Bill Jenkins, 81, legend in drag-racing cirles

HE WASN'T really grumpy. He just had a gruff way of expressing himself. And he wasn't one to mince words.

He was a man who probably knew more than most so-called experts about drag racing and the vehicles that did the dragging, and he wasn't inclined to suffer inferiors.

William Tyler "Grumpy" Jenkins was a legend in the world of drag racing, excelling both as a driver and a mechanic whose innovations changed the sport dramatically.

He was regarded as the master of the internal-combustion engine. In fact, Bill Jenkins was better known for his mechanical innovations than for his driving, and even he regarded those achievements as a better legacy than even his winning ways behind the wheel.

Bill Jenkins, who was honored with induction into three drag-racing halls of fame and the winner of many other awards in his chosen field of drag racing over a nearly 50-year career, died March 29. He was 81 and lived in Malvern.

Tom Compton, president of the National Hot Rod Association, said Bill "was there from the beginning, playing an integral role in the formation of pro stock and remained involved in NHRA for decades."

"His presence and trademark gruff exterior and cigar will be missed but never forgotten at NHRA full-throttle events."

Bill also did great things for Chevrolet. According to Inside Line, which reports on the auto industry, Bill moved from using Chrysler equipment early in his career to Chevys, with which he had his greatest successes as a driver and innovator.

"Jenkins was a brilliant tuner of Chevy small- and big-block V8s," Inside Line correspondent John Pearley Huffman wrote. "He was willing to buck conventional wisdom and experiment with unconventional setups.

"For example, he used a 327-cubic-inch small-block Nova in 1966 to successfully compete with the 426-cubic-inch Chrysler Hemis. Or, most notoriously, he took advantage of weight allowances in the NHRA rule book to build a 331-cubic-inch small-block and install it in a short-wheel-base Chevrolet Vega. He used that combination to overwhelm the competition during the 1972 Pro Stock season, winning six of eight national events.

"The Pro Stock class was practically invented for Jenkins," Huffman wrote. "He won the first Pro Stock event, the 1970 Winter Nationals, in his 1968 Camaro. Along the way, he also made Pro Stock's first 9-second run with a 9.98-second blast down the quarter-mile at the Los Angeles County Fairgrounds strip in Pomona."

In 2001, Bill was voted No. 8 among NHRA drag-racing's greatest racers. When he received the ranking, Bill briefly shed his gruff exterior to say, "Since it seemed that the balloting was heavily weighted toward the more contemporary drivers and I haven't driven in 20 years, I was gratified to make it high on the list."

But he added, "I've always had a lot of personal satisfaction from the mechanical end of the sport."

Chevrolet was most grateful to Bill Jenkins for putting its products on the drag-racing map.

"For more than half a century, Bill was a guiding light and inspiration for grass-roots drag racers across America," said Jim Campbell, U.S. vice president of performance vehicles and motorsports for Chevrolet.

"Bill's engineering legacy is embodied in many of Chevrolet's high-performance and racing components."

Bill Jenkins, a native of Chester County, studied mechanical engineering at Cornell University.

Among his many honors was induction into the Don Garlits International Drag Racing Hall of Fame in 1993, the Novi, Michigan, Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1996, and the International Motorsports Hall of Fame at Talladega, Ala., in 2008.

He is survived by his wife, Polly; a daughter, Susan; two sons Dan El and William T.; a sister, Elizabeth, and a grandson.

Services: Were private. Contributions may be made to the Drag Racing Association of Women, 4 Hance Drive, Charleston, Ill., 61920.