Rob Damron
Was fatally injured on June 30th,
2001
ROB DAMRON MEMORIAL
SERVICE
THURSDAY, JULY 12TH,
2001
11:00 A.M.
SOUTH VALLEY CHRISTIAN
CHURCH
590 SHAWNEE LANE
SAN JOSE, CA. 95123
Posted
by Vickie Morris
Mendoza
on July 6th, on the Flat Track Forum
The Damron family would
like to thank everyone
for
all the flowers sent, but are overwhelmed
by them at this time.
The family asks that
everyone
please hold of on sending anymore
flowers to Brenda at
home. Thank you for all
the love and support everyone has shown.
Please stand by for
information on a trust
fund
and memorial service to follow shortly.
Posted
by Jesse & Carol
on July 3th, on the Flat Track Forum
In refrence to the
contributions for the Damron
Family
The donations need to be made to
Brenda Damron
P.O. Box 2562
Morgan Hill, CA
95037-9998
Again the
Family thanks all of you for your
Love
and Support you have shown.
Posted
by Jesse/Carol/Dante
on July 6th, on the Flat Track Forum
To the family, we offer
our prayers and
condolences.
This tragedy is so hard to comprehend
for all of us. Our boys
have looked up to Rob
since they were 'pups' and have wanted to
achieve all the skills
that he had achieved.
He will be greatly missed by all of us.
Ride in peace Rob...
Yarrow Family
To the family of Rob
Damron,
Sam and I are stunned
by the news of Rob's
passing,
We have no way of understanding how
and why something like
this could happen, I
had great admiration and respect for Rob as a
racer/champion and as a
human being, You
should
know that Rob is role model for my son,
after Sam met Rob at
Lodi last year he said
he wanted to be like Rob, racer, champion and
most of all a nice guy
with lots of friends.
For that Rob I thank you. Our condolences and
prayers go out to the
entire Damron family,
Especially his parents, Wife and his children may
God bless you all.
Viya Con Dios Rob We
will not forget you!
Clark family
All of us at the Motor
Sports Press Association
would
like to express our sincere
condolences to the
Damron family, friends,
competitors
and fans.
Rob is our 2000 Rider
Of The Year in Flat
Track
as I’m sure most of you know.
On a personal note Rob
was very cool to meet.
His story was a great one and when he told it
at the banquet, you
could tell he had a ball
the entire way. He was very proud to be honored
and represent the
organization. I grew up
watching
Mike run supers at San Jose Speedway
and knew the last name,
but not being much of
a “bike guy” (sprint cars are my main bag) I
had no idea of Robs
exploits. You should be
proud of your lost champion. He was proud of
his competitors and the
series he ran.
Al Drake
I am so sorry for every
thing. I wish the best to
his
family. May he rest in peace. Godspeed rob.
Paul Herman
Damron Family,
Again I'm speechless. I
am so sorry for your
loss. Rob was the best of the best. Always a
gentleman, a friend,
and there to help all.
I, like everyone else involved in the racing
community, am having a
difficult time with
this
loss. I think we all would like to do something,
but what would that be?
My heart and prayers
go out to you, Brenda and children. May you
find strength in your
friends and family that
care about you. We have you in our thoughts daily.
Donna Hall and Family
Those who knew Rob will
remember him as Special
kind
of guy. A racer from the core out.
Rob was a neighbor as a
kid and rode his first
race in 1981 at Bolado Park in Hollister, CA. I
think the bike was a
Suzuki RM 250. Robs'
father
helped him always. He was an Expert by
1985 and the following
year Rob was Black
Plate
#1 ( top open class rider) in District 36.
He was a 10 time # 1 -
District 36 rider.
He and Brenda were
married at the Lodi Cycle
Bowl - They walked from a motorhome in turn
one , past a line of
motorcycles and riders
to the starting line, where the ceremony took
place. It was nice and
tells of the devotion
he and Brenda had for this sport. I'll always see
Rob when I am at Lodi
under the trees at the
south end of the pits. Rob - Michelle
DiSalvo always there,
surrounded by friends.
I will remember Rob at the Awards Banquet
showing up looking cool
in a Tux to recieve
his #1 Plate .
What class - what a
guy. What a loss. To us
that knew Rob this loss is painful, to those
didn't know him , you
missed out on knowing
a Real Racer, A Real Guy.
And Brenda, the kids
and family, our
condolences.There
is nothing we can say that will ease
the pain - yours was a
beloved guy to all of
us.
