Lynn Bodine
The Woman Beside the Driver
By Abby Chase
racingjunky.com
Lynn Bodine, wife of Winston Cup and Busch driver, Todd Bodine, was on her way to a career in business management. Then one day she was at a party at a local racetrack. It was then she would find love right before her eyes. Meeting Todd Bodine sent Lynn's life in a different direction than she may have had planned, but it would certainly be
suitable for her lifestyle. Lynn would end up continuing to do what she grew up doing.
Lynn grew up in a very small town on Connecticut named Lebanon. She has an older brother and an older sister, Jeff and Nancy. She also had another brother, Charlie, who passed away in 1983. While growing up, Lynn was involved in sports. She
played basketball and softball for her high school, where her graduating class was composed of just 83 people. Lynn commented that "everybody knew everybody." Lynn was also interested in animals
and became involved in 4-H.
There were several teachers that influenced and encouraged
Lynn as she grew older. Her basketball and
softball coaches always pushed her. Lynn was physically small and not as talented as some of the other players, but she made up for it by playing with more desire and heart.
In the racing
industry, Lynn stated that Ann Schrader, the first wife featured in the "Woman Beside the Driver" column, has always inspired her. She said that Ann "has shown me that you can have a life of your own along with supporting your husband and being there for your kids. You can do it all with the right balance."
Lynn's racing roots started with her father, who actually raced before his kids were born. Lynn's father was actually friends with modified driver, Richie Evans. Richie was a nine-time NASCAR Featherlite Modified Tour Champion. His reign of success came to a tragic
end when Evans was killed during a practice crash
at Martinsville Speedway in 1985. Lynn was the
only one in the family that liked racing. She
would always go to the local racetracks with her father.
Her dreams while growing up were to attend college and to meet the right guy. Fortunately, those dreams would come true for Lynn. After high school, Lynn attended Eastern
Connecticut State University. She majored in business management and had a minor in accounting. As far as meeting the right guy goes, well, that can be hard to do, but one day Lynn went to a party at Thompson Speedway in Connecticut. Fate would have it that Todd Bodine would also be there. Their paths would finally cross on the dance floor where they met for the first time.
Todd and Lynn dated for three years. During that time, Todd relocated to North Carolina to pursue jobs in racing. Todd had grown up in a racing family in upstate New York.
Todd and Lynn finally got married on Friday, November 13th, 1987, in Harrisburg, North Carolina. At the time, Todd was working as a fabricator for Bobby Hillin and Highline Racing. He also started racing in Late Model and Sportsman Divisions. During 1988, '89, and '90, Lynn would score or keep track of lap times for him.
In 1991, Todd
got a full time Busch Grand National ride. With only about 20 races under his belt, Todd scored his
first Busch win.
Meanwhile, Lynn continued
to work full time until 1993. She also would fly to the track for race day. She still did pit times until she started spotting for Todd in 1996. She continued to do that in 1997 and part of 1998. On May 21st, 1998, Todd and Lynn had a baby girl. They named her Ashlyn Marie.
Today, life on the road for the Bodine family consists of flying in private planes, living in a motor coach, making some family time, and going
home again. They are a part of the traveling community on the NASCAR circuit. Lynn said, "It is a privilege we didn't have when Todd worked on a team." Within the community, the Bodine's have
many friends, and the "community" also has it's own ministry, MRO (Motor Racing Outreach). Lynn said the MRO "shepherds us and our children."
Life constantly on the road can get tiring, so Lynn and her daughter do their own hobby with a
different type of horsepower. One of Lynn's hobbies is riding horses. They have two American Quarter Horses that Lynn shows, one in English and one in Western. Instead of going to the races, Ashlyn and Lynn will go to horse shows. In all, the Bodine's have six horses. Four of them, whose names are Bronco, Cody, Kool, and Star, live right on their farm. Their
two other horses, Popsicle and Clarice, are the
ones Lynn shows, and they live at the trainers' facility. Along with the horses, the family has
two dogs, Hannah and Chezie, and three cats,
Reebok, Tigger, and Snickers. In addition to
riding horses, Lynn loves to read and build puzzles. Ashlyn currently has a dream of becoming
a singer and hitting the stage with singers such as Kenny Chesney or Shania Twain.
