in racing's modern era: Darrell Waltrip, Al Unser Jr., Cup champion Terry Labonte, and the late Tim Richmond. In the process, the man became a pioneer, fielding multi-car teams that seemed to work together much better than others before. This became the foundation upon which Hendrick would build an empire; with his centerpiece, the heir-apparent to the throne who would make his arrival at the final race of 1992 at Atlanta. Teaming him with a young crew chief who cut his teeth in modifieds, Rick Hendrick was about to set the racing world on its ear, as the duo of driver Jeff Gordon and crew chief Ray Evernham had come together for a magical pairing.

When the Craftsman Truck Series takes the green flag Saturday evening at Gateway International Raceway, Kenny Wallace will make his return to the series after an 11-year absence. Wallace, set to run the No. 51 Flanders Provisions Co. Chevrolet for Billy Ballew, is the youngest of the Wallace brothers; one of just four families in series history to have three brothers compete. The Wallaces, the Greens, the Sauters and the Bodines have all left their mark on the series over time.

Geoff Bodine was born April 18th, 1949 in Chemung, N.Y. He began his career racing in a midget class at the Chemung Speedrome, built and operated by his father and grandfather. He is the oldest of the trio of Bodine brothers, with middle brother Brett, now working for NASCAR, and youngest brother Todd, the 2006 Craftsman Truck Series champion. His modified career was a storied one that resulted in him becoming the all-time single-season wins leader in Modified history, with 55 victories in 1978.