Wally Weisler & Family
my prayers to the
family.......rob was a great
guy,
i cant believe this has happened. on the
racetrack, rob was one
of the smartest,
safest,
and most skilled riders i have ever raced with,
i have nothing but
respect.......off the
track,
he was always there to say hi, and tell you about
whats been the latest
happenings....rob was
an example of what to strive for in our
sport....godspeed
rob....
B Arbogast
We offer our prayers to
the Damron family and
friends.
Rob was doing what he loved to do.
We will miss you. A
true, dedicated pro
motorcycle
flattracker - Rob Damron.
De Hoyos Family
I am so sorry to hear of
the Damron family's
loss.
I feel for them deeply. I know that my
parents watched me and
my brother tumble down
the track on more than one occasion since
the late 60s, and
always wondered as they
watched
if we would be okay when we stopped.
But what allowed us to
continue to put them
through the fear of that was knowing they
understood how much we
loved what we were
doing.
The entire Lewis family reaches out to
the Damrons in their
time of need, and hopes
they reach back. We will pray for your loss, and
celebrate the life of a
young man who died
doing
what he loved. Godspeed.......
Rick Lewis Family
Mere words cannot
express the saddness our family
felt
when we heard of your loss. Our
prayers go out to you.
Rob's memory will live
on in our hearts. Whenever great races, racers
and true gentlemen of
the sport are spoken of,
Rob's name will on our lips. God Speed Rob.
Chris, Gordon, Al Rudy
and Family
My thoughts
and prayers go out to the
Damron
family. Robbie
'D', I as many, am
blessed to have known you.
I wish you Godspeed and eternal peace.
Dale Lineaweaver
We will never be able to
understand why God takes
all
the good ones. To the family of Rob
our hearts go out to
you in your time of
sorrow.
Rob was such a great person. He always had
a smile and time to
spend talking to you at
the track.
To Rob, Your smile will
be in our heats
forever.
Please give Little Danny a hug for us and let
him know how much he is
missed.
Seay Family
Although we do not
personally know him, we have
watched
him and have listened to nothing
but positives from
those that do. Bruce Brown
stated in 'On Any Sunday' that 'Mert was a
gentle man living in a
violent world'...the
same could be said of Rob Damron. Our hearts go
out to his family and
close friends during
this
time of shock and need. Godspeed.
Fishman Family
I am so sorry to hear
the bad news about Rob. He
will
be sorly missed. He was one of the
best and he left us
well to soon. He was a
great
person to have known. To his family, Its a
hard thing to go
through, but remember that
the Flattrack family's heart's and prayers are with
you and Rob at this sad
time. God Bless
Greg Soderer and family
My heart goes out to the
Damron Family.
God Speed Robbie 'D'
You will be missed!
The Bacosa Family
Very tragic
loss for the racing
community,
but especially for his family.
He went out on the win, and we
all know with
a smile on his face.
Our thought and prayers to his
family.
GOODSPEED ROB!
Garcia
We met Rob for the first
time in 1989 in Daytona.
Rob
was and still is one of the finest people
I've ever met. All of
us from BaerMotorSports
share in the grief of his families loss. Godspeed Rob
Baer Motor Sports
Rob was tragically
killed last night while Racing
at
Perris Auto Speedway. What a mainstay
in Pro Racing on the
West Coast. I will miss
you very much my friend.
Everyone please pray
for his Wife and 2 young
sons. GODSPEED
Trapper McDaniel
That's very
sad news. Rob was the mainstay
of
District 36 and a winner in the WCFTS. He
will be missed
tremendously. Godspeed Rob.
Dennis
My deepest thoughts and
prayers go out to the
Damron
family and friends, I am truly sorry.
Jim Grant
I was deeply sadden by
the loss of Rob. He was a
great
racer and
friend. I watched him grow up
from a teenager to a
loving husband and
father. No one can ever fill his
shoes on the track
or in our hearts.
My heart breaks for Brenda and
family. Motorcycle
racing is like a big
family, we may get mad at someone
but he's still
family.
I think like that
about all of them. I have been
around the tracks
many
years and I have
watched most of them grow up. So
please be safe and
ride smart. We
don't want to loose another
family member. Lets all
be there to help
Brenda as much as possible.
Shirley Holland
To the family &
friends of Rob. My heartfelt
condolences
go out to you all. Rob was such a
kind man. I remember
one of the first times
I had seen Rob was when I started going to the
races in Lodi in 1992.
