Bill Text: TX SR10 | 2021 | 87th Legislature 3rd Special Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Recognizing Eddie Hill Day in Wichita Falls.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2021-09-22 - Reported enrolled [SR10 Detail]
Download: Texas-2021-SR10-Enrolled.html
|
||
WHEREAS, Residents of Wichita Falls are gathering on | ||
October 6, 2021, to pay tribute to hometown hero and motorsports | ||
superstar Eddie Hill; and | ||
WHEREAS, A champion racer on land and water, Eddie Hill has | ||
been named the 2021 Legend of North Texas by the Museum of North | ||
Texas History; in conjunction with that honor, Eddie Hill Day is | ||
being celebrated to recognize his racing legacy and his | ||
contributions to the Wichita Falls community; and | ||
WHEREAS, Born in Longview on March 6, 1936, Mr. Hill | ||
received his first racing trophy at age 11; he began building | ||
dragster cars a few years later and continued to compete while | ||
attending Texas A&M University; after earning his bachelor's | ||
degree, he won the American Hot Rod Association championship in | ||
1959 and set several records over the course of the following | ||
years, including one for breaking the 200-mile-per-hour barrier | ||
in a gas-powered car; he is credited with numerous racing | ||
innovations during this period, including introducing front | ||
wings to dragsters and inventing the tire-smoking burnout, which | ||
became standard practice for top fuel cars; and | ||
WHEREAS, In 1966, Mr. Hill opened Eddie Hill's Fun Cycles, | ||
beginning a successful Wichita Falls business that has continued | ||
for more than five and a half decades; to promote the dealership, | ||
he started racing motorcycles, earning over 100 trophies in the | ||
next eight years; he shifted his focus to boat racing in 1974 and | ||
went on to hold the Guinness World Record for fastest speed in a | ||
propeller-driven boat in addition to winning regional, national, | ||
and world championships, including two titles in the World Series | ||
of Dragboat Racing; and | ||
WHEREAS, A severe crash concluded his boat racing career, | ||
but this determined competitor opted to return to asphalt drag | ||
racing in 1985 following a two-decade absence from the sport; | ||
three years later, he became the first person to break the | ||
five-second barrier, and in 1993, at age 57, he became the oldest | ||
person to win the National Hot Rod Association top fuel world | ||
championship; he retired from drag racing for good in 1999 and | ||
was inducted into the International Drag Racing Hall of Fame the | ||
next year; he is also a member of the Motorsports Hall of Fame of | ||
America and the Texas Motorsports Hall of Fame; and | ||
WHEREAS, Throughout his life, Mr. Hill has drawn strength | ||
from his religious faith; he also benefits from the love and | ||
support of his wife of 37 years, Ercie, and his two children, | ||
Sabrina and Dustin; and | ||
WHEREAS, A world-renowned figure who has excelled in | ||
multiple types of motorsports racing, Eddie Hill is a source of | ||
great pride to the residents of Wichita Falls and the Lone Star | ||
State, and he is indeed deserving of this prestigious honor; now, | ||
therefore, be it | ||
RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 87th | ||
Legislature, 3rd Called Session, hereby commemorate Eddie Hill | ||
Day in Wichita Falls and commend Mr. Hill for his many | ||
achievements; and, be it further | ||
RESOLVED, That an official copy of this Resolution be | ||
prepared for Eddie Hill as an expression of high regard from the | ||
Texas Senate. | ||
Springer | ||
________________________________ | ||
President of the Senate | ||
I hereby certify that the | ||
above Resolution was adopted by | ||
the Senate on September 22, 2021. | ||
________________________________ | ||
Secretary of the Senate | ||
________________________________ | ||
Member, Texas Senate |