Subiect: Leonard a fost Bedrock creativ pentru lemn frati de succes

David Pearson a condus pentru fraţii de lemn pentru mai mulţi ani în timpul anii 1970 şi unul dintre victorii sale cele mai spectaculoase a fost în 1976 Daytona 500, în cazul în care el bested Richard Petty după un accident de ultimul tur.

Când am făcut primul meu interviu-la-unu cu lemn fraţi, Glen şi Leonard, am fost speriat de moarte.
A fost acum 42 de ani când am fost la început ca un scriitor de sporturile cu motor pentru The Roanoke Times şi pădure, cu driver David Pearson, au fost arzător Concursul Cupa Winston NASCAR.
Târziu Dick Thompson, directorul de relatii publice superbe la Martinsville Speedway, recrutat mine pentru a face o poveste pe pădure pentru programul său de rasă.
La început, nu am vrut să o facă.
"Dick, abia ştiu pădure", am spus. "Nu cred că cineva nu. Acestea nu sunt exact sincere şi de ieşire în zona garaj."
"Te voi face bine," a spus Thompson. "Voi stabili interviu la magazinele lor în Stuart (Virginia)."
Câteva zile mai târziu Thompson ma sunat.
"Ei bine, asta nu a fost uşor," a spus el. "Au vrut să ştiu lucruri ca cine aţi fost şi cât timp ar lua. I-am spus ar fi cât de rapid posibil. A lua acolo sus."
Trebuie să înţelegi că, printre mass-media de zi, pădure s-au considerat unul dintre cele mai bune echipe din NASCAR.
Au avut o organizaţie mică, dar acestea ar putea deţine propria- şi bate – aceste puteri ca Holman & Moody, Petty întreprinderilor şi Bud Moore inginerie.
Dar se pare au fost îndepărtate. Ei nu erau sociabili. S-au dus despre sarcinile mai eficient şi în tăcere.
Leonard Wood a fost un schimbător de maestru de anvelope în timpul se opreşte groapă, dar a contribuit de asemenea la fraţii din lemn măreţia prin talentele sale ca un inovator şi constructor de motor.