He always had a smile
on his face. And was always so polite. I just
recently sat with Rob
and had a good long
conversation
with him about Danny. We both kept
saying how we couldn't
believe it. It just
didn't
seem like he was gone. I told him I
remembered standing at
the start/finish line
watching him and Brenda get married. We talked
more about Dan and we
talked about Rob's
mother.
Who would have thought 2 1/2 months
ago when Rob blessed us
with his beautiful
poem
to his friend Danny, at Dan's funeral, that
Rob would be next. I
sure didn't. No one
understands
why our loved ones are taken from us. I
sure don't, that's for
sure. But one thing
that
gives me just a little bit of peace is knowing that
they are being well
taken care of.
Rob,
I just want to thank
you for being such a good
friend to my Danny. He thought the world of
you. And thank you for
your sympathy in my
time
of loss. You were so kind and
compassionate. You are
one of a kind. Please
give Danny a big hug and tell him I love him
and I'm lost without
him.
Brenda,
I can't even express
how sorry I am for you.
I will be in touch with you soon. I know we don't
know eachother well,
but it sure helps to have
someone who knows exactly what you are
going through. And
unfortunately, I do. No one
can even began to understand the pain we feel.
I am here for you
anytime. Love,
Melinda Swanson
To the Damron Family,
I cannot begin to
express how deeply this
saddens
me and my whole family at Brown's
Cycles, racers for over
60 years and three
generations.
Racing with Rob for the last 15 years,
I had gained alot of
respect for Rob on the
track. If you got a wheel from Rob he meant to give
it to you. Their was no
one with more
experience
or control than Rob.
A few months ago Rob
gained my respect on a
whole new level. All of us were suffering from
the loss of Dan. Rob
found the strength and
the heart to write poem, stand and read it as I
only wish I could. This
gained more respect
from me than any race track ever could.
So now he's on his way,
with Andy, Toby and
Dan, who are already there. It must be a great
place to be!
Godspeed Robbie D
Ronnie Brown
In my 16 years of racing
flattrack Robbie was
there.
As a friend of the family and a hero.
I remember my dad Louis
taking me to meet
Robbie
I was only four years old. I never knew that
he would watch me grow
in racing to next year
racing aginst him in the pro class. Seeing
Robbie unload his white
ccm 600 and thinking,
wow Robbie out did himself this time. To watch
Robbie win at
Marysville to see how happy he
was and say 'hey Robbie great race' and him
reply 'you won too, I
knew you could beat
those
guys' was the best. I wish Perris never
happened but Robbie was
taken for some reason.
As Carol, Jesse, Bob, Nicole, and I stod there
with tears in our eyes
wanting him to get up,
God took him from us to a better place with many
of his friends. Robbie
is in a place were he's
racing with many of my hero's like
Ricky, Steve, Andy,
Rodney, Danny, and Bill
at the call. As Robbie Became A Fallen Hero I
will always remember
Robbie as he was a Hero
and a friend.
Godspeed Robbie 'D'
Chris Canepa
Although we met onlly a
short time ago
You were easy to talk
to and easy to know.
You pulled up
at our shop in your dirty
white
van
The stereo blastin,
with soul sounds a rappan.
Out in the
shop the boys workin away
Robbie D lent a hand
and said I'll show you
my way.
They would
stop for a minute for a smoke
and
a beer
The bench racing would
start the checkered
flag
was near.
You'd leave
for a minute to go out to the
van
To reach for the food
that was two days in
hand.
The weekend
would come and the race face
was
on
With your white CCM
blazin out in the hot sun.
You'd put on
your boots one at a time
The left one was first,
you said, a ritual of
mine.
Practice was
over, time trials were done
The heat races started,
the semi you must run.
You could
start in the front or start in
the
back
Where you finished that
nite was at the top
of the track.
Andy called
your name and extended his hand
And took you to a
better land
We sob and we
cry for our hearts are broken
We will miss you for
ever, All of us have
spoken
Lift up your
heart and share with me,
God wanted him now, He
set him free!!!
Godspeed Robbie D
Carol Swanson
Carol, you are the best
at putting our thoughts
into
writing. What a touching poem. I'll always
remember Rob driving
into Lodi Cycle Bowl,
back
in the 80's, yep, stereo full blast. The Beastie
Boys. I think I'd like
to remember him, yeah,
just like that. He'd asked if I had any film of him
(I'd film on occasion
on a trusty little
Panasonic.).
