Farewell to the grumpy one!

The sport of drag racing lost last month a very special driver and innovator in Bill "Grumpy" Jenkins. NHRA called him a master of the internal combustion engine and a legend among the Chevrolet faithful. He was 81.

Bill Jenkins (1930-2012)

Grumpy played a leading role in lifting drag racing to the level of a sanctioned sport from its "dirty finger-nails" street racing days, according to Ron Watson, President of the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America, into which Jenkins was inducted in 1996.

Back in 2001, the NHRA conducted a poll of experts and ranked Bill Jenkins no. 8 among the nation's 50 top racers, even though he only won 13 NHRA events while behind the wheel. He earned that position because no other individual has contributed more to improving engines that made the straight-line, quarter mile racing from a standing start more popular. 

Grumpy's innovations included a front-suspension system that improved performance of a stock car by transferring weight to the rear tires, and a "slick-shift manual transmission" that allowed the driver to shift gears without lifting a foot from the gas pedal (clutchless, planetary gears transmission). He also installed a so-called cool can, containing ice, along the fuel line to lower gasoline temperature, hereby increasing horsepower. I actually remember my father running a Moroso built cool can on his Chevelle Malibu called "Whathehell".

Bill Jenkins rose to prominence in 1966 when his 327 ci, 350 horsepower Chevy II outran most 426 ci, 424 horsepower Dodge and Plymouth Street Hemis in dozens of local races around the country. And then in 1972, he exploited the "giant killer" approach when he won 6 of 8 national events with his 331 ci small-block Pro Stock Vega called "Grumpy's Toy".

He later opened an engine-building shop in his hometown of Malvern, PA, and dozens of top professional drivers took advantage of his technical skills.

About his nickname "Grumpy", he knew that almost everyone knew that his gruff front was just that. He relished the name.

Grumpy helped Dave win his 1st Wally

I never got to know him, but Dave Connolly did, as he was Dave's engine builder in 2005, the same year he won the WinterNationals and briefly led the "Powerade" point's series.

In Dave's own words on Facebook:
"... Lost one of the greats today. Bill "Grumpy" Jenkins was one of a kind. He was one of the funniest and smartest guys I know. And I'm honored not only to have known him but got the pleasure to race with him. I'll never forget those times or the things he thought me..."

Personally, I remember him from his days with Dave, standing behind the rookie at the starting line whilst listening to his engine's performance. 

The short, stocky, gravelly-voiced man who often chomped cigars will be missed. Godspeed Grumpy, the father of Pro Stock.

For more information please click here. If you're a drag racing fan, please check out NHRA's Dragster Insider for numerous great short stories and anecdotes on Grumpy. They're great fun. Click here.

Thanks for reading.

Source: New York Times, NHRA, Wikipedia