Bob Rice Passed 5/13/11

[john.emde]

Some of you may have met Bob. 
I've had the pleasure quite a few times.  Bob came to town for our Joliet race EVent.  He won the burnout contest with his Rabbit EV.  On his way home to Conn., the tow bar broke and pulled the right front corner into a guard rail and destroyed the right wheel.  Bob proceeded to dismantle all the EV components and loaded them into his van, batteries included.  He removed  the license plates, left the title in the glove box and a note saying take the car. I'll miss Bob and his stories.    John Emde

Here's what John Wayland wrote to our NEDRA list:
 
Hello to All,

Big Bob Rice was a friend of mine. He was a BIG man, with large hands
that according to Bill Dube, had bananas for fingers. If you didn't know
him, his physical size might be intimidating, but if you knew him, you
understood he was a gentle giant. He had his own language to express
things in ways all of us wish we could do. He hailed from Connecticut,
but he called it Corrupticut. You could tell his fondness for General
Motors (GM) as he never failed to pronounce it Generous Murders. So
entrenched was his unique twisted language, I can honestly say I never
saw or heard him out of character - he always talked in the same
hilarious colorful way, stringing together words, phrases, and jokes all
in rapid fire to the point that your head hurt trying to follow him :-)

To say Bob loved electric cars would be the ultimate understatement! He
built and drove lead sleds (Bob's words, not mine), usually VW Rabbits
filled with heavy 6 volt golf car batteries, and rain or New England
snow, he put the miles on them! Before he retired as a train engineer,
he proudly drove his electric car 25 miles or so the train station, he'd
plug it in, then he'd switch rides and drive his version of the ultimate
EV, a high speed electric passenger train. Bob told me that his dad
taught him to make playing his job in life - Bob enjoyed playing with
electric trains sets when he was a little kid - when he became a BIG
kid, he did as his dad told him to do, and played with electric trains
all day. On his yearly pilgrimage out west to our NEDRA races, before
and after the electric racing Bob would ride the rails on Portland's MAX
commuter train.

I have many fond memories of Bob that I will cherish, but one of the
highlights for me, was when he, I, and NetGain's George Hamstra had a
'unique' dining experience in Montreal one evening together - perhaps
on another day I will tell that story :-)

Bob loved the Zombie - I think he might have been its biggest fan. On
the cross-country journey that Tim Brehm, Jim Husted, and I took from
Oregon to Illinois and back with the Zombie in tow, the anti-EV vortex
had doomed the electric drag racing EVent when the very large low
pressure weather system created high winds, dropped the temperature,
and dumped copious amounts of rain - nearly ruining everything. Trying
to entertain all those who attended we staged a few burnouts between
downpours with the Zombie and Matt Grahm's 'Joule Injected' electrified
Nissan 240SX, but it was Bob who stole the show with his 96V lead sled
tire-shredding burn! That's the photo Chip has up at the NEDRA page today.

It's just like Bob to have said goodbye on Friday the 13th. We've lost
one of the good guys!

See Ya...John Wayland

[tim.moore]

Thank You John for telling us about Bob Rice.  He really was quite a guy, friendly, funny, and foolhearty.  Truly he will be missed by all who met him, and all who missed meeting him.

[ken.simmermon]

Thanks John, he sounded familiar, but when you mentioned the rabbit burnout it all came back to me. That was quite a day and he will be missed!

[todd.dore]

I heard this from Jesse in MA, a good friend of Bob's and a member of the New England EAA club.  Bob stayed at my place in Brookfield during the 5th Ever (the NEDRA event that got rained out), and he did not fail to entertain all that were around him.  He's a guy who loved EVs and a guy who will be sorely missed.

As soon as I hear anything about where to send condolance cards I'll post it to the board.

Todd

[john.emde]

Robert "Bob" Rice Obituary

* BORN: July 5, 1941
* DIED: May 13, 2011
* LOCATION: Killingworth, CT

Robert ?Bob? Rice, 69, of Killingworth died at Connecticut Hospice in
Branford on May 13th, 2011. He was born on July 5th, 1941 in
Southampton, NY to Robert and Francis Rice of King of Prussia, PA. Bob
spent his teen years in Remsenburg, NY after his family moved to what
had been their summer home and was reared in the family sport of
sailing. His interest in all things mechanical was apparent in the
go-carts he built at an early age as was his love of trains and the
railroad. Following high school, Bob joined the Army and served in
Taiwan, where he built his first electric cars and returned as a
civilian for several years following his tour of duty. Upon returning
stateside Bob pursued his passion for electric vehicles working in that
industry in Detroit and then Florida. He married Wendy (Zoe) Margaret
Hawkins in 1973 and their three sons, Ken, Charles, and Eric, were born
after they settled in Connecticut. In 1974 Bob began his career on the
railroad, working his way from ticket agent to engineer before retiring
in 2005. In his spare time, Bob continued to build electric cars,
commuting from Killingworth to New Haven in one of his creations. He
served as President of the New England Electric Auto Association,
helping many other enthusiasts with their electric car conversions. Bob
will be remembered for his strong opinions, unique sense of humor, and
penchant for talking about his passions. Bob is also survived by his
daughter-in-law, Rebecca, and his grandchildren, Leo and Lily Rice. His
wake will be Friday May 20th at Robinson, Wright and Weymer Funeral
home, 34 Main St, in Centerbrook, CT from 6-8pm.

Visitation

* Friday May 20
6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
* Robinson, Wright & Weymer Funeral Home
* 34 Main St.
* Centerbrook, CT 06409
* View Map

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=34+Main%20St.,+Centerbrook,+CT%2006409