Benny Robertson

[Ron Hill]

I really don't have much info on Benny. But I do know he is one of the greatest drivers in the history of our sport.

I think he is the current World Record V-Bottom driver...He won MOD U with his Evinrude V-8 so many times, they almost quit having the APBA Hall of Champions becasue Benny was in it every year...

Basically, what I know of Benny, he's just a "Good Ole Boy" from North Carolina...Well, Maybe, South Carolina...

He will be making an attempt of the World V-Bottom record soon...Goal 200 MPH!!!

Here's picture when Benny was running tunnels at Havasu...1979...

Benny maybe be older now...but he's still a KID at heart....

[epugh66]

When I was a kid, Benny used to come to Knoxville to race at Claude Fox's NOA site. He was always fast in the V bottoms. Always Allison's, some with the Allison wing on back. His main competition seemed to be Joe Burgess.

[Mark Poole]

Benny was a great competitor and driver. Fact also, since this is boat racing facts, he had an ego the size of Texas. Probably why he was a great racer.

At a district N.O.A. race in South Carolina in 1984 Benny was the only V-6 tunnel to show up that weekend. So, when it came time to run Unlimited tunnel a whole bunch of V-4 powered boats stepped up to make the class and put on a show. After sizing up his competition Benny drives his boat over to the start dock and asks the announcer to make....an announcement. The announcer said, "Benny Robertson would like all the spectators to know that he will LAP all of the boats in this 7 lap race". Now, understand that did not suprise all of us that we there that day. Well, just so happens one of the V-4 rigs in the race was driven by Cody Billiter. Cody was a daring racer and a good ol boy from Carolina too. Cody had a 14 ft. (Mod-50) Broughton tunnel with a full race V-4 super strangler on it. Well Benny won the race but he did not lap all of his "handicapped with a slower boat" competitors. Benny almost wrecked his boat driving like a madman to make good on his prediction!

Bennys brother Stevie was a great V bottom racer also. I think Stevie set the 5 mile competition J record at this same race with an Allison/Merc. They both influenced a lot of young racers in this region in those days.