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Todd’s son Tim came into the sport as a 125R driver and was able to score National Championships as well as in the hydro. Over the years Tim was able to garner five National’s and one World Championsip. Tim was so much a competitor as his Dad and showed it time after time. He was always tough at the Nationals in Depue and this ability to rise to pressure situations brought him a world championship in 125H against stout competition. As you might remember Buddy Tennell had reeled off 5 or 6 National Championships in a row, driving engines that Steve Litzell had built to perfection. So with Buddy and European drivers in the mix, Tim had his work cut out for him. Echoing his Uncle Tom Brinkman’s comment that Todd as team manager gave his team the best possible equipment and set ups to try and accomplish getting to be at the top.
Well as it were, Buddy and Tim were locked in a battle for world supremacy along with a good group of drivers from all over the world. Buddy, took the first two heats of racing with Tim finishing in second. In the worlds, you get to run 4 heats of racing and throw your worst heat out. So, Tim had two more heats to try to get around Buddy’s lead in points, by winning the last two and then hope that Buddy would finish worse than 2nd in those heats. Buddy could run the table by winning the 3rd heat and everyone else would be fighting for 2nd overall in the World. Boat racing is such a roll of the dice at times and in the 3rd heat, Buddy came up snake eyes and found himself sitting in the bottom corner watching others at speed go by, including the winning driver Tim Brinkman. Now that all important 4th heat comes to the water. Buddy could still win it with a win or finishing in front of Tim, no matter. Well the roll of the dice was once again in Tim’s favor as he went on to win the 125H world championship at Lakeland, Fl.
Tim’s favorite race course was Constantine, he said the water was always raceable, was a drivers course with tight turns, it was a thinking man’s course, as you could use those tight corners to set yourself up to pass or protect the lead. His least favorite was up at Ogdensburg, Ny on the St. Lawrence Seaway. He said the swells on this body of water were unbelievable and felt like he was riding a jet ski instead of 250R in the awful water. He said like his Uncle Tom Brinkman, Mike Krier was his toughest competitor and he said he chased him for a long time and when he beat him, it came with great satisfaction. The young man that Tim is paid tribute to his friends for being tough competitors to him along the way, with the great Tim Small again a part of the Brinkman Team still wanted to beat your brains out and the name of the great driver in Chris Hellsten came up as well, some may not remember, but Chris drove runabouts in addition to his great work with the hydro as well.
Tim started driving for Bill Van Steenwyk when Bill retired, and as Tim said, he and Eileen were like a second set of Grand Parents to him. He said Bill was patient as they would finish one heat on a weekend, to the point where he won the Worlds at Lakeland. So a lot of great feelings over the years from the help that Bill and Eileen provided. Another great help to Tim, was Denny Henderson, Denny actually designed the boat that the master Mike Krier built and Tim won the Worlds with. Denny, according to Tim was a great teacher to him and one outside of his family that brought his maturity as a driver to full bloom. Denny was a master starter at any race he was in and Tim learned from Denny his secret. Tim went out with Denny to set the course several times and when on the water and Tim picked up many ideas. One of which was how Denny could get the tremendous starts he would do. While setting up the course at Depue, Denny taught Tim about the out of bounds markers and using them to time from that point to the starting line. He knew he needed to be in that spot at the specific time to hit the starting line as close to zero as possible. And learn it Tim did.
Tim said he still had the itch to race, even after the accident, but his priorities are right on with his family and when Cam started racing, that went away and he spends his weekends on the road helping Cam. Tim said that this has filled his competitive void and is amazed at how the youngsters in karting are able to do what they are capable of. In talking to Grandpa Todd, Cam is doing great as you will see in my catch up on his career. The last thing Tim commented on was the thankfulness he felt from his friendships developed over the years, and even though it has been 16 years since he raced boats, he still hears from many of them that he knew while racing. That my friends is what separates boat racing from a lot of competitive sports out there.
Lake Hollingsworth at Lakeland, Fl has supplied great memories for Tim and his Uncle Tom, and not so to Todd as the former set speed records, and world wins, but as we learned earlier the crash in 700R injured Todd severely and ended his career. Alas the same kind of incident secured Tim’s retirement from boat racing as well. He was severely injured at Depue when the hydro lifted off the water in the infamous backstretch area of Lake DePue and up and over he went, only to have the boat strike him on the way down. Fortunately, Tim has fully recovered and finds himself on the road many weekend through the year as the crew chief to his son Cam who as you will learn has taken a different speed demon route. Tim and his dear wife Ashley also have twin girls who keep him busy as well
Todd’s Grandson Cam, the Son of Tim, has taken a different path in racing and has become the champion in the RT66 regional Karting Association winning in 2020 all 8 of the races run this year. He started in Kid Karts, and went to Florida to race at Daytona, in his very ls first national race in karts, with thinking he would get some good seat time, a good understanding of what a national event was all about and soak up some knowledge and get a feel for the big time. Did he ever, finishing 3rd in his very first nationals told Grand Dad and his Pop, hmm, maybe we have a driven young man and not only driven, but capable as well. He then went on to the Micro Swift karts for a couple of years and finished 2nd by .100 of a second at Las Vegas with 40 other Karts. He has now graduated into the Mini Swift class and found himself winning the Rt66 Association title once again, but also 2nd in the USPKS Nationals as well. He has raced at Homestead in January and finished the year at Las Vegas where the Nationals are held, and with a stop at Road America, his favorite course, and Daytona for their big national event. He just finished a race in Mooresville NC, just outside of Charlotte and the number of son’s and daughters of NASCAR starts were racing that weekend, like Kevin Harvick’s son, Juan Pablo Montoya and others. He loves to be around boat racing, but his matriarchs, Grandma and Mom, feel Karting is the best. Although in front of Grandma, at New Castle, In, he hooked up with another kart and went on his head, not cool for Grandma’s to watch I am sure. This young man, Cam, is also on a championship traveling basketball team, and has played Baseball, and other sports. Never let that grass grow under his feet is his motto.
