Conley Publishing - Special Sections
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/973782
8 • RACING INSIDER • April 2018 • Conley Media By NICHOLAS DETTMANN Conley News Service Tom "TR" Roberts was supposed to be on the flight that took off from Knoxville, Tennessee, on April 1, 1993, and went down in eastern Tennessee, taking the life of Greenfield native and NASCAR cham- pion Alan Kulwicki. Kulwicki was riding on a plane owned by his sponsor, Hooters, in the then NASCAR Winston Cup Series — today known as the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. He was one of four people on the plane — all of whom died in the crash. Roberts was supposed to be the fifth. But he changed his mind and took a com- mercial flight, anticipating meeting up with Kulwicki at Bristol Motor Speedway, the site of the next NASCAR race. Kulwicki, who was the reigning series champion, never made it. Roberts, who was Kulwicki's public rela- tions representative, did. For years, he pondered: why? "It tore me apart when we lost him," Roberts said. "It was like losing a brother. I didn't sleep at all that night." He carried that agony for more than 20 years. In 2014, Roberts was alerted as to why he was kept alive. He got a call from Jan Beatty, the banker handling Kulwicki's estate, and Mark Horn, an attorney. In the estate was to appropriate money to help fund scholar- ships at the University of W i s c o n s i n - M i l w a u k e e , where Kulwicki got his degree, and North Carolina State University. But that wasn't enough, Roberts said. Thelma, Kulwicki's step- mother, wanted to do more. "(Thelma) wanted to do something to give back to grassroots; how can we do something to keep Alan's memory and legend alive," Roberts said. The result? The Alan Kulwicki Driver Develop- ment Program. "It was like it was part of God's plan," Roberts said. "It worked out so well for me. I felt like it was some- thing Alan had to be proud of. In my mind, I was con- vinced Alan would've given his stamp of approval." Roberts handled all of Kulwicki's media responsi- bilities, starting before he broke into NASCAR in 1986 and won the Rookie of the Year title. Roberts met Kulwicki in 1981 while a promoter of the All-American 400 late model stock car race in Nashville, Tennessee. He was told he had to met Kulwicki, a young hot-shot racer from Wisconsin. By then, Kulwicki had built up a reputation in the late model community. He was a Slinger Nationals champi- on (1981) and a two-time Slinger super late model champion (1977 and 1978). "He was a big name," Roberts recalled. After doing some research on Kulwicki, he learned something that was uncommon at that time: a race car driver with a college degree. "He was too smart to be a race car driv- er," Roberts said. But Kulwicki was a stickler for detail. When he tried to meet him several weeks earlier at Winchester Speed- way in Indiana, Kulwicki was too busy working on his race car. Roberts had to wait. And when he finally met the 20- something driver, Roberts was impressed. "We just hit it off so well," Roberts said. "From the get-go we had mutual respect. "His intellect was so impressive. By then, I could grasp he was a stickler for detail. He put so many demands on himself. But I also saw a charismatic side of him that drew me closer to me. I could sense some- thing was special there. You knew he was going to be successful." Roberts was Kulwicki's right- hand man until his death in 1993. But, with the advent of the KDDP, Rob- erts believes he is still working for Kulwicki. "We wanted a program that will fill the needs, per- petuate the memory of Alan and be something he'd be proud of and Thelma will be proud of," Roberts said. The 2018 season is the program's fourth. "Timing was so right for me," Roberts said. "I look back now and what a bless- ing. God had a plan." The program aims at grassroots drivers. In 1992, Kulwicki, driving for his small-funded team, won NASCAR's top prize. To be eligible, according to the KDDP website, driv- ers will have experience in late model racing. There is no age limit, but preference will be given to candidates between age 18-25. A group of 15 semifinalists are selected for interviews with the KDDP board. From those interviews, seven drivers are selected as final- ists and are awarded $7,777, which the driver can use on his or her race program. The "7" was picked because that was Kulwicki's car number when he won the 1992 Winston Cup champi- onship. During the course of a season, the seven final- ists accumulate points based on their on-track and off-track performance. At the end of the season, the winner receives a trophy and a check for more than $54,000. Seymour's Ty Majeski was the inaugural winner. "Going into the Kulwicki program, I knew of Alan, what he did and what he accomplished," Majeski said. "As the season pro- gressed, I got to learn more about him and how he did things and handled things. "That's something to look up to, the way he was so hands on with the car. It really inspired me." It changed Majeski's outlook and approach on racing. "As a race car driver, you're always better when you know what's under you," Majeski said. "There's not too many that work on the cars them- selves. … It's paid dividends for me." Today, Majeski is run- ning a part-time schedule with NASCAR's second-tier series, the Xfinity Series, driving for Roush Fenway Racing. While he wouldn't pinpoint the KDDP as a direct reason for his oppor- tunity into NASCAR, it did- n't hurt. "The way the Kulwicki program is structured is it pushes you," Majeski said. "It more motivated me to be better, to push myself harder." The other winners were Alex Prunty (2016) and Cody Haskins (2017). Roberts said the growth has been beyond his wildest dreams, especially now that the program is drawing international applicants. "I think it is beyond my imagination that we've been able to go so far so fast and it considered the pre- mier driver development program in the country," Roberts said. "To expand like we have is beyond belief, the impact we've made on so many people." This year's class is Cole Butcher (21 years old, Porter's Lake, Nova Scotia, Canada), Justin Carroll (21, Concord, North Carolina), Derek Griffith (21, Hudson, New Hampshire), Molly Helmuth (22, Seattle), Justin Mondeik (21, Gleason), Brett Yackey (18, Greeley, Colorado) and Brittney Zamora (18, Kennewick, Washington). "It's going to be an incredible 2018 to see the impact they have on young- sters," Roberts said. He added, "In some ways, I've been spared for a pur- pose, for still being his spokesman. I think all that worked together. It's not just carrying his name on his behalf. It's something I've been blessed with." PRESERVING RACING'S FUTURE Kulwicki program helps grassroots racers grow Kim Kemperman/For Conley News Service Seymour's Ty Majeski won the Kulwicki Driver Development Program's inaugural Kulwicki Cup in 2015. He currently races part-time with the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Kim Kemperman/For Conley News Service Steve Apel (51) and Ty Majeski finished 1-2 in the inau- gural Kulwicki Cup standings. Kulwicki