Şi când a venit la interviuri, răspunsurile lor au fost scurtă şi enigmatic. Pădure nu a dat un răspuns direct atunci când a venit la explicaţii privind modul în care au câştigat o cursă.
Mass-media, în glumă, adesea referire la o "magie şasiu schimba" ca secretul succesului lor.
Într-adevăr nu au cea mai mica idee.
Mai ales reticentă a fost Glen, fratele mai mare enumerate ca proprietarul echipei. Fratele lui Leonard, şef mecanic şi membru al echipajului groapă de măsură, a fost un pic mai bine. Cel puţin el a zâmbit mult.
De fapt era Leonard care au răspuns la aproape toate intrebarile mele in timpul interviului. Acum, desigur, cele mai multe din ceea ce am întrebat a fost simpla prattle pentru că am ştiut pădure au fost cale de a lasa liber de orice secretelor lor de concurenţă.
Am auzit, "Nu, nu mergem acolo," mai mult decât o dată.
Dar apoi ceva s-a întâmplat.
Am întrebat pădure cât de greu a fost să ţină pasul cu NASCAR pe aparent fără sfârşit de regulă modificări – care, în timp, s-au făcut să păstraţi concurenţă egale şi producătorii auto fericit.
Leonard brusc a părăsit sala.
El a venit înapoi cu o cutie. A golit conţinutul pe podea.
Carburator limitator plăci de imensitate dimensiuni şi forme s-au răspândit întreaga podea.
"A se vedea acest lucru?" Leonard întrebat. "Aceasta este ceea ce trebuie să fac în mod constant pentru a asigura că suntem rapid şi în cadrul regulilor. Nu este uşor şi este nevoie de o mulţime de timp."
Apoi el a zâmbit.
"Nu pot lua o fotografie a tuturor acest lucru," a spus el.
Apoi motivul pentru care a fost centrul de succes Woods' m-a lovit. Leonard a arătat doar foarte dramatic mi cat de tare a lucrat, cum experimentale a fost şi cum dedicat el a fost în rolul echipei motor de constructor.
Nu e de mirare pădure au fost toast de NASCAR. De 1972 masinile lor a fost împinsă să mai multe victorii de către place de Curtis Turner, Marvin Panch, AJ Foyt şi Cale Yarborough.
În ' 72, primul lor cu Pearson, a câștigat de șase ori.
Asta a fost doar un vestitor de lucruri să vină. Pădure a câştigat 11 18 curse în 1973 şi şapte mai mult în 1974.
Au fost a face cele mai multe de Glen şi Leonard pe conducere şi aptitudini mecanice.
Acesta a fost întotdeauna motivat că Glen a fost strateg. Pădure fugit niciodată pentru un campionat. Au concurat doar la superspeedway curse, care plătesc mai mulţi bani.
Glen au optat pentru o combinaţie de un venit mai mare şi mai puţine cheltuieli. De asemenea, cred el a preferat să cursa în cazul în care echipa a fost cel mai puternic.
Singura excepţie a fost urmări lor natal, jumătate de mile Martinsville Speedway. Este suficient să spunem, uh, acestea au fost "compensate."
Între timp, era Leonard care a fost geniu tehnic. El nu a învăţat din şcoli sau manuale. El a fost un mecanic natural talentat care ar putea construi motoare din timp el a fost de 13 ani.
Ca un constructor de motor a fost diabolic-aproape ca un om de ştiinţă nebun. Nimeni nu ştia exact ceea ce a făcut el, şi el nu a fost sigur să spun nimănui, dar motoarele sale au fost în mod obişnuit cele mai puternice pe fiecare superspeedway. Numerele s-au dovedit.
Ea nu se termina aici. Leonard a fost, de asemenea, arhitect de o oprire la standuri lemn Brothers-rutină rapid în NASCAR.
Leonard a fost unul dintre cele mai bune Schimbătoarele de anvelope în sport-da, îndatoririle sale cu echipa au fost multe – dar el a fost, de asemenea, responsabil pentru modernizarea echipamentului de zi.
El a creat un jack usoare, una mult mai uşoare decât proiectile de 70-80 de ei zi. Cu utilizarea de hidraulica, Delano lemn, jackman şi cele mai flamboaiant de fraţii de lemn, ar putea avea o masina ridicat în două pompe. A fost nevoie de alte echipe de cât mai multe 10.
Leonard este creditat cu găsirea de modalităţi de a obţine arme echipa pentru a elimina şi înlocui lug alune mai repede şi modificarea gaz dump cutii pentru a permite combustibilului să circule mai repede.
Fără Leonard naturale abilităţile şi creativitatea, fraţii lemn ar au atins niciodată statutul şi notorietate deţin la această zi.
Care este cel mai mare motiv de ce Leonard este una dintre cele mai recente incluși în NASCAR Hall of Fame. Buck Baker, planta Thomas, Rusty Wallace şi bumbac Owens alături de el în acest an.
Pearson a fost un membru al sălii a doua clase şi mandatului său cu păduri cu siguranţă au avut mult de a face cu asta.
Leonard se vor alătura Glen ca membru sala de faima. Numai este necesar. Au stabilit măreţia lor împreună.
Peste ani Leonard şi am devenit prietenos cunoştinţe care ar putea sta de vorbă cu uşurinţă şi râde de multe ori.
Desigur, au nu am întrebat-l ce a făcut el sau cum a făcut-o.
Cred că el ar zâmbi. Dar el ar răspunde. Nu la această zi.

David Pearson drove for the Wood Brothers for several years during the 1970s and one of his most spectacular wins was in the 1976 Daytona 500, where he bested Richard Petty after a last-lap crash.

When I did my first one-on-one interview with the Wood brothers, Glen and Leonard, I was scared to death.
It was about 42 years ago when I was starting out as a motorsports writer for The Roanoke Times and the Woods, with driver David Pearson, were scorching the NASCAR Winston Cup competition.
The late Dick Thompson, the superb public relations director at Martinsville Speedway, recruited me to do a story on the Woods for his race program.
At first, I didn’t want to do it.
“Dick, I hardly know the Woods,” I said. “I don’t think anyone does. They aren’t exactly outspoken and outgoing in the garage area.”
“You’ll do fine,” Thompson said. “I’ll set up the interview at their shops up in Stuart (Va.).”
A couple of days later Thompson called me.
“Well, that wasn’t easy,” he said. “They wanted to know things like who you were and how long it would take. I told ‘em you would be as quick as possible. Get on up there.”
You have to understand that among the media of the day, the Woods were considered one of the best teams in NASCAR.
They had a small organization but they could hold their own – and beat – such powerhouses as Holman & Moody, Petty Enterprises and Bud Moore Engineering.
But it seemed they were distant. They weren’t sociable. They went about their tasks efficiently and silently.
Leonard Wood was a master tire changer during pit stops, but he also contributed to the Wood Brothers’ greatness through his talents as an innovator and engine builder.

