Short Track mainstay Robert Hamke dies at 73

Veteran race car owner, driver and chassis developer Robert Hamke died on Thursday.

He was 73.

Hamke was most reknown for his work as the operator the Hamke Racecars and Parts, one of the most successful parts suppliers across North America. His tenure as a chassis builder also featured one of the most reknown ‘house car’ that won numerous events with Preston Peltier, Clay Rodgers, Matthew Craig and Stephen Nasse behind the wheel.

Prior to moving solely to the development side, Hamke was also a successful driver, with two wins in the Florida Governors Cup, when it was contested at Golden Gate Speedway in Tampa.

Hamke retired from motorsports following the 2018 Snowball Derby. He sold his business to Justin Ortel, who merged the brand with Kyle Busch’s business to form Rowdy Manufacturing — a full service Super Late Model dealer and supplier based in North Carolina.

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