It was just days before C.J. Leary was slated to appear at Ohio’s Eldora Speedway and he was busy trimming the bathroom in his new home.
It all fits together. He has reached that funny crossroads we all have or will eventually face. At 27 years old, Leary is still a young man, but he can no longer afford to approach life in a carefree manner.
The course has been set. He made it clear that he had no intention of taking over the family business, and equipped with that knowledge his father Chuck, also a former racer, sold the operation. Chuck Leary understands his son’s decision because in so many ways he led him down this path. C.J. Leary noted he has worked jointly with his father toward the goal of becoming a professional racer.
“We have successfully done that,” Leary said. “I have been able to race with some really good guys and it has put me on the path I am on.”
Still, it’s difficult to believe Leary is just 27 years old as he has been a consistent presence on the USAC sprint car trail for more than a decade. The 2019 national champion is edging toward 400 career sprint car starts and is widely recognized as one of the tour’s headliners.
Shortly after he stored his tools and turned his back on his home improvement project, Leary notched his 21st career USAC sprint win.
He is a steady performer year after year, which is noteworthy given the twists and turns his career has taken. As this season opened, he was again with a new team. Yet this move was well thought out and included some preconditions he feels increase his odds of succeeding.
He had raced for two seasons with owner Bill Michael and in that time scored the first USAC win for a Ford-powered sprint car in more than a decade. But Michael decided to take a hiatus and spend some time casting his own head for his Ford engines.
“I was going to give Bill the first option because I had a lot of fun racing with him,” Leary said. “We spent a lot of time together and he came here and lived with me. He let me know what was happening long in advance. That was good because some car owners wait until the season is over. When that happens, it makes it a lot tougher to find a ride particularly in today’s world where good car owners are hard to come by.”
Leary learned there might be a chance to land with BGE/Dougherty Motorsports.
“I called Broc (Garrett) and he said they would probably do something part time and I told them that I really needed to do a full-time deal so I could run for the championship,” Leary said.
After giving the matter a bit more consideration, Garrett agreed to a meeting at Leary’s shop.
“It worked out really well,” Leary said. “They let me take care of the car, which is what I have done with others for the past five years. The package is really similar to what I have been running already, which makes the transition easy. We run the DRC chassis and 1-Way motors and, of course, we use my shocks on the car.”
He is paired with Carson Garrett and it is a perfect opportunity for the young driver to benefit from the counsel of a proven veteran.
Like many of his peers, Leary also benefited from the experience of those who came before.
“My first year on the USAC tour I was mentored by Tracy Hines and he was always adamant about being able to work on your own car and basically do everything,” Leary said. “He stressed that you needed to know how to manage the team, build the car and drive it. You had to be ready to do all of it. Tracy told me a lot of car owners are looking for a guy that can do that, and it is a good selling point for you.”
Leary kicked things off with his new team by bagging two USAC sprint wins by the first weekend in May. It was particularly impressive given how much the early season was hampered by rain.