“If I Had Entered That Thing”—Former NASCAR Crew Chief Larry McReynolds Reveals His Ugliest Car

In a recent podcast, former NASCAR crew chief Larry McReynolds had some interesting stories to share. A particularly amusing one was about a Ford Pinto car, green in color. In addition to that, it also had the unenviable task of hauling all of his supplies. This was around the time that McReynolds first moved to Atlanta while pursuing a career in motorsport.

Talking with former NASCAR driver Mike Wallace on his podcast, Fast Car 2 NASCAR, McReynolds said, “It was quite the sight. As I came up the I-20 from Birmingham to Atlanta, and the I-85 from Atlanta to Greenville. Got a lot of interesting looks because the poor thing probably was barely running the speed limit with that U-haul full of my stuff. The best way I can describe it…if I had entered that thing in the ‘Ugliest Car’ competition. I would have won it towing away, hands down.”

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What else did the ex-NASCAR crew chief say?

According to him, he spent about a month in Greenville trying to get to know people. Once it was clear that a full-time job was on the cards, McReynolds knew that he had to find a permanent residence. As a result, he stayed in an apartment with another crew member, so he had most of his lifestyle sorted. Then, he had to fly back to Birmingham to get his car and his belongings. But even after he had gotten the job and his belongings, he and his mate live on a tight budget during the first 3–4 months—not even bothering to buy shower curtains!

In his NASCAR career as a crew chief, the 64-year-old was best known for winning two Daytona 500 races. The first time was in 1992 when he was the crew chief for Davey Allison. However, the second Daytona 500 triumph was much more significant, as it was with none other than the late great Dale Earnhardt. That particular win came in 1998 and was Earnhardt’s only Daytona 500 victory.

He later went on to work as a broadcaster for NASCAR on Fox, calling the Cup Series races for 15 years alongside Mike Joy and Darrell Waltrip.

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