Toledo Speedway

Roseville, MI—February 6, 2012:  To follow in a father’s footsteps is a proud tradition, one that is quite evident at Stan Yee’s Collision in suburban Detroit, MI.  Upon the passing of Stan Yee Sr., founder and patriarch of the Yee family, Stan Jr. took control of the business with the help of Stan Sr.’s widow and Stan Jr.’s mother, Ann. 

Stan Jr. literally grew up at the shop and, needless to say, at the race track.  The famous Yee-prepared #33’s captured several dozen top pavement and dirt Late Model races in the Midwest in the 1960’s and 1970’s, and continued to rack up wins and championships in the 1980’s and 1990’s on the local short tracks. 

As Stan Sr. began to spend more time away from the shop, Stan Jr. took the reigns, and, like his father, ran the business by day and worked on race cars at night.  Perhaps Stan Sr.’s proudest moment was realized when Stan Jr. captured the 2003 ARCA-Flat Rock Speedway Late Model championship.

Since the death of Stan Sr. in 2008, the Stan Yee Memorial name was attached to Stan’s favorite race, the 150 lap Late Model event, the biggest race of the season each year at Flat Rock. 

The event gives fans and racers the opportunity to honor Stan and the race itself has gained prominence and notoriety, becoming one of the top Late Model races in the area.

 It all started at the collision shop.  And with the help of Stan Jr.’s close friend John Taranta, a replica of the Stan Yee Memorial logo is now emblazoned into the concrete floor of the race shop. “John and I have known each other since high school, and he has done so many cool things for me,” noted Stan. 

 “John got this idea to take that logo and put in on the floor.  He thought it was a nice way to pay tribute to my father’s famed race shop.  For 40 years, we’ve changed engines on that floor, built cars, clipped cars, hung bodies, everything you do to go racing has happened right there on that floor.” 

“John’s the best around.  The logo is not painted on the floor,” added Yee.  “This process takes the logo and dies it into the concrete and then it’s polished like a granite countertop,” said Stan.  “The logo looks absolutely awesome.  For anyone that wants to dress up their race shop, maybe their man cave or any business, John is the guy.  He travels the country to see the latest in materials, ideas and products.”  John is the owner of GT Concrete and can be contacted at GTconcrete.com. 

So if you are in the neighborhood of Stan Yee’s Collision, stop in and say hello and ask to see the race shop.  The stories that reside there are priceless and endless, and now a fitting tribute to one of the great race car builders and owners will be forever etched into that floor.