Dan Hamrick, Dodge Motorsports Engineering Nate Mecha/High Sierra Photo

The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series community lost a longtime friend and colleague last week.  Dan Hamrick, Dodge engineering liaison for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, passed away on Friday, June 10, 2005.  Services for the 59-year old Shelby, North Carolina native were held on Monday, June 13 at Bethlehem Baptist Church, Shelby, NC.

Hamrick's lifelong passion for racing started as a young boy working odd jobs at Charlotte Speedway in Charlotte, North Carolina.  Hamrick hailed from Kings Mountain in North Carolina, a bastion of NASCAR legends in the making.  He built a motorcycle business there, but stock car racing was what he enjoyed most.

From his boyhood experiences at Charlotte Speedway, Hamrick would go onto crew for drivers like Dick Trickle and others.  He developed an expertise along the way that caught NASCAR's attention.  Hamrick would serve as Technical Inspector and eventually Chief Inspector for the budding Craftsman Truck Series from 1997 until he left for Dodge Motorsports in 1999.

"Dan had his Motorcycle Shop across from my Dad's Salvage yard in Shelby, but we meet each other at the racetrack." said former NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Driver Kenny Allen (1995), "We were running in the ARCA series in the late 80's.  Dan's team didn't get in the race, so they came and helped us out.  We had basically an all-volunteer team and started running in the truck series about mid-way through the first season in 1995.  Dan became a NASCAR inspector in 1997 then went to work for Dodge Motorsports - He certainly loved his racing."

Hamrick would make friends in the ARCA series that would last a lifetime.

"Dan was a great friend to our race team all the way back to the ARCA days." said No. 29 K-Automotive team owner and Championship ARCA driver Bob Keselowski, "We parked our motor homes next to each other at those races nearly every weekend and shared food, stories and a lot of laughs.  It seemed as though we all moved up through the ranks together from ARCA and on into the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.  We were all able to work together through the Dodge engineering program and we were always very close friends.  Dan will be a face that is missed in the garage area, but he will be a friend that is missed by our family and our race team."

Dodge Motorsports turned to Hamrick to improve their racing fortunes.

"We looked to Dan at the end of 1999 to help bring the whole Dodge Motorsports program in the truck series together," said John Wehrly, Manager for Dodge Engineering "Dan had the racing knowledge, knew the drivers - his enthusiasm was a perfect fit" Wehrly continued, "Dan soon became, as many of our people do, emotionally involved with Dodge.  He cared deeply about the people and our purpose. Dan was Dodge Red, Chrysler Blue - his passing is a huge loss to the Dodge Family."

From the onset of the 2000 season, Hamrick served as Technical Liaison for Dodge Motorsports in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. Hamrick's passion for racing coupled with his amiable personality reached every corner of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series garage.  Hamrick helped shape the 'One-Team' Manufacturer concept adopted by Dodge in the early years of the truck series, the hard work paid dividends in 2004, when Dodge secured its first NCTS Championship.

"The biggest thing that I always liked about working with Dan was that he was genuinely concerned with the Dodge racing program as a whole." said 2004 NCTS Champion Bobby Hamilton during a break in testing at the Milwaukee Mile, "He strived for teamwork and was insulted if teams did not work together.  He would single people out and talk to them about the program and how they could make it better.  Dan was a straight shooter and I always trusted that quality in him.  He was a tremendous asset to BHR and Dodge Motorsports.  We are going to miss working with him and the things he brought to our program."

Hamrick's relentless drive and determination to see the Dodge truck series program succeed will be tough to replace.

"I will miss him." said Joey Arrington, owner of Arrington Manufacturing, the primary Dodge engine builder in the NCTS, "Dan was so witty and very clever.  He really understood the 'One-Team' concept.  He didn't care if you had a big sponsor on your quarter panels or if they were blank, as long as you had that Dodge Ram on the grill, Dan treated you the same.  What you saw was what you got.  Dan didn't pull any punches, if you needed to step up your game, Dan would let you know.  I admired him for that."

It's been said that Dan Hamrick died sometime near the end of the Texas truck series race last Friday evening.  That night, Dodge wasn't doing so well and some say Hamrick just couldn't take it anymore.

If that made you smile, then maybe you knew Dan Hamrick after all.

A Memorial can be sent to Bethlehem Baptist Church Building Fund, 1012 Bethlehem Road, Kings Mountain, N.C. 28086 or Relay for Life, P.O. Box 856, Kings Mountain, N.C. 28086