Past NHRA Top Fuel world champion Eddie Hill, renowned for his speed on land and water, was honored recently by the city of Wichita Falls, Texas, with the renaming of the RC Airpark after him.

Hill, now 90, frequents the RC Airpark and has shifted his passion to this venue after retiring from racing. He regularly takes a pickup truck full of airplanes and has a special airplane trailer to haul his larger aircraft.

“When I retired from racing motorcycles at over 150 mph, boats at 229 mph, and cars at over 323 mph, I was afraid I might die of terminal boredom, said Hill. “But I have always loved airplanes, both full-scale passenger airplanes and flying models. I was scratch-building flying models when I was 10 years old. To fill the void of not racing, I got heavy into radio control airplanes and have been really enjoying flying them here at this airpark for about 25 years now and really enjoying it.

“Ercie goes with me to the flying field, and we have met and made friends with some great people who also enjoy flying. The city has done a great job of making us an excellent place to fly, and Tony Breyen, president of the Wichita Falls Radio Control, has done a great job of mowing and taking care of it. I’m thinking how cool it will be to see my name on the sign when we come to fly!

The Wichita Falls City Council changed a nearly 30-year-old resolution that previously restricted naming city-owned facilities after living individuals. This change allows for the RC Airpark to be named in honor of Hill, who has made significant contributions to the community.

The previous resolution required individuals to be deceased for five years before a facility could be named after them, and it applied only to city offices and administrative spaces.

The new resolution expands the scope to include all naming situations and honors those who have made a lasting impact in the Wichita Falls community Councilor Tom Taylor expressed the urgency of the renaming, stating that it needed to happen now. Trey Sralla, who lobbied for the name change, emphasized Hill’s deserving nature, noting his long-standing presence in the public eye and his passion for the park.

“I am just so very pleased, blessed, and thankful for such a great honor!” Hil added. “Ercie and I give a sincere and HUGE thank you to Trey Sralla, mayor Tim Short, the city council, and city manager, Kaylee Robinson, Director of Parks and Recreation, and all our friends, neighbors, and customers that have been so supportive of our racing and business for sixty years and counting. We are very glad that Wichita Falls is the permanent home of the only racing team that so far has ever been the fastest drag racing championship winner on land and water. And that the race car and race boat are on permanent free display downtown at Eddie Hill’s Fun Cycles.”

 

Look for a catch-up story later this week in the Dragster Insider column
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