The Jacksonville Speedway will be honoring a late friend of the track this weekend.
65-year old Ralph Wilhite was tragically killed in an accident at the Speedway on June 28th. Wilhite had a love for racing, and was a member of the race crews of Bobby Hawks and Paul Nienhiser for many years. In many circles, Wilhite was known for his impeccable work on race engines and his friendship with all racers he met.
Speedway Director Ken Dobson says that Wilhite was at the heart of the local racing community family: “Ralph’s loss was felt throughout the whole racing community. It truly is a family, and Ralph really was one of the people at the center of it, particularly here in Jacksonville and had been there for decades. It hard to a lot of our racing family, and some of our younger drivers that maybe haven’t experienced a lot of personal tragedy. I think they are having to deal with that for the first time.”
A celebration of Wilhite’s life will take place at the track at 2PM this Saturday underneath the Grandstand. Everyone is invited to attend and share stories. Nienhiser Racing has created a tribute shirt for Wilhite that will be handed out for those who ordered at the celebration. The proceeds are going into a memorial fund in Wilhite’s name that will be used to pay for his granddaughter’s education.
Dobson says that the track will return back to action next month: “We are going to reconvene on August 9th after we get through Ralph’s memorial service and let everyone heal and start again. Hopefully, we can come back in good spirits and with a good outlook and an ability to actually have fun again down at the race track. Quite frankly, I don’t want it to be a place unless everyone there can enjoy themselves and have fun.”
For more information on the Jacksonville Speedway visit jacksonvillespeedway.com or find them on Facebook.
To leave a tribute to Ralph Wilhite, visit airsman-hires.com.