Boating industry and Mercury Racing veteran Rick Welch died May 26. He was 71.
Welch joined Mercury Marine as an accessory mechanic and learned how to build Mercury Racing engines and Speed Master lower units. He was promoted to technician and moved to the Mercury Racing Team.
Welch traveled throughout Europe with the team and took a position as Mercury Racing high performance manager in Australia for two years. When Welch and his wife, Judi, returned to the United States, they settled in Pewaukee, Wis.
The family said in a statement that Welch “loved fishing, boating, race cars and trips to the Lac Vieux Desert and Key Largo, Fla.
