Racing has rules… And etiquette. Much of this is communicated to the drivers with flags at safety stations located at key areas around a race course. You’ve seen them… waving different flags as the cars go by. This is not about the flags or what they mean. This is about one of the men who is in charge of those flags.
Bill Tyree is one of those fellows. The gentleman enforcers of the racing etiquette and safety. Bill has been seen by practically every driver of every event at Virginia International Raceway for several years. Granted, it’s in a flash of speed with a glance of the eye. Even under caution with yellow flag in hand, the drivers see the color and concentrate on their job. His job is to keep the yellow visible until the track is safe and the green flag is in hand to go racing again. There is, however, much more to Mr. Tyree than the flags at VIR. As serious as he is about the responsibility and the pride he has in his association with that race track, there is more.
Sunbeam Auto Restorations. A dedicated and going concern which, over time and circumstance, has remained as a loving hobby. The focus is on British roadsters and similar species. The origin was the love of the Sunbeam Alpine and Sunbeam Tiger. The style of which was bred into so many to follow, including the MG roadsters currently taking residence in his garage. One is his own, restored from a less than glamorous example. The other, a friendly client’s golden color 1973 model in for some upgrades on maintenance.
Bill is quite knowledgeable of the British lineage of automobile. It’s an early passion that originated a business, and was also instrumental in the interest at Virginia International Raceway. VIR hosts several events, many of which draw car enthusiasts of all kinds. It was one of these events that drew Bill to the flag stand.
It is the love of the car that keeps it all wide open. It even includes the 1939 Chevy Sedan being given a road ready boost so it can be enjoyed as close to original as possible. It is the same for the British roadster… Enjoy as it is, not compared to fuel injection and driver assist and computers under the hood but as a bit of forward motion engineered for enthusiasm.
The Pontiac…? It’s an anniversary edition Daytona 500 Trans Am that was dropped into his hands and, like all of his projects, brought up to condition with the attention to detail that gave Sunbeam Auto a quality reputation. It’s a daily driver now…
Bill Tyree has many interests. The association with racing at Virginia International Raceway, the enthusiasm of the automobile, the hands on love of classic British style are key ingredients. Sunbeam Auto remains as a hobby to assist fellow enthusiasts. It’s as much a mechanical thing as it is a social thing.
He’s also a gracious host. At a recent, but small and covid aware event at his garage, the discussion ranged from MG upgrades to pre-WWII Chevy water pumps to leaky BMW valve cover gaskets….
I’m afraid I owe him a biscuit for that Bimmer info…
See Bill on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/billtyreesSunbeamAutoRestorations/
Visit Virginia International Raceway online: https://virnow.com/
