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Northrop · 03-30-2012, 12:08 PM

RIP Grump

My family got to know Bill well through the last 15 years or so. Jenkins competition built my brother Dave's Comp and Pro Stock engines. He took a liking to my brother Dave and always gave us all he had engine wise. When Grump came to the track with us I was always astonished at the amount of fan support this man had. People would pack the rope and stand there for hours and await Bill to appear from the trailer! And when he did, they would often say " HEY GRUMP”…. do you remember when, or I saw you do this, or just try to get an autograph from him. Most of the time he would just mumble “bahhhh” and go on his way! He would get on that red scooter and buzz right thru the crowd often times hitting people on the way. We laughed every time! Grump was short on words, especially if you didn't have anything intelligent to say. There was no time for small talk with Grump on race day. But on occasion when he was feeling good you could get him to talk about the past. He used to tell us some crazy stories about road side break downs and the hillbilly tracks he raced at. We tried to squeeze out of him what went on at night, but he kept those stories a secret. I used to cook him hamburgers and hot dogs and always had to make sure there was cold beers in the cooler for him. If I didn’t cook his burger perfectly burnt on the outside and dead pink on the inside, he would fire it back and let me know about it…. Bahhhhhhh its not done right, make another one kid ! So I would cook another one and try it again.

We often took my SG Vega along in the same trailer with my bros cars. One time I told Grump I had a carb stumble and asked what he thought. As he usually did to me, he didn’t say anything and just kept going about his business! I just thought to myself.. whatever you Grumpy old man! Well the next day while I am warming up my car he comes over (with stogie in mouth) leans in and grabs the throttle and zings it to about 7,000 grand ! I was cracking up. He tells me to shut it off and says “Bahhhh.. the effin pump cam is wrong!” And he stumbled off without saying another word ! That’s how he was, you just never knew what to expect.

Grump is a legend in our sport and had a huge influence on a lot of people on a lot of different things. He will be missed by all. See you another day Bill

Sincerely,

Dan Northrop and the whole Northrop clan

03-30-2012, 12:08 PM	#59
Northrop Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Posts: 41 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Bill Jenkins RIP Grump My family got to know Bill well through the last 15 years or so. Jenkins competition built my brother Dave's Comp and Pro Stock engines. He took a liking to my brother Dave and always gave us all he had engine wise. When Grump came to the track with us I was always astonished at the amount of fan support this man had. People would pack the rope and stand there for hours and await Bill to appear from the trailer! And when he did, they would often say " HEY GRUMP”…. do you remember when, or I saw you do this, or just try to get an autograph from him. Most of the time he would just mumble “bahhhh” and go on his way! He would get on that red scooter and buzz right thru the crowd often times hitting people on the way. We laughed every time! Grump was short on words, especially if you didn't have anything intelligent to say. There was no time for small talk with Grump on race day. But on occasion when he was feeling good you could get him to talk about the past. He used to tell us some crazy stories about road side break downs and the hillbilly tracks he raced at. We tried to squeeze out of him what went on at night, but he kept those stories a secret. I used to cook him hamburgers and hot dogs and always had to make sure there was cold beers in the cooler for him. If I didn’t cook his burger perfectly burnt on the outside and dead pink on the inside, he would fire it back and let me know about it…. Bahhhhhhh its not done right, make another one kid ! So I would cook another one and try it again. We often took my SG Vega along in the same trailer with my bros cars. One time I told Grump I had a carb stumble and asked what he thought. As he usually did to me, he didn’t say anything and just kept going about his business! I just thought to myself.. whatever you Grumpy old man! Well the next day while I am warming up my car he comes over (with stogie in mouth) leans in and grabs the throttle and zings it to about 7,000 grand ! I was cracking up. He tells me to shut it off and says “Bahhhh.. the effin pump cam is wrong!” And he stumbled off without saying another word ! That’s how he was, you just never knew what to expect. Grump is a legend in our sport and had a huge influence on a lot of people on a lot of different things. He will be missed by all. See you another day Bill Sincerely, Dan Northrop and the whole Northrop clan