“She electrocuted herself”: Kenny Wallace reminisces ‘catastrophic’ turnaround about father Russell that landed his mother in the hospital

Kenny Wallace has reflected on a decades-old incident when his mother Judy Wallace was electrocuted and had to be transported to a hospital following his father Russell Wallace's brutal crash. The 61-year-old sat down with another former NASCAR driver Ken Schrader when he revisited the 'shocking' moment that ensued at the Tri-City Speedway.

Wallace's father Russell raced at the high-banked 3/8-mile dirt oval when tragedy struck. In the 1970s, stock cars weren't modified to the extent they presently are, and safety wasn't much looked after either. Moreover, they weren't equipped with a tear-off plastic sheet, which is a standard nowadays, that ensured clear vision simply by peeling off the top sheet.

Decades ago, when drivers rode on dirt tracks with windshields, mud slowly deposited on the mirror, blocking the driver's vision. Kenny Wallace's father raced during that period and to make matters worse, his car did not have a hood during the race that would prevent water from getting sprayed on the windshield.

As a result, Russell Wallace view was blocked by water droplets and he stuck his head out of the window to get a clear view of the track. Unbeknownst to him, his move would invite a catastrophic turnaround as he climbed the straightway wall and was onto the fence.

Russell Wallace's wife Judy was shocked to witness the turmoil and rushed to check on her husband. However, the fence had an electric charge flowing through it and she was thus electrocuted. The shock was such that she was taken to the hospital.

Kenny Wallace, who was in the grandstands when the incident occurred, reflected on the twisted series of events and hilariously elaborated on his mother's fate. He said (via Dirty Mo Media).

"Dad's running this race, the hood's not on the car. I guess the car starts overheating. Back then we had glass windshields. Dad's got his head out, he's looking and he's trying to race and dad climbs the front straightaway wall at granite and takes the whole front straightway fence down and it's catastrophic," Wallace said (0:10).

"Mom is delirious...she comes flying out of the grandstands. The fence is down and remind you, all the wiring, there's wiring too, the electrical lines. Mom climbs over the fencing and electrocutes herself. Dad was just fine after the wreck but we took mom to the hospital," he added.

Wallace shared a laugh with Schrader about Judy's fate, saying it was one in a million thing.

Kenny Wallace sidelined his baseball dream to pursue a career in motorsports

Kenny Wallace's father was a known name in short track racing and the former followed in Russell's footsteps, competing in NASCAR and then shifting to dirt racing.

However, Kenny had an affinity for baseball, which is still more than racing. But those dreams took a back seat as he became a mechanic for his father and brother Rusty. Kenny Wallace began racing in 1982 and claimed the Street Stock State Championship at 19.

“Going from a mechanic to a race car driver was pretty difficult. I ended up calling a man named John Childs, who owned some tire stores in the O’Fallon area. John helped me financially and so did our motor man, Don Kirn. Racing cars is super expensive, and I could have never done it by myself," Wallace said of his sponsor who helped him etch the Street Stock title via Missouri Sports Hall of Fame.

The 61-year-old continued his motorsports career and debuted in the Xfinity Series with Dale Earnhardt Inc. in 1988. He stayed until the 2015 season but kept switching teams. Wallace clinched nine wins in NASCAR, all from the NXS.

It's worth mentioning that even though Wallace couldn't carve a niche for himself in the Cup Series, he earned notable NASCAR accolades such as the 1989 NASCAR Busch Series Rookie of the Year. Kenny Wallace also won the 1991, 1994, and 2006 NASCAR Busch Series Most Popular Driver, to name a few.