Driver Remembered For Skill, Character

He was rushed by ambulance to the Medical College of Virginia, where he was declared dead of a heart attack. There was a 2 p.m. service three days later at Riverside Chapel in Newport News, followed by burial at Peninsula Memorial Park, near his home on Dominion Drive. Without exception, rivals spoke of his skill and determination whether on dirt track or paved, in Modifieds or Late Models. But just as quickly, they spoke of his character and integrity. "Gene could drive a race car as well as anyone - and I mean anyone you'll find anywhere,'' longtime rival Sonny Hutchins said at the funeral. "But he was also a fine, fine man, a true credit to this sport.'' Bill Champion, a full-schedule Winston Cup driver at the time, called Lovelace "one of the nicest people in the sport and one of the best drivers you'll ever find.'' Unfortunately, Langley Field Speedway (as it was known then) didn't always keep good records. Lovelace won its 1967 Modified title over Lennie Pond, Butch Tori, Frankie Burnham and Joe Hendricks, but there's no listing of how many races or poles he won. (He was 14th in the 1967 Modified standings at the State Fairgrounds Raceway in Richmond). In '68 he finished behind Maurice Blayton, Bill Dennis and Pond in Langley's Modified points. He sat out part of '69 after an early-season spat with track promoter Henry Klich. Specifically, Klich offered a weekly bonus to anyone who could beat Lovelace, and Lovelace quite properly felt he should get the money if he won. The top five in points that year were Jimmy Hensley, Pond, Lefty France, Hendrick and Hank Thomas. Lovelace and Klich made up late in '69, and Lovelace had won several Late Model races by the time he died 30 years ago this summer. Maybe Hank Richardson, crew chief for his Late Model, said it best: "I know how it sounds,'' he said at the funeral, "but I really feel that if Gene could have picked a place and time to die, it would have been at a race track near his friends.''