PAUL WOODY'S BOUGHT OUT AN OLD Feb. 19, 1987 Richmond Times-Dispatch NEWSPAPER ARTICLE ON JOE KELLY OF "LET'S TALK RACING WITH JOE AND RUTH KELLY".
Paul Woody: When it comes to racing, Joe Kelly can talk about it
Posted: Thursday, December 24, 2015 1:55 pm
Paul Woody pwoody@timesdispatch.com
EDITOR'S NOTE: This column originally appeared in the Richmond Times-Dispatch on Feb. 19, 1987.
Joe Kelly died on April 8, 1956.
"It was a cold, blustery day," Kelly said.
And he wasn't speaking from the grave. Reports of his death were greatly exaggerated. "I was in a motorcycle race in Winchester and had just gone into the lead," Kelly said. "My front tire blew, and in those days, motorcycle racers didn't have brakes on their bikes. We weren't supposed to need them.
"I hit the wall and was knocked out. There were only a few people there, and since the weather was bad, the promoter was looking for a reason to cancel the show. So, he said, `We're going to cancel today's race because this rider is dead.'"
Kelly didn't even get a share of the gate from the makeup date.
"I was too dumb back then," he said with a laugh. "He (the promoter) did let me in free, though."
Kelly, who will be 51 next Thursday, doesn't race motorcycles anymore, but racing is central to his life.
Each Thursday night, beginning at 7 p.m., he has a one-hour racing call-in show -- Let's Talk Racing -- on WTVR radio (1380). Kelly lines up the guests, sets the topics and even does some of the commercials.
This week's guest will be NASCAR driver Bobby Hillin Jr.
When it comes to commenting on the local racing scene, Kelly is uniquely qualified. He is the track announcer for the automobile races at Southside Speedway, South Boston Speedway and Orange County Speedway in Roxboro, N.C. He also works as announcer for the motorcycle races at the Fairgrounds and has done the announcing for the Daytona Dirt Track motorcycle series since 1975.
In fact, racing is a family affair for the Kelly clan. His wife, Ruth, is a scorer for the motorcycle races and the handicapper (she lines up the field) at Southside. His 14-year-old daughter, Angela, is a scorer for the motorcycle races.
Kelly even met Ruth at a West End restaurant noted for its link to the local racing establishment. His wife wasn't a racing fan then.
"She fell in love with it though when she saw Bobby Allison win at the Fairgrounds in February of 1974," Kelly said. "She's been a diehard fan ever since."
So diehard that Kelly gives her credit for making his radio show possible.
"She told me she was going to WTVR to talk to Eddie Anderson (the station's general manager) about getting my show on the air, " Kelly said.
"I told her, 'Good luck.' She did a good job, because I got the show on my terms this time. I got the day I wanted and everything."
Kelly had a show on WXGI radio last year, but that was heard on Friday mornings. That's not a perfect time for a sports-based call-in show, and that, coupled with a change in management at the station, brought about the program's termination.
But he's back now, running at full throttle.
Kelly's career in the radio business began because of a mistake. WXGI was running the syndicated Skoal racing report but failed to receive several editions of the show one week. Kelly was asked to fill in.
"I did 15 minutes; then 30 minutes; then I had Junie Donleavy on for an hour, and, as Paul Harvey says, that's the rest of the story," Kelly said.
Kelly might not be a Paul Harvey when it comes to radio persona, but he does have a friendly, down-home quality to his work. And he is absolutely in love with the sport of racing.
"I raced cars," Kelly said. "But I was so bad you shouldn't even mention it. Let's just say I was in the field. But I enjoyed it immensely. I had the great dream of being successful in racing, but I didn't fulfill it. I've been fortunate enough to stay involved with racing in other ways."
Even when he isn't thinking about racing, Kelly has motors on his mind -- he's a partner in a used truck business.
He owns a Pontiac Firebird ("The closest thing to a racing car you can drive," he said on his show last week), a 1972 Chevrolet Nova, and a 20-year- old Triumph motorcycle.
"Triumph was made in England, and this one is 20 years old," Kelly said. "I've had it 15 years, and it's just like it was new."
But Kelly's favorite mode of transportion is a one-horsepower vehicle -- a bicycle.
"I live two miles from my office, and in the summers, I ride my bike to work," Kelly said. "It's just a one-speed. That's about all I can handle. I love that bicycle."
And he loves that racing.
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THANKS FOR ANY INFORMATION OR PHOTOS POSTED.
DENNIS GARRETT
RICHMOND, VA. USA
Joe Kelly is an retired motorcycle racer that on April 8, 1956, had borrowed, raced and wrecked Joe Weatherly's race winning motorcycle.
That day, Both Joe's was unhappy:
"Joe Kelly, the motorcycle racer was declared dead by "Mistake" and listed in newspapers as being killed while racing an motorcycle race and Joe Kelly later had explained it to his love ones.