Legendary powerboat racer Ken Dear has been named among the 2023 Bermuda Motorsports Hall of Fame inductees.

Regarded as one of the top local drivers, the late racer first rose to prominence in the 1970s competing in various classes throughout a highly successful career in which he won every title there is with the exception of the coveted Around the Island Powerboat Race.

Dear’s life was tragically cut short after succumbing to head injuries sustained in a fatal accident while training for the same race at Ferry Reach in 1981, robbing the sport of one its biggest stars. but his legacy lives on and he will be inducted into the Hall of Fame at Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute on March 26.

“He is still leaving an impression on people today and was like a superhero with a kind if celebrity status,” said fellow powerboat racer and Hall of Fame co-founder David Selley.

“He just raised the bar and it was cool just how humble he was. It was not like he walked around like he was the best there is. He was very humble, meticulous and a great sportsman.

“If he lost he didn’t have a fit. He was a gentleman and a sportsman, which is important in terms of the Hall of Fame.”

Dear is one of five powerboat racers to be inducted this this year alongside Ed Hamilton, Anthony Mello, St Clair ‘Sparky’ DeShields and Eddie Roque.

Harry Cox, Richard ‘Dick’ Christensen, Lawrence ‘Tonky’ Trott, Lewellyn Hollis and Mike Marshall were the association’s first to be inducted during the inaugural Hall of Fame induction ceremony held in 2019.

The Bermuda Powerboat Association, Bermuda Karting Club, Bermuda Motocross Club and the Bermuda Motorcycle Racing Club have each nominated five athletes, past and present, who have made outstanding contributions to their sports.

The Bermuda Motocross Club inductees are Colin Emery, Allan Richardson, Joey Richardson, the late Calvin Lynch and Wendell Anderson.

Sheila Jones, the late Toriano Wilson, Franz Tegenolf and Linda DeGrilla are among the Bermuda Motorcycle Racing Association’s inductees and Ray Chiappa, David Johnson, Randy DeSilva, Veronica DeSilva and Delano Telford have been put forward by Bermuda Karting Club.

The inductees must have been a club founder, race-team owner, volunteer, mechanic, committee member or motorsports advocate, as well as having served their clubs for a minimum of five years and excelled in their sport both domestically and overseas.

“We have a set of criteria that we follow so it’s not random names picked out by anyone,” said Hall of Fame co-founder, committee member and inductee Scott Barnes. “Every nominee has to fit a certain criteria.

“Their standard has to be above and beyond the rest and we have kept the standard high so that anyone that gets inducted has that Hall of Fame status. I think the bar needs to be very high for any Hall of Fame in any sport.”

The second ceremony was originally scheduled to be held in 2020 but was cancelled as a result of the global coronavirus pandemic.

“We were in planning in 2020 and Covid shut everything down so we are just getting back,” Barnes added.

“It’s good to continue something that was started and long overdue so to be able to continue with it and see it through is good.

“It was an idea I had and something I always wanted to see done with Bermuda Sports Hall of Fame not recognising motorsports,” he said.

Fellow co-founders Takera Dill and Ras Mykkal are the remaining members on the Hall of Fame committee.

For more details on the upcoming event contact 737-1210.