Dreams are, most times, elusive visions of what a person wants to achieve, or seeks to achieve. Sometimes those dreams come true and movies are made about such outcomes. Sometimes those dreams come true only to the extent that the individual is able to accomplish personal satisfaction from the things he or she has believed possible and has, in fact, become reality, if only to them. Dreams are also a part of almost everyone’s life and whether or not the dream is realized for the record of life or merely for the collection of memories one treasures when getting older, dreams are good.
For Richard Leeming, he can’t name the exact date his dream of being a race driver began but he does recall listening to the 1962 Southern 500 broadcast on the radio as being the first race he had listened to. The mental pictures painted by the broadcasters of the exciting racing on the hot Labor Day afternoon stirred a competitive fire inside the just turned teenager. He had already been racing bicycles all over the neighborhood with about a dozen of the neighborhood boys who had carved out miniature Darlingtons, Charlottes and Daytonas in fields and yards around their semi-rural neighborhood. These boys had aliases such as “Richard Petty, Fireball Roberts, Joe Weatherly” and other famous drivers of the day. It was not an attempt to hide their true identity, only an attempt, at those young ages, to emulate the heroes who were racing in that Southern 500.
For Richard, his dreams would move him from the two wheel bikes on the imaginary tracks into the world of real stock car racing in 1970. When asked why he became so interested in being a race driver he says “it’s what we always talked about in our group of guys so it was something we all wanted to do”. While that is a very true statement about that group of boys, only a couple would actually pursue the dream of driving a car, really, really fast, on a race track with other cars. Most of those other guys, though, would be involved, either in working on the cars, working on the crews, or being in the infield cheering him on.
During the 1969 racing season, Richard worked on the crew of his older brother, who was also pursuing the dream of being a superstar race driver. The competitive spirit between brothers may have played a small part in Richard wanting his chance behind the wheel, but even more was the fire within that told him he could drive a race car and he could drive a race car well. So, during the off season, he and some friends paid $300.00 for a 1956 Ford racecar WITHOUT an engine or transmission. An engine was obtained and with the help of his Daddy and his uncle Bobby, the empty shell of the Ford was converted to a true race car to be raced in the Hobby Division of NASCAR at the local Columbia Speedway half-mile dirt track.
It warrants mention here that without Uncle Bobby, his mother’s brother, there would most likely not have been any interest in racing and certainly no knowledge of the sport, as it was Bobby (Boyles) who started taking Richard’s older brother to races years before. It was Uncle Bobby who could do just about anything with a car, from building a chassis to working on an engine from the bare block, to a completed high performance machine. It was Uncle Bobby who had the love of racing that was a quiet desire to be a background part of the sport. Working on Richard’s car was one way he could do that. Let it be noted that today, in his mid-seventies, Uncle Bobby keeps up with the races and is still quick to let you know his opinion on anything involving racing.
The first race for The Columbia Speedway in April, 1970, Richard and his “crew” hooked up the Ford to a tow vehicle with a chain run through a pipe and off to the track they went. That first season had its high points but nothing to really indicate a future in racing was in the cards. Richard, his Daddy and Uncle learned that mixing Bondo to repair body damage had a “trick” to it when it came to mixing in the hardener. That may have been the best lesson learned that year.
The 1971 season brought the addition of a young Will Hobgood to the team. Will would, in the 80s and 90s, become a race driver himself, with a very successful career that included the National Championship in NASCAR’s touring Goody’s Dash Division. In 1971, Will had the knowledge and creativity to bring a competitive edge to the team. However, one problem after another with the Ford kept the finishes from truly reflecting the great effort put forth by the guys. The culmination of that season was the Thanksgiving Day event at Columbia Speedway, which included a 50-lap event for the Hobby Division. The purse was good, so the Ford was entered. Five laps into the race, Richard was running a very competitive fifth position with a “junk engine” when the engine blew and his 1971 season was completed.
During the off season, Richard, Will, and other vital members of the crew sat down and decided it was time to move on from the $300.00 Ford into something they hoped to be more competitive. The 1972 season saw the orange and white number 53 borne by Chevrolet. The first race of the ’72 season at Columbia saw Richard start on the outside front row of the feature and he led his first laps in that race until a blown tire took him out of the race. It felt good to be competitive and the team felt like it was ready to move ahead. The rest of the '72 season and all of 1973 were semi-successful, results not nearly indicative of the tremendous effort and dedication put in by the entire team. October of 1973, after another of those “throw it all on the table” meetings, the team decided to go Late Model Sportsman Racing in NASCAR, against the likes of Butch Lindley, Harry Gant, Billy Scott, Tiny Lund, and all the dozens of others who raced Columbia Speedway on Thursday nights, Savannah Speedway on Friday nights, and Myrtle Beach Speedway on Saturday nights.