And when it came to interviews, their answers were brief and enigmatic. The Woods never gave a straight response when it came to explanations of how they won a race.
The media, jokingly, often referred to a “magic chassis change” as the secret to their success.
In truth they didn’t have the slightest idea.
Especially reticent was Glen, the elder brother listed as the team owner. His younger brother Leonard, the chief mechanic and able pit crew member, was a little better. At least he smiled a lot.
In fact it was Leonard who answered virtually all my questions during the interview. Now, admittedly, most of what I asked was mere prattle because I knew the Woods weren’t about to let loose of any of their competition secrets.
I heard, “No, let’s not go there,” more than once.
But then something happened.
I asked the Woods how hard it was to keep up with NASCAR’s seemingly endless rule changes – which, at the time, were made to keep competition equal and the auto manufacturers happy.
Leonard abruptly left the room.
He came back carrying a box. He emptied the contents on the floor.
Carburetor restrictor plates of myriad sizes and shapes were spread out all over the floor.
“See this?” Leonard asked. “This is what I have to do constantly to make sure we’re fast and within the rules. It’s not easy and it takes up a lot of time.”
Then he smiled.
“You can’t take a photo of all this,” he said.
Then the reason that was the center of the Woods’ success hit me. Leonard had just very dramatically shown me how hard he worked, how experimental he was and how dedicated he was in his role as the team’s engine builder.
No wonder the Woods were the toast of NASCAR. By 1972 their cars had been driven to multiple victories by the likes of Curtis Turner, Marvin Panch, A.J. Foyt and Cale Yarborough.
In ’72, their first with Pearson, they won six times.
That was just a harbinger of things to come. The Woods won 11 of 18 races in 1973 and seven more in 1974.
They were making the most of Glen and Leonard’s leadership and mechanical skills.
It has always been reasoned that Glen was the strategist. The Woods never ran for a championship. They competed only in superspeedway races, which paid the most money.
Glen opted for the combination of a higher income and fewer expenses. I also think he preferred to race where the team was strongest.
The only exception was their hometown track, the half-mile Martinsville Speedway. Suffice it to say, uh, they were “compensated.”
Meanwhile, it was Leonard who was the technical genius. He didn’t learn from schools or manuals. He was a naturally talented mechanic who could build motors from the time he was 13 years old.
As an engine builder he was diabolical – almost like a mad scientist. No one knew exactly what he did, and he sure wasn’t about to tell anyone, but his engines were routinely the most powerful on every superspeedway. The numbers proved it.
It didn’t end there. Leonard was also the architect of a Wood Brothers pit stop – routinely the fastest in NASCAR.
Leonard was one of the best tire changers in the sport – yes, his duties with the team were many – but he was also responsible for modernizing the equipment of the day.
He created a lightweight jack, one far lighter than the 70-80 pounders of they day. With the use of hydraulics, Delano Wood, jackman and the most flamboyant of the Wood Brothers, could have a car lifted in two pumps. It took other teams as many as 10.
Leonard is also credited with finding ways to get the team’s air guns to remove and replace lug nuts more quickly and modifying the gas dump cans to allow fuel to flow faster.
Without Leonard’s natural skills and creativity, the Wood Brothers would have never achieved the status and notoriety they hold to this day.
That’s the biggest reason why Leonard is one of the latest inductees into the NASCAR Hall of Fame. Buck Baker, Herb Thomas, Rusty Wallace and Cotton Owens join him this year.
Pearson was a member of the hall’s second class and his tenure with Woods certainly had much to do with that.
Leonard will join Glen as a hall of fame member. It’s only appropriate. They established their greatness together.
Over the years Leonard and I became friendly acquaintances who could converse easily and laugh often.
Of course, I have never asked him what he did or how he did it.
I think he’d smile. But he wouldn’t answer. Not to this day.