'Yeah - check this out!' He peered intently
into the eye piece
chuckling 'How'd I do
that!'
as he saw himself do a lazy lowside in turn 3 on
an XR-750 at
Ascot....... Rob, thanks for
letting
us be a part of your life. We'll miss you big
time Robbie.
AD
As many have expressed,
I also offer my sincere
condolences
to Rob's family and close
friends.
I knew Rob only a bit.
However, whenever we
met up at the races he was always extremely
friendly...always
taking the time to come
over,
say 'hello', and talk shop. I've watched him
help the competition by
working on their
bikes,
give them (and me) pointers about a particular
track etc..
My best memory was at
the Del Mar mile. This
was my big shot at fame (well, at least I
thought so!). I had all
my friends and family
there to watch me on my way to glory. Well, of
course I jumped the
start. I dragged Rob along
with me and we were both sent to the penalty
line. I was totally
embarassed and more
nervous
than ever.
As we were lining up,
Rob looked over at me
with a big smile.... The message I got calmed
me down quite a bit. It
also helped me
remember
that flattracking is a sport and should be
fun. In that particular
race I think it
allowed
me to pull off the track when it was just too damn
rough and dusty. I was
able to face family and
friends with my chin up.
I've hesitated writing
anything at all. For
me, all the 'Godspeed', '..see you at the shorttrack in
the sky' stuff doesn't
express how I feel. I
didn't know how I felt... I know that I wanted to say
something about how Rob
impacted my life. I
also know it's scared me a bit further. The
aspect of fear has
popped up for me that last
couple of years. It's one of the reasons I haven't
been to many races (for
those who have asked
(JG)).
I'll miss Rob. I only
regret that living in
different cities didn't allow us the opportunity to
become true friends.
All the evidence
indicates
the everyone who came into contact with Rob
probably has similar
fond memories of him.
I also express my
concern for the others
involved
in the accident. It must be very difficult for
them right now. Phrases
like 'that's racing',
and 'we know the risks', while true, don't fill the
hole in their gut. I
wish them well and a full
emotional recovery.
Anyways, I've probably
said too much. I hope
I haven't offended anyone with my comments.
With sincere respect
for the Damron family,
Rob, and all involved.
John Dupree
It's always tragic when
these things happen, my
condolences
goes out to Rob's Family and friends.
David Larsson
Husaberg USA
I've been meaning to say
a couple of things about
Rob
but just now got the time.
Rob and I were Novices
together in 1985. I
remember
him because, as I recall, he rode a 250 when
virtually everyone else
was on a 500.
Sidewinders
was the track where 80% of the Regionals were
held. To be competitive
on a 250 you had to
ride it like a striped ass ape. Rob did! I would run into Rob
through the years at
Lodi and Sturgis. He was
always competitive and congenial.
My other recollection
is of a trip Rob made
to Sturgis, I think it was 88' or 89'. Rob teamed up with a red
plate to share expenses
and driving. Rob had
just driven all night and turned the wheel over to the
sleepy novice at
sunrise. They were driving
a race van with a wall separating the bikes from the
bunk. Rob crawled back
into the bunk to
hopefully
sleep the rest of the way. Ten minutes later,just as
Rob had fallen asleep,
so did the red plate!
Rob awoke as the van was plummeting off of a ten foot
embankment, totaling
the van. The bikes came
through the bulkhead and I believe totalled them also. I saw
Rob at the short track
a couple of nights
later,
looking for a ride. The red plate was still in the hospital.
I just can't imagine
how it would feel to wake
up that way.
It has been tough for
me to think Rob is gone.
He's been a fixture in our dirt track family for years.I'll
miss you buddy.
Kit
Rob for so long I looked
up to you not only on
the
track but also off the track. I feel so
honored that I had A
special chance to get to
know both you and your family. You were A
very special person and
will always have A
place
in my heart. Robbie D you will always be
my hero.
God speed Rob we will
all miss you.
Michelle Lineaweaver
I didn't know Rob that
well but my dad, Jack, was
friends
with him.
Iwas about 5 or 6 when
I met him at Lodi
(where
I raced) and there was something that always made me remember him,
although he past on when I was
11, there are always
small memories to help me remember him.
I remember racing @ 1 or 2 in the
morning, but
I remember making myself stay awake to watch him, Michelle, and Toby
race
(i miss him too).
His soul will live forver in the
hearts of his
friends
and the memories will never fade away.
ALLYSSA JENSEN(13)
Posted March, 2003
Rob's CCM in the
Dan Rouit Flat
Track Museum.