The next step was ordering the complete rolling chassis from Bobby Allison Motorsports in Hueytown, Alabama. That was delivered to the shop of what was now known as “LH&J Motorsports” with the “L” for Leeming, “H” for Hobgood, and “J” for Johnson. A “junk yard” engine was obtained and taken to Tom Ingram in Asheville, NC to rebuild for racing. Opening night at Columbia Speedway for the 1973 season saw the LHJ Motorsports Chevy unload and prepare to qualify. Yes, it was “unloaded” from a transporter, as there was no more chain and pipe towing. LH&J Motorsports was big time. In the pits that night were such notables as Jack Ingram, Billy Scott, Tiny Lund, and other “big name” drivers of the era. After qualifying and taking the green flag, Richard was running in 7th position in the lead pack of 7 cars, running nose to tail and side by side, when he ran over debris which fell from a car ahead and blew both right side tires. The oak guardrails of Columbia Speedway proved quite an adversary for the number 53 that night. It was transported back to the shop a twisted and bashed wreck.
At the time, Richard was a fireman for the City of Columbia and began his 24-hour shift Friday morning. There was a race in Myrtle Beach Saturday night in which they planned to compete, but Richard resigned himself to the firehouse that Friday thinking it would be a long weekend without a race. When he got to the shop Saturday morning after work, he found the car on the transporter ready to go. LH&J Motorsports went to Myrtle Beach that night and finished 5th.
When asked about his favorite track, Richard says “Myrtle Beach Speedway with Columbia Speedway right behind”. He goes on to explain that statement this way:
At Myrtle Beach Speedway in 1976, he out-qualified even Cale Yarborough and started inside pole with Cale on the outside. As he made his way around the track behind the pace car, he looked over at Cale to see the intent concentration on his face. Richard resolved if nothing else, he was going to beat Cale into turn one. He knew to do that, he had to start his car in second gear and be prepared for a quick shift to third although the transmission had given trouble in practice, hanging up in the shifts. The green flag fell, the race was underway, and as they entered turn one it was Richard Leeming leading Cale Yarborough. Sure enough, the shift hung the transmission just long enough to allow Cale to pull ahead coming out of turn two, but Richard hung right on Cale’s bumper. Later in the race, while still running second to Cale, a caution flag came out causing several very slow laps behind the pace car and Richard’s car overheated. By the time it was cooled down, the finish didn’t nearly indicate the effort.
As for Columbia Speedway, Richard says it is his home track and may have remained his favorite if it were not for the incident there in 1976. Richard was involved in a very nasty accident on the front straight, just under the flag stand, where he encountered the unbending railroad track guardrail head on, which resulted in his car going from approximately 120 mph to a complete stop in about 1 foot. The impact was so great that after the race a lady from the grandstands looked him up and handed him the hood pin and hood pin bracket that ended up on the grandstand seat beside her and told him if he wanted to be in the grandstands he needed to buy a ticket. Thankfully no one was injured in that accident.
Richard ran the Martinsville Speedway season-ending 300-lap program on three different occasions. The team made the trip and came within one position of qualifying one year and missed out the other two years by the most minimum of margins. The NASCAR Record Book for the 1976 season shows he finished 10th in the Late Model Sportsman points for Columbia Speedway, 9th in points at Myrtle Beach Speedway, and 13th in points at Savannah Speedway where he actually missed several races. This is competing with the likes of Butch Lindley, Robert Pressley, Jack Ingram, Bobby Isaac, Cale Yarborough and so many more of the names known so well to race fans.
By the end of the 1976 season, tracks were closing or returning to dirt surfaces as NASCAR was phasing out the short track programs. A team that could be successfully operated for a reasonable amount of obtainable funds through a sponsor, was suddenly faced with expenses requiring either one sponsor with very deep pockets or several sponsors willing to pony up a large sum to keep the team running, not to mention competitive. It was becoming more a sport for rich folks than for dreamers. Richard and the LH&J Team parked the car, sold the equipment, and became fans again.
Throughout his racing career, Richard’s demeanor and actions were always fan friendly and he build up quite a following of faithful fans, many of whom are today still in contact with him on a regular basis. So, maybe dreams of Victory Lane celebrations in Daytona never really materialized, but the celebration of a good life well lived is ongoing. So, did his dream come true? You be the judge, but bear in mind that dreams change as life progresses.
Thanks for the memories, Richard.
-Tim
Email: legendtim83@yahoo.com
Twitter: @legendtim83
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(Editor’s note: Tim Leeming is a member of the regular cast of the Tuesday evening racing show ” Racing Through History”, presented on Zeus Radio Network by RacersReunion®. Archives can be found by following the link. Live broadcasts can be heard from 7:00-9:00 PM every Tuesday. Please feel free to join us in the RacersReunion® Chat Room for the show.)