When Lynn and Ashlyn do attend the race, they start off by getting ready for church, which takes place after the driver's meeting. Lynn and Ashlyn spend as much time as possible with Todd prior to driver introductions. Ashlyn goes to the Children's Bible Club, and Lynn watches the race from either the pit box or the motor coach.
Lynn said that she does like to keep busy; she is always doing something. During the week, while Ashlyn has
school and Bible Study, Lynn rides horses at home
or at the trainers' facility in South Carolina.
After 16 years, Lynn no longer holds any responsibilities on the race weekends. She takes care of business at home such as doing the laundry, grocery shopping, going to the doctor and dentist, and working out. She stated that her "main job is being a Mom and a Wife."
Lynn has a pretty close relationship with the current teams Todd has been involved with. Lynn loves Travis and Linda Carter, and she said you couldn't find two nicer people in the garage area. Lynn is now getting to know the Belnavis family who co-owns Todd's Winston Cup ride with Travis Carter. Lynn commented that "the guys," Todd's teams, are like family to her. In fact, they get invited to the Bodine's every time they have an opportunity. They have cookouts, go swimming, play volleyball, and just have fun. It is their way of showing the teams how much the Bodine's appreciate them and their families. After all, Todd has had first hand experience as a crew member, and he and Lynn both know how the long hours and time away from home can be stressful on a relationship, so they keep that
in mind when they see the crew members on Todd's teams.
With Todd running both the Winston Cup Series and Busch Series, off weekends are few and far between. Lynn said that last year while Todd was in Sears Point with the Winston Cup team, she threw the Busch team a party to celebrate their win at Kentucky Speedway and vice versa. Lynn
would have the Cup team over for a party to just
say 'thanks' for their efforts. It is really important to Todd and Lynn that the "guys" know
that they are appreciated and loved, and that it's not just about paying bonuses at that end of the year.
During the off season, Todd, Lynn, and Ashlyn visit family and shop for the holidays.
They also take a week long
vacation to some place like Disney that Ashlyn
would really enjoy.
Another thing that Lynn Bodine loves to do is to interact with the fans. She used to attend Todd's appearances and actually visit with the fans. Now she goes to Todd's web site and visits with them
and signs autographs for them at Winston Cup Racing Wives Auxiliary appearances. Lynn was actually President of the Winston Cup Racing Wives Auxiliary from 1995-1998, and she has been on the board since 2001. She wisely adds, "Without the fans, our husbands couldn't do what they love and we should never forget that." One thing that is really
special about NASCAR is that it is the people who make it, especially the drivers, and take their fortunes and give back to a good cause.
Todd and Lynn Bodine recently have become involved with Todd's Winston Cup sponsor, the National Guard. Their goal is to show their appreciation to over 350,000 members of the National Guard who are protecting our country and our freedom. Todd has been very good to mention them while doing interviews. After all, like Lynn says, "If it weren't for the Armed Forces, no one would be able to enjoy the wonderful things in life, like going
to a NASCAR race or just feeling safe."
Todd and Lynn also do a lot where they live in Davidson, North Carolina. One of Lynn's greatest experiences was helping build a Habitat house in their community. As far as the future goes to Lynn Bodine and her family, Lynn lives life one day at a time and hasn't thought about the future way down the road.
She and Todd would like to start a
Busch team someday. With all the jobs Todd has
had, that role would fit him well. He would also like to develop a young driver and help give
someone like himself a start. These days, young drivers are either offered a stellar ride with a very competitive team or wind up in a low-scale
ride or have no ride at all, such as Hank Parker, Jr., and Casey Atwood.
Lynn would also like to travel to places that don't have racetracks and see more of the world. When all is said and done, Lynn would like most for the future is to spend
time with the people she loves and give back to others after being so blessed herself.
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