Harry Hyde(January 17, 1925 – May 13, 1996) was a leading crew chief inNASCARstock car racing in the 1960s through the 1980s, winning 56 races and 88pole positions.[1]He was the 1970 championship crew chief forBobby Isaac.[1]He inspired the Harry Hogge character in the movieDays of Thunder.[1]
 Hyde in 1986 as crew chief forTim Richmond | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 17, 1925 Brownsville, Kentucky,U.S. |
| Died | May 13, 1996(aged 71) |
| Occupation | Crew chief |
| Years active | 1966–1993 |
Early life
editBorn inBrownsville, Kentuckyon January 17, 1925, he learned to be a mechanic in theArmyduringWorld War II.Upon returning home he worked as an auto mechanic and drove race cars for a couple of years, then continued racing as a car builder for local competitions in Kentucky,Indiana,andOhio.
Racing career
editIn 1965 he was hired byNord Krauskopfto be the crew chief of the K&K Insurance team. By 1969 the team began to see considerable success with driverBobby Isaac,winning 17 races. In 1970 the team won the NASCAR championship and Hyde was named Mechanic of the Year.
The K&K team was one of the leaders through most of the 1970s, but in 1977 Krauskopf sold the team toJ. D. Stacy.The team continued to win some races, but in 1978 the relationship between Stacy and Hyde deteriorated and Hyde left the team in mid-June. Late in 1978 Hyde would sue Stacy, and eventually would win.
In 1979 Amelio Scott hired Hyde to be the crew chief for his family team in 1979 with his son Tighe Scott as the driver. Their first race together was the 1979 Daytona 500. Scott finished sixth in the race. At the following race at Rockingham Speedway, Scott recorded his best NASCAR result when he finished fourth. They competed in 15 more events that season and ten more in 1980 before parting ways.
In 1980 Hyde opened his own racing engine shop and supplied engines to various teams. In 1984, he was hired byRick Hendrickto be crew chief for a team he was partner in, All Star Racing. The partnership did not work out, and Hendrick bought the team out formingHendrick Motorsports.The team won three races in 1984 withGeoff Bodinedriving.
Hyde was then paired with new driverTim Richmond,a young open-wheel racer fromAshland, Ohio,as Hendrick went to a two-car operation. The brashness of the new driver from outside the southern stock car circuit did not initially sit well with the notably irascible Hyde. However, after a few races they developed a relationship and began to win races. This season was the source of much of the story line for the motion pictureDays of Thunder.Hyde's character was portrayed byRobert Duvall.[1]
The team was very successful in 1986. Richmond won 7 races and finished third in points behind legendsDale EarnhardtandDarrell Waltrip.
Richmond, who was noted for womanizing, was diagnosed with AIDS during 1987 and missed most of the season with illness which he explained to the public as pneumonia. Richmond returned to the track in the Miller High Life 500 at Pocono. Driving like a man on a mission, he overcame a shifter problem to put the Folgers No. 25 Chevrolet back into victory lane. The very next week he outclassed the field in the Budweiser 400 at Riverside, bringing home his final Winston Cup victory.Jimmy Meansdrove Richmond's Folgers Chevrolet in the Oakwood Homes 500 at Charlotte, but the No. 25 was reversed to No. 52, which was Jimmy's normal car number. He crashed on lap 20, finishing 40th. Car ownerRick Hendrickdrove the Folgers No. 25 in the Winston Western 500 at Riverside, not fairing much better. He left the race on lap 75 with transmission trouble, finishing 33rd.
Ken Schraderbecame the driver for the No. 25 team in 1988, but Hendrick had become a three car operation, and Hyde sometimes felt ignored. He left after the season to become crew chief forStavola Brothers Racingwhere he worked through the first half of the 1991 season, before moving to Chad Little's No. 19 Bullseye BBQ/Tyson Foods Ford.
Hyde had 48 career victories. His forte was setting up cars for specific tracks. His race shop is still part of the Hendrick Motorsports facility, and a road within the complex is known as Hyde's Way.
Hyde died in 1996 of a heart attack brought on by a blood clot, and was inducted into theInternational Motorsports Hall of Famein 2004.
Teams, numbers, drivers
edit- K&K Insurance, No. 71,Gordon Johncock(1965), Earl Balmer (1965–1966),Bobby Isaac(1967–1972),Buddy Baker(1972–1974),Dave Marcis(1974–1976)
- Jim Stacy,No. 5:Neil Bonnett,No. 6:Ferrel Harris(1977–1978)
- Russ Togs No. 30,Tighe Scott(1979–1980)
- All Star Racing, No. 5,Geoff Bodine(1984)
- Hendrick Motorsports,No. 5Geoff Bodine(1985), No. 25,Tim Richmond(1986–1987),Benny Parsons(1987),Rick Hendrick(1987),Ken Schrader(1988)
- Stavola Brothers, No. 8,Bobby Hillin Jr.(1989–1990),Rick Wilson(1991)
- Chad Little, No. 19Chad Little(1991)
- Greg Sacks, Hut Stricklin, Dave Marcis, No. 41 Larry Hedrick Motorsports (1992)
References
edit- ^abcd"Harry Hyde, 71, an Auto Racing Engineer".The New York Times.May 15, 1996.Retrieved2009-02-20.
External links
edit- Harry Hydecrew chief statistics at Racing-Reference
- Hall of Fame site
- Speedway Media site
- Hyde interview on racing with Richmond
- Hendrick Motorsports article
- IMDb biography for Harry Hyde