The NASCAR world lost a gem with the passing of Clyde Vickers on January 3, 2025. The 73-year-old passed away at his home in the presence of his family. Vickers was a true pioneer and played a major role in the contributing to innovation and success story of NASCAR. He started his racing career competing at historic racetracks like Caraway Speedway and Bowman Gray Stadium. However, he is widely recognized for his work with the NASCAR team crew and his auto parts company, CV Product.

Unable to fund his on-track racing adventures, Vickers decided to start on his entrepreneurial journey in 1988. This is how CV Products came to life, and the company manufactured engine parts, valve trains, drive system components, pulleys, belt drive systems, and chassis parts. The product launched by CV Products helped teams in NASCAR, IndyCar, and even Formula 1.

Born and raised in North Carolina, it seems Vickers was destined for success in the world of motorsports. As a young man, he owned a service station, and then went on to be a car salesman before the racing bug finally got to him. During the 1970s and 1980s, he raced intermittently, owing to financial difficulties. His true success and legacy however, was established when he began working with the crews of teams like Richard Childress Racing.

Vickers’ legacy lives on not just through his racing career but heavily through CV Products. To think that a company originally started as an idea in the 1970s because Vickers had the dream of running a shop selling high-performance auto racing parts that has lasted for over 3 decades is incredible. It’s all thanks to the dedication Clyde Vickers and his wife Ramona put in to grow their shop from having a single employee on their payroll in a 1200 square-food building in North Carolina.

Vickers also started a family-owned team, BLV Motorsports, to help kick-start his son Brian’s NASCAR journey in 2001. However, lack of funding and financial woes forced them to shut down the team after just two years. Brian then switched to Hendrick Motorsports and would eventually get his breakthrough with a full-time opportunity with HMS in the Cup Series. The success story of CV Products and his contribution to the motorsports industry resulted in him being appointed to the North Carolina Motorsports Council.

Roush Yates Engines extended their heartfelt condolences to the Vickers family through an Instagram post. “We would like to express our condolences to the Vickers family and to all who knew and loved Clyde Vickers. Clyde, throughout his life and businesses such as CV Products, helped many succeed in racing. We would not be where we are today without his efforts and innovations.”

Clyde Vickers’ influence and contributions to the sport weren’t just restricted to the race teams. This was evident from the messages fans shared on social media, recalling the good memories they had working under Vickers’ leadership.

NASCAR fans react to the passing of Clyde Vickers

Unlike today’s Next Gen cars, back in the day, teams built their cars from scratch. However, they had to rely on trusted parts suppliers who would be able to meet their demands for different components and parts on their race cars. This void was filled by CV Product, and teams relied on the company for the timely delivery of the parts and components to prepare their race cars. “You can tell a lot about a man in the quality of his products and service. CV set the standard. RIP.” It wasn’t just NASCAR CV Products supplied components to. Other motorsports such as F1 often used the company to ensure smooth function of their mechanical needs. Not just motorsports, the company had ties to aerospace, medical, and military industries.

Clyde Vickers, during his stint in NASCAR, helped drivers like Jimmy Means. He worked as the spotter and a crew member for the driver in more than a dozen Daytona 500 starts. This professional relationship developed into a family bond that was highlighted by Brian Vickers before his Daytona 500 debut. This is just one of the examples of the profound impact he had on the people that worked with him. And this next response certainly shines a light on the veteran’s qualities that stretched beyond the boundaries of just NASCAR racing. “Truly one of the nicest people in the business. RIP my friend.”

It is hard to trace and document Vickers’ each and every single contribution towards the sports. But the amount of love and support he is receiving on social media just goes to show the positive impact he had on people around him. “My dad raced with Clyde, and I bought many parts from him. RIP Clyde.”

Even former employees and colleagues who worked with Clyde Vickers were saddened to hear about his passing. CV Products started from humble beginnings, operating out of a 1,200-square-foot building in Highpoint, N.C., with a single employee. But with growing demand, the company expanded, and by 2013 had 160 employees working under one roof. “My brother Tom worked for Clyde for years. Big loss. Heard it yesterday 😢”

Another fan chimed in with a heartfelt note highlighting Vickers impact on NASCAR. “The racing world lost a GIANT Yesterday… Clyde Vickers has passed and he was a super good man who helped a lot of people in racing and also he was revolutionary in buying parts in bulk for racing and keeping them in stock for teams to get them quickly…. Godspeed Clyde.”