Racer X is saddened to report the passing of long time privateer team owner Bill Dill, who lost his battle with brain cancer on Saturday night. A former racer in his own right, Dill ran his 3D Racing Yamaha team for over twenty years, supporting privateers in Monster Energy AMA Supercross and the Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship, often riders from his native New England region. The team might have flown highest in the early 2000s, with privateers like Kelly Smith, Keith Johnson, and Jason Thomas, with Smith grabbing holeshots and contending for podiums indoors and out.
Dill never gave up the dream of running his team, even to the very end. His team still has an effort going in Monster Energy AMA Supercross this year and his rider, Devin Simonson, missed the 250SX main event in Minneapolis by one position on Saturday night, taking fifth in the LCQ. Fittingly, while Bill wasn't at the race, he was still watching. He passed while watching the races, surrounded by family and friends.
The news of his passing was reported by his daughter on the team's social media account:
It is with a very heavy heart I have to announce the passing of the man himself Bill Dill. There is nothing that meant more to him than his team and his moto family. He’s left a permanent foot print in the moto industry and has touched so many lives.
This afternoon, while watching qualifying with myself, sister, and family by his side my daddy left this world and rode away into the sky. My dad lived life harder than anyone I’ve ever met, he worked hard and played even harder, he lived the life style most of us only dream of. There’s absolutely no words to express the sadness I feel and I’m not too sure how I’m going to navigate my way through a life without my best friend but I find peace knowing he’s somewhere warm, riding his bike, drinking tequila, soaking up the sun, free of pain. You’ve won the race dad, #35 forever💙
As for racing goes, I made a promise to my daddy, his legacy will live on and the 3D Racing flag will continue to fly💙🏁
-Kailyn
We put together a feature story on Bill Dill's history in the sport in the pages of Racer X magazine last year. We will post the pages here to give you a better understanding of the great man he was.
Godspeed, Bill Dill.
Listen to the audio from this interview in the video below:
