Robert "Wally" Lamkin

[CUDA]

I heard they are doing tests trying to find out what is going on but his health is declining, he reached out to Paul Freeman his test driver for the DR20 development and past president of the Tennessee and ODBA drag boat associations for results of last weeks race.
Wally is/was a true craftsman at what ever he chose to work on, from building his own kitchen cabinets for his beautiful wife from scratch, to some of the finest in mold gelcoat graphics on the V 21s, outside the box DR20s to keeping up the quality of the STV boats he produced during his time with the molds, he was like a father figure to me always willing to answer what ever question I asked, to me I will never forget his open point blank style, he told you like it was. I sure hope they find out what's going on, He was a big part of the performance boating world for many years.


Also for those that don't know but Jimmy Hensley owner of Tri-County marine Knoxville who must have more passes in drag boat racing than anyone ( always ran two to three classes every race) passed away July 20 2021 he was 76, He always had a bottle of Jack Daniels near by and a cigarette in hand and called Pork health food, a true southern Gentleman






j

[tcrabtree]

prayers for wally. great guy & always willing to help

[JBS]

Prayers sent.Please keep us updated.

[ZiemerSTV]

Wally is first class. Prayers to Wally and his family.

[moatorbotin]

Zero interactions with Wally, but have always heard nothing but good about him. Love my V21 and I hope he gets on the mend!

[Tcatrett]

Sending prayers for Wally.
Was sad to hear about Hensley.

[JBS]

Any updates on wally?
What happened to Hensley?

[Capt.Insane-o]

I hope he is well as can be through this journey of the mortal coil, hell of a character and an awesome guy.

[Laser LTV]

Prayers sent

[G-Train]

Wow, hope he will be OK. I've met him several times, and always a great conversation. His name carries a lot of weight in the Hi-Perf Outboard community

[AlliStan]

Wally's struggling, but he hasn't given up. There was a pic of him a couple weeks ago, posted by Ray Wilson (his right hand man) on Facebook, sitting on a stool working on a plug for a little hunting/fishing boat they're planning to be building. He rode with a close friend to the King of the Hill boat rally at Clark's Hill Lake, back at the end of August. He's ailing, but don't count him out. Wally's tough as a lighter knot.

[JBS]

Thanks for the update. I'll shoot him a text.

[CUDA]

Many years ago I stopped in unannounced ... twice I was on my way north or south so I detoured to Wally's

I loved to talk with him, a multifaceted wealth of information.

[AlliStan]

Thought I'd offer an updated report on our mutual friend, Wally. I went in a local restaurant Saturday for lunch and saw him sitting at a table with some other mutual friends. I immediately forgot about my lunch and pulled up a chair to "catch up". Wally looked really good to me, and sounded and acted just like when I first met him. Make no mistake, he's not as strong and active as the old Wally, but he's hanging in there, still working some when he feels like he can. He and Ray have two little boat design plugs almost ready to make the molds. He talked with anticipation about it.

I let him know we are all concerned about him, and wish him well. As usual, I learned more useful minutiae about 2.5s, lower units, etc. than I knew before talking with him. He is a wealth of information and his memory seemed to be still very sharp Saturday. My son sat with us and found out a lot more about his yellow/purple '96 Triad STV that he acquired this past spring. Wally remembered building the boat, and who the original owner was, and also the intermediate owner. It was one of the last STVs Wally built, he said.

One thing that always comes out when we talk is his deep love for his soul-mate, his lovely wife Robin. That has been a constant as long as I've known him. My life is fuller because of having Wally a part of it.

[rock]

I had dinner with Wally shortly after his heart episode probably close to 20 years ago. We ate steak and lobster while Wally munched on an apple. Said his wife would kill him if she found him eating steak and lobster. All I did during that meal was listen. Wally and Dennis (Vitollo} did most of the talking. I just sat there and absorbed. Seemed like a great guy. Hope he does well.

Rock