"LET'S TALK RACING WITH JOE AND RUTH KELLY" announced this past Sunday night, that They're retiring from the 93.1 FM RADIO, RICHMOND,VA., on December 27th, 2015 after 30 years. "We love all of you, and you can still contact us through this page".
https://www.facebook.com/Lets-Talk-Racing-with-Joe-Ruth-and-Brendan-Kelly-248994988460667/
Joe will be writing a book with Deb Williams about all his stories from the past.
DENNIS GARRETT
RICHMOND,VA.
UPDATE ON THE "LET'S TALK RACING WITH JOE AND RUTH KELLY" LAST RADIO SHOW.
SOME OF THE WELL KNOWN CALL-INS WAS RANDY HALLMAN, RAY LAMM, REX WHITE AND GARY FOX.
WHOLE LOT OF LOCAL CALL-INS, WISHING JOE AND RUTH KELLY, BOB AND MARYANNA WILCOX WELL WISHES ON THEIR LAST RACING RADIO SHOW.
RANDY HALLMAN DID AN TRIBUTE ARTICLE AND JOE MAHONE DID AN PHOTO TRIBUTE IN THE RICHMOND TIMES-DISPATCH NEWSPAPERS THAT IS LISTED BELOW:
Joe and Ruth Kelly wave checkered flag on auto racing talk show
Posted: Thursday, December 24, 2015 2:00 pm
By RANDY HALLMAN Richmond Times-Dispatch
Sunday night, Joe Kelly will clear his voice and rev his engine one last time.
Kelly, whose encyclopedic knowledge of motor racing goes back longer than his 79 years and stretches from the humblest short tracks to the grandest superspeedways, will host his radio show Lets Talk Racing with Joe, Ruth Kelly for the last time after 30 years on the air.
The name of the talk show recognizes the every-week contributions of his wife of 39 years.
The two-hour show cordial, unpretentious chatter buoyed by dozens of never-miss-a-week callers airs at 7 p.m. on WWLB (93.1).
Born in Pittsburgh of Irish-Catholic heritage, Kelly raced motorcycles with some success for about 10 years as a young man despite being blind in one eye from birth. He also tried his hand at stock cars, but didnt set the auto racing world afire.
Bob Wilcox, a racing enthusiast and Kellys on-the-air sidekick for several years, tells a story of Kellys plan to buy a race car from successful racing team owner Junie Donlavey.
Junie refused to sell it to him, Wilcox said. Junie told him he was a terrible driver and asked him, What makes you think you will be better by owning a car?
Kelly chuckles at mention of his lack of stock car driving success, pointing out he never did get to race a first-class car.
I guess I was more talented at talking than I was at driving, he said.
Kelly got his start behind the microphone almost by accident, asked to fill in when track announcers werent available, including once for an event at the Virginia State Fairgrounds track, now the site of Richmond International Raceway.
The regular announcer had been arrested for speeding, Kelly said. They offered me 10 bucks and a couple of shots of bourbon to take the mike.
With Kelly extolling the excitement the races would offer, fair-goers began pouring into the stands a far bigger crowd than normal for such events.
When it was over, Kelly recalled, the promoter said, That guy was good, and paid me extra. ... I made $70 total. That was a lot of money at the time and I thought, Hey, I could do some of this stuff.
Kelly served in the Army in Korea as a border guard in the late 1950s, and when I got back from Korea in 1959, I was not a hot property as a racer.
So he pursued his announcing career and it worked. He has been a track announcer at several venues and has promoted motorcycle and car races including a stint as promoter at Southside Speedway in Chesterfield County. He has been on the broadcast teams at major events for national auto racing radio networks. Decade after decade found Kelly trackside, known to race team members and fellow media members at every level of stock car racing.
Regarded as a prime source for racing history, Kelly gets queries from around the country. Auto racing veteran reporter/author Deb Williams, a longtime friend, is discussing co-writing a book capturing Kellys I-was-there stories.
Dennis Bickmeier, president of Richmond International Raceway, said, Joe is a walking and talking auto racing history book. His vast knowledge on the racing scene locally, regionally and nationally has spanned many generations and served the fans in our area well for many, many years.