Well as it were, Buddy and Tim were locked in a battle for world supremacy along with a good group of drivers from all over the world. Buddy, took the first two heats of racing with Tim finishing in second. In the worlds, you get to run 4 heats of racing and throw your worst heat out. So, Tim had two more heats to try to get around Buddy’s lead in points, by winning the last two and then hope that Buddy would finish worse than 2nd in those heats. Buddy could run the table by winning the 3rd heat and everyone else would be fighting for 2nd overall in the World. Boat racing is such a roll of the dice at times and in the 3rd heat, Buddy came up snake eyes and found himself sitting in the bottom corner watching others at speed go by, including the winning driver Tim Brinkman. Now that all important 4th heat comes to the water. Buddy could still win it with a win or finishing in front of Tim, no matter. Well the roll of the dice was once again in Tim’s favor as he went on to win the 125H world championship at Lakeland, Fl.
Tim’s favorite race course was Constantine, he said the water was always raceable, was a drivers course with tight turns, it was a thinking man’s course, as you could use those tight corners to set yourself up to pass or protect the lead. His least favorite was up at Ogdensburg, Ny on the St. Lawrence Seaway. He said the swells on this body of water were unbelievable and felt like he was riding a jet ski instead of 250R in the awful water. He said like his Uncle Tom Brinkman, Mike Krier was his toughest competitor and he said he chased him for a long time and when he beat him, it came with great satisfaction. The young man that Tim is paid tribute to his friends for being tough competitors to him along the way, with the great Tim Small again a part of the Brinkman Team still wanted to beat your brains out and the name of the great driver in Chris Hellsten came up as well, some may not remember, but Chris drove runabouts in addition to his great work with the hydro as well.
Tim started driving for Bill Van Steenwyk when Bill retired, and as Tim said, he and Eileen were like a second set of Grand Parents to him. He said Bill was patient as they would finish one heat on a weekend, to the point where he won the Worlds at Lakeland. So a lot of great feelings over the years from the help that Bill and Eileen provided. Another great help to Tim, was Denny Henderson, Denny actually designed the boat that the master Mike Krier built and Tim won the Worlds with. Denny, according to Tim was a great teacher to him and one outside of his family that brought his maturity as a driver to full bloom. Denny was a master starter at any race he was in and Tim learned from Denny his secret. Tim went out with Denny to set the course several times and when on the water and Tim picked up many ideas. One of which was how Denny could get the tremendous starts he would do. While setting up the course at Depue, Denny taught Tim about the out of bounds markers and using them to time from that point to the starting line. He knew he needed to be in that spot at the specific time to hit the starting line as close to zero as possible. And learn it Tim did.
Tim said he still had the itch to race, even after the accident, but his priorities are right on with his family and when Cam started racing, that went away and he spends his weekends on the road helping Cam. Tim said that this has filled his competitive void and is amazed at how the youngsters in karting are able to do what they are capable of. In talking to Grandpa Todd, Cam is doing great as you will see in my catch up on his career. The last thing Tim commented on was the thankfulness he felt from his friendships developed over the years, and even though it has been 16 years since he raced boats, he still hears from many of them that he knew while racing. That my friends is what separates boat racing from a lot of competitive sports out there.
Lake Hollingsworth at Lakeland, Fl has supplied great memories for Tim and his Uncle Tom, and not so to Todd as the former set speed records, and world wins, but as we learned earlier the crash in 700R injured Todd severely and ended his career. Alas the same kind of incident secured Tim’s retirement from boat racing as well. He was severely injured at Depue when the hydro lifted off the water in the infamous backstretch area of Lake DePue and up and over he went, only to have the boat strike him on the way down. Fortunately, Tim has fully recovered and finds himself on the road many weekend through the year as the crew chief to his son Cam who as you will learn has taken a different speed demon route. Tim and his dear wife Ashley also have twin girls who keep him busy as well
Todd’s Grandson Cam, the Son of Tim, has taken a different path in racing and has become the champion in the RT66 regional Karting Association winning in 2020 all 8 of the races run this year. He started in Kid Karts, and went to Florida to race at Daytona, in his very ls first national race in karts, with thinking he would get some good seat time, a good understanding of what a national event was all about and soak up some knowledge and get a feel for the big time. Did he ever, finishing 3rd in his very first nationals told Grand Dad and his Pop, hmm, maybe we have a driven young man and not only driven, but capable as well. He then went on to the Micro Swift karts for a couple of years and finished 2nd by .100 of a second at Las Vegas with 40 other Karts. He has now graduated into the Mini Swift class and found himself winning the Rt66 Association title once again, but also 2nd in the USPKS Nationals as well. He has raced at Homestead in January and finished the year at Las Vegas where the Nationals are held, and with a stop at Road America, his favorite course, and Daytona for their big national event. He just finished a race in Mooresville NC, just outside of Charlotte and the number of son’s and daughters of NASCAR starts were racing that weekend, like Kevin Harvick’s son, Juan Pablo Montoya and others. He loves to be around boat racing, but his matriarchs, Grandma and Mom, feel Karting is the best. Although in front of Grandma, at New Castle, In, he hooked up with another kart and went on his head, not cool for Grandma’s to watch I am sure. This young man, Cam, is also on a championship traveling basketball team, and has played Baseball, and other sports. Never let that grass grow under his feet is his motto.
