George Berejik, circa 2004. Hemmings file photos.
We’re sad to report that we’ve just learned of the recent passing of George Berejik, a very respected name in the world of Oldsmobile drag racing. George was an Oldsmobile dealer in Needham, Massachusetts, for more than 30 years, and started out as a street racer on the ring roads outside Boston. It didn’t take long before he turned pro in a successful and spectacular manner.
His father, Anthony, who owned the dealership, gave George permission to pursue two drivers who drag raced for a rival Oldsmobile retailer. Once the Berejiks hired Lloyd “Woody” Woodland and Bobby Andresen, Anthony made George the team manager, and Berejik Oldsmobile was off for a wild five-year run of racing everywhere from Maine to Indy at the height of the muscle era, setting several NHRA national records in the Stock categories. Berejik was recognized as one of the nation’s top Oldsmobile drag teams, which led to a sponsorship from the Smothers Brothers. In an interview with Hemmings Muscle Machines that appeared in the April 2004 issue, George remembered getting a call from a representative of the Smothers Brothers and being flown first-class to a meeting in California that involved Tom and Dick Smothers, Goldie Hawn, and racing industry giants Marvin Richfin and Carl Scheifer. That was where the oddball arrangement between two entertainment superstars and a family Olds dealer from New England was cemented.
George died on March 10, 2015, after a lengthy battle with kidney cancer. He is survived by his wife Betty Ann, four children and eleven grandchildren.
More gadget review in www.mamaktalk.com
