Bruce Hill (July 9, 1949 – May 14, 2017) was an American

stock car racing Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses measuring approximately . It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It ori ...

driver from Topeka, Kansas. He competed in the

Winston Cup Series The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the NASCAR, National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. ...

, ARCA, and in the

NASCAR West Series The ARCA Menards Series West, formerly the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West, NASCAR AutoZone West Series, NASCAR Winston West Series and NASCAR Camping World West Series, is a regional stock car racing series owned and operated by the Automobile Racin ...

. He also competed in late model races around his hometown later in life.

Personal life

Hill was born on July 9, 1949, in Topeka, Kansas, and graduated from Shawnee Heights High School. He resided in and around the Topeka metropolitan area his later years of life, raising

American Quarter Horse The American Quarter Horse, or Quarter Horse, is an American breed of horse that excels at sprinting short distances. Its name is derived from its ability to outrun other horse breeds in races of a quarter mile or less; some have been clocked at s ...

s. Hill died on May 14, 2017, due to issues with

esophageal cancer Esophageal cancer is cancer arising from the esophagus—the food pipe that runs between the throat and the stomach. Symptoms often include difficulty in swallowing and weight loss. Other symptoms may include pain when swallowing, a hoarse voice ...

NASCAR career

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; f ...

, Hill began racing in NASCAR in the Winston Cup Series and the NASCAR West Series. He only competed in one race in both series the same year. The race in 1974 was the only race Hill would run in the West series. One year later, Hill won the Rookie of the Year award in the Winston Cup Series. During that season, he competed in all but four of the season's 30 races. Among his highlights were top-five finishes at

Rockingham Motor Speedway Rockingham Motor Speedway is a former racing motorsport venue in Rockingham, Northamptonshire, England, United Kingdom, near the town of Corby. It hosted professional and club races, as well as testing, track days, driver training, exhibition ...

, Darlington Raceway and Dover International Speedway. Still running as an independent driver, Hill returned to the series again in

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phila ...

, competing in 22 events, which he recorded only four top-ten finishes and finished 23rd in the standings. In

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...

, Hill was able to record four top-tens and a 29th-place finish in points after participating in 16 events. During the following year, he only participated in 14 events, and recorded two top-tens with a 32nd-place finish in the point standings, but benefited form teaming up with Harry Clary to field cars. For 1979, Hill teamed up with fellow owner-driver Walter Ballard for a limited slate of events. He finished 34th in points after running seven races. Continuing to race for Ballard in

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning System time epoch begins at 00:00 UTC. * January 9 – ...

, he finished 50th in points, and only competed in six races. In his final year in the Winston Cup Series, he competed in eight races and finished 43rd in points. Also in 1981, he participated in a NASCAR Late Model Sportsman race at Darlington Raceway.

Other racing

While competing in the Winston Cup Series, he also participated in the ARCA Racing Series as well as in USAC. In 2002, Hill participated in a Late model race at Thunderhill Speedway in

Mayetta, Kansas Mayetta is a city in Jackson County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 348. History Mayetta was laid out and platted in 1886. It was named for Mary Henrietta Lunger, the young daughter of the town's ...

. In 2016 it was announced that A.J. Allmendinger would run a throwback scheme based on Hill's 1977 car for the annual throwback race at Darlington Raceway.

Motorsports results

NASCAR

(

key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...

) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Winston Cup Series

=Daytona 500

References

External links

Bruce Hill statistics at Racing-Reference.info
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hill, Bruce 1949 births 2017 deaths NASCAR drivers Racing drivers from Kansas Sportspeople from Topeka, Kansas Deaths from cancer in Kansas Deaths from esophageal cancer