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Bombers Driver Leonard Craig Jr. Finds Inspiration to Dedicate Season to Late Father

By Chuck Corder

Leonard Craig Jr. believed that fateful day in January would be like every other day with his beloved father.

There was no reason for one of the fan favorites at Five Flags Speedway in the Butler U-Pull-It Bombers division to expect anything out of the norm.

The 39 year old came to work at Craig’s Tire and Collision, the family business, like every other day.

He walked up to the front of the store that morning and saw Leonard Craig Sr. changing tires. Just like every other day.

Hours later a massive heart attack crippled the elder Craig, and drew the tight-knit family closer as the following days have been unlike every one before.

“It was all of a sudden,� the younger Craig said. “He said his chest was not feeling good. I asked him if he wanted to go to the hospital, and he said no. He had just overworked himself.�

Leonard Craig Sr.’s subsequent death heaped plenty of grief and sorrow upon Leonard Craig Jr. But in death, the younger Craig has been inspired by his late father.

He has done just that this season at Five Flags and hopes to continue his emotional run Friday night inside his No. 10 Bomber.

Craig and the Bombers will be in action along with the Allen Turner Pro Late Models, Super Stocks and Sportsmen when the gates open at 5 p.m. Friday.

Admission to the grandstands is as follows: $15 Adults; $14 Seniors; $12 Military/Students (12-17); $5 Children (6-11); Under 6 is Free. Passes to get into the pits are $25.

“I have a picture of him in the car on the dashboard,� Junior said of Senior. “Before every race, I say a little prayer. I’m not saying it helps, but I guess it might. I’m sure he’s up there with Ricky Davidson and they’re having a ball up there.�

Davidson, the husband to Sportsman car driver/owner Tina Davidson, lost his courageous battle with cancer shortly after Craig Sr. died unexpectedly.

Craig Jr. has certainly enjoyed a supernatural season. In just his fourth year racing on asphalt, he has posted top-five finishes in all seven Bomber features.

Craig Jr. sits second, 43 points behind defending track champion Gary Goodwin, for the overall lead.

“I’m doing this year for him,� he said of his father. “At the beginning of the year we wanted to race for points and it’s working out for me.�

Craig Jr. was more than a namesake with his father. The two were, as Craig Jr.’s mother best put it, were “partners in crime.�

After his parents divorced when he was young, Craig Jr. moved with his mother to Germany and then Texas, rarely seeing his father.

“At 17, I asked him to pick me up in Texas, and he dropped everything and came and got me,� he remembered. “We spent a lotta nights putting racecars together.

“I always wanted to be around my dad. I was a car guy from being a little kid.�

Their reconnection was immediate and rarely a day went by when the best friends didn’t chat — whether it was about cars or life.

Replacing the void in these unfamiliar days has been unbearable at times.

“There are those moments,� he admitted. “I try to stay busy. I try not to think about it, but it’s still in the back of my head. It’s different, but life goes on.�

Craig Jr. has a great support team around him from sponsors — such as Craig’s Tire and Collision, Express Automotive and Wise’s Recycling — to Sidney Craig, Leonard Sr.’s widow and Junior’s stepmother.

And, of course, there’s that dashboard photo he stares at.

“I’ll always remember that smile on his face when I got my first third-place trophy,� Craig Jr. said. “Course, I’ll also remember the disgust when I finished third and got (disqualified) in technical inspection.�

Days are naturally different with his father gone, but Leonard Craig Jr. knows Senior would never want him to back off that throttle.

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