This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2010, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Local auto racing patriarch "Wild Bill" Madsen, 77, died Wednesday after a courageous two-month battle with pancreatis disease.
Madsen was a short-track auto racing legend in Utah, winning seven season championships— second only to Dick Card's eight from 1970-81 at the old Fairgrounds Speedway and later at Bonneville Raceways, now Rocky Mountain Raceways.
Madsen pioneered the rear-engine super-modified roadster during the 1970s.
He raced throughout the Northwest, Candaa, Minnesota and Phoenix and joined Salt Lake's Terry Nish in 1982 in an eight-week International USA vs South Africa series which the USA won handily.
Services for Madsen will be Monday, Sept. 27, at 11 a.m. at the Marion State Center, 3038 N. State Road 32 in Oakley. A visitation for friends will be from 10-10-45 a.m.
Donations are suggested in Madsen's name to the Utah Motorsports Foundation.