Jokes aside, Bob Ahrendsen honored to be recognized at Hawkeye Downs

CEDAR RAPIDS — Bob Ahrendsen certainly has a sense of humor.

When Hawkeye Downs Speedway’s Wall of Fame organizer Steve Day visited Ahrendsen at work (Casey’s General Store) in May to inform him of his induction, Ahrendsen hit Day with a memorable one-liner:

“Steve came into my workplace one day, I didn’t necessarily know who he was — He walked up and he asked me, ‘Are you Bob Ahrendsen?’ Funnily, I looked at him and I said, ‘Yes. Do you have a subpoena for me?’

“He said, ‘No, I’m Steve, and you’re going to be inducted into the Wall of Fame.’ ... I got a little teared up about it.”

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Ahrendsen, 59, of Cedar Rapids, was one of five individuals inducted into Hawkeye Downs’ Wall of Fame on Friday night during an intermission of weekly races. Other inductees were Bob and Joe Kosiski of Omaha, Del Long of Cedar Rapids and Chuck Smith (Performance Engineering) of North Carolina.

“I feel very honored to be in the Wall of Fame with a great list of people,” Ahrendsen said. “Throughout the years since inception at Hawkeye Downs to be on that list, it means a lot.”

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On the track, Ahrendsen was a Hobby Stock dynamo.

From 1993 to 2010, he won four season championships (1993, 2003, 2007 and 2010).

As decorated as his racing career was, his devotion to helping others added to his legacy.

In 2016, Ahrendsen won HD’s prestigious “Most Valuable Person” award. From 2008 to 2016, he let many racers drive his cars to help promote and grow the sport of racing.

“It was just to help Hawkeye Downs continue to be on the map,” Ahrendsen said. “It’s just nice to take care of people — that’s all.”

Ahrendsen also competed in the Sportsman division and ran half-mile races for a period, although he didn’t find as much joy racing the longer track.

“A little quarter mile makes me happy,” Ahrendsen said.

The highlight of Ahrendsen’s racing career came in 2000 at Hawkeye Downs’ 50-lap Coca-Cola Challenge.

“I won the Coca-Cola Challenge, and that’s when they brought all the big boys from the half-mile down to the quarter-mile,” Ahrendsen said. “It was the highest paying race that I ever won. It took me 20 to 30 laps to get the lead. I didn’t let go after that, and I cried like a baby.”

Ahrendsen had countless people to thank for the success he achieved in his 17-year career at Hawkeye Downs — most importantly, his girlfriend of 27 years, Renee Redding.

“There are numerous people I would like to thank, but I would have to thank Renee (the most) for supporting me and putting up with many years of racing,” Ahrendsen said. “She’s actually a better mechanic than me.”

In addition, Ahrendsen said he’s genuinely grateful for the sponsors who not only supported him but believed in him.

“I always said they (sponsors) made a personal and a professional decision to help you,” Ahrendsen said. “The racer gets all the glory, but there’s people behind them that support you that are just as important as the guy in Victory Lane.

“When they give you their time — when they give you their money — I think you have a commitment to them to do your best.”

He certainly did.