Kathy Anne Hanks Waddill Ridley

The Original Hot Rodder: Biography of Bill Waddill His History of Hot Rodding and the Genesee Gear Grinders Kathy Anne Hanks Waddill Ridley

The Original Hot Rodder is a biography of Bill Waddill. He was born with the need for speed like his own father, Harry Hanks, who was killed in 1928 during a dirt-track race. Bill never knew his birth father, but Harry's racing legacy lived on when Bill became a pioneer of racing in the state of Michigan; went on to set a Bonneville land speed record and several national drag racing records. Bill Waddill was the first president of the local hot rod club called the Genesee Gear Grinders in 1948 and was an active member until 1963. He competed and was very successful in many kinds of racing including early Bonneville and drag racing, Reliability Runs, Gymkhanas, the Mexican Carerra Pan-Americana, sports car road racing and off-road racing in the Mint 400 and Baja 500. He also attended many early car shows and consistently won "Best Engineered" and top honors in his class. He counted Mickey Thompson, Wally Parks and Roger Huntington among his many racing friends.