IHRA: Bill Lutz update

But when we spoke with him them, he was confident he'd be back on his feet, and back in the cockpit, in time for the IHRA Northern Nationals this weekend at U.S. 131 Motorsport Park in Martin, Michigan, not far from his home in Ohio. 

Sadly, Lutz will not be able to drive. Lutz is still in the hospital, and his fast, beautiful Turbo by Garrett 1969 Chevrolet Camaro remains parked. In a post on Facebook last week, his sister, Jeani, explains what happened:

"My brother was a beautifully healthy 48-year-old man who never smoked, drank or did drugs of any kind. Drag racing and his family were his life. He went in for an emergency gall bladder surgery in early May and the surgeon knicked his pancreas and his bile duct. This has led to all of his organs shutting down, dialysis, feeding tubes, colostomy bags, and way too many hospital stays.

"Yesterday, everything came to a head and he had two surgeries in one day, a heart attack in recovery, and God only knows what this poor man and his family will be put through next. But, I can tell you that I've already lost one brother and losing another one is not in my plans."

In June, Lutz said he always wanted to go Pro Mod racing, "but we never really had the funds to do it." That's where his story gets especially creative: Lutz owns an insurance agency, Central Ohio Insurance in Pickerington, which is an independent agency, meaning he writes insurance not with just one company, but 20.

One day he got a call from a company that said they wanted to write insurance on race cars – both on and off the track – and given his background, they figured he'd be perfect as an agent, even though "I thought they were crazy at first!"
They were correct about Lutz being the right guy – he has worked closely with the IHRA and its racers, as well as racers in other disciplines.

Bill Lutz, a friend to drag racing in general and the IHRA in particular, could use our prayers and positive thoughts. And here's hoping we see him at the IHRA's season opener in 2017.