Through their radio show, the Kellys have been able to keep the colorful driver personalities and racing stories alive about Virginias deep roots in auto racing, Bickmeier said. ... When we have historical questions or need to fact check something, he is our go-to person.
Besides his long-running radio show, Kelly also produced a local weekly television broadcast for several years.
His radio show expanded over the decades from 15 minutes to its current two-hour format. He also has managed the business end of the show and has kept some of his sponsors for decades Cowardin Jewelers, Roy Hendricks Muffler Shop, Loveland Distributing Co., Bennett Funeral Homes and former racer and Rheem Distributor Jimmy Leavey, to name a few.
Year after year, Kelly and Wilcox delved into the news and opinions surrounding stock car racing. The shows loyal listeners have kept the call-in lines lit. During the NASCAR Sprint Cup season, the show has drawn dozens of calls for rapid-fire predictions for pole position and race winners.
The shows fame and respect for Kelly extend far beyond the radio stations broadcast area.
Joe and Ruth Kelly have won 31 awards covering virtually every category of the National Motorsports Press Associations television and radio competition. Eight of those awards were first-place honors frequently with ESPN and other major network shows taking the also-ran spots.
When word came Kelly and his wife were retiring, the NMPA made them lifetime members.
Kellys office, a small outbuilding at his Henrico County home is packed floor to ceiling with decades worth of memorabilia and records. Plans are afoot to preserve Kellys collection as part of Appalachian State Universitys extensive Stock Car Racing Collection.
Wilcox said he and his wife, Mary Anna, who has also assisted with the radio show for years, are aware of the vast respect given the Kellys everywhere in stock car racing. Wilcox said the couples connection to the local radio shows audience stands out.
They have cared for their listeners through sickness, marriages, celebrations, births and deaths, Wilcox said. Each listener has become family to Joe and Ruth, and their listeners look at Joe and Ruth as family.
rhallman@timesdispatch.com
(804) 649-6844
http://www.richmond.com/sports/auto-racing/article_612fc2d2-efc1-54e2-b8ba-df40a30e630b.html
http://www.richmond.com/sports/auto-racing/article_612fc2d2-efc1-54e2-b8ba-df40a30e630b.html?mode=image&photo=1
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PHOTO #1 JOE MAHONEY-TIMES-DISPATCH PHOTO
Joe and Ruth Kelly have been producing a local auto racing talk show for 30 yearsThey are retiring and their last show will be Dec. 27.
PHOTO #2 JOE MAHONEY-TIMES-DISPATCH PHOTO
I guess I was more talented at talking than I was at driving.
Joe Kelly, shown looking at the racing memory-filled walls of his home office. Joe and Ruth Kelly have been producing a local auto racing talk show for 30 years. Their last show will be Sunday
PHOTO #3 JOE MAHONEY-TIMES-DISPATCH PHOTO
Joe Kelly and his wife Ruth have been producing a local auto racing talk show for 30 years.
They are retiring and their last show will be Dec. 27.
PHOTO #4 JOE MAHONEY-TIMES-DISPATCH PHOTO
Ruth Kelly and her husband Joe have been producing alocal auto racing talk show for 30 years.
They are retiring and their last show will be Dec. 27.
http://www.richmond.com/sports/auto-racing/article_612fc2d2-efc1-54e2-b8ba-df40a30e630b.html?mode=image&photo=1
MOTHER & I WILL MISSED YOU ON THE RADIO !!
PHYLLIS & DENNIS GARRETT
RICHMOND,VA. USA
Joe & Ruth just received the Barney Hall Award from the National Motorsports Press Association:
Joe and Ruth Kelly receive motorsport broadcasting honor
Posted: Thursday, January 21, 2016 10:06 am
Joe and Ruth Kelly were honored by the National Motorsports Press Association this past weekend at organization's annual convention in Concord, N.C.
The husband-and-wife radio broadcast team from Richmond received the Barney Hall Award for broadcast excellence, which is named after the long-time MRN announcer.
The Kellys hosted a weekly racing radio show in Richmond - "Let's Talk Racing with Joe, Ruth Kelly" - for 30 years. Joe Kelly was part of MRNs on-air lineup in the early years of the network.
Joe and Ruth did their final show Dec. 27.
