Dale Inman NASCAR Hall of Fame Induction and Press Conference Transcript

MIKE JOY: En route to helping build a sport, tonight’s first inductee also built a legacy here at the University of Level Cross. He turned pit road into his personal playground, guiding Richard Petty to glory. Tonight, Dale Inman and Richard are together again as members of the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

RICHARD PETTY: Well, they just took my speech away from me there on that camera deal. I guess I’ll just start out with telling you, we started out 75 years ago, Dale did, I’m not quite that old, and again, it shows we’re born in the country with dirt roads, the whole deal, we grew up, didn’t know what a race car was, used to race our bicycles down to the creek, go swimming, stuff like that. It was just plain old situation where we was country and didn’t know any better.

And then my dad started racing. That kind of took us out all over the country. I don’t guess me and Dale, either one, had been out of Randolph County until we went to race somewhere in Wilkesboro somewhere. Anyhow, we just grew up together, grew up around it. Neither one of us was that mechanically inclined. We just sort of learned as we went. My dad taught us a lot, and we learned a lot on our own.

And way back when, there wasn’t no such thing as a crew chief. You know, they had mechanics, crew mechanics, whatever they wanted to call them, and Dale was basically the first one. He’s the one that basically started the crew chief operation, because we used to — I guess in 1958 or something, my brother and Dale drove a ’57 Oldsmobile to California, run the race and drove it back home. That was pit crew, that was the whole deal. And that’s the way it started.

So we learned as we went, and over a period of time we got lucky, we got a truck, we got a trailer, went big-time, hired two or three people to go to work for us. Dale come back out of the service and went to work for us full-time, and when we did — I guess that was like ’62, ’63, somewhere, where he went full-time. He worked for us all that time just on weekends, went to the races, went all over the country, Daytona, whatever. And he was involved in a lot of different things.

And over a period of time we got more people to work on the car. Where Dale was so good, he was good with people. Somebody just drive up in the driveway and want a job, we had a place to put them in, Dale put them in there, worked them, and he was able to take a talent and know how far he could go with that talent, know how far this guy could really come along in the company, what he could do, whether he could change tires or work on the engine or rear end or whatever.

And I guess over a period of time, I always look back, Linda and myself think every once in a while about the people that graduated out of the Dale Inman School at Petty Enterprises. I’ll read you off a few of them here, Mike Beam, Barry Dodson, Jake Elder, Tony Glover, Steve Mills, Robby Loomis, Robin Pemberton. These guys won championships, they won races, because they learned from Dale how things needed to be done. He was one of the first ones to come in and take a car in and completely disassemble it from one race to another instead of waiting until something broke or just checking wheel bearings and stuff like that, completely disassembled engines, the cars.

And in doing that, that made those cars almost bulletproof. That’s the reason we won a lot of races. But the deal is people didn’t really understand the strategy of what Dale sort of figured. He knew what he was trying to do, he watched over people, he knew whether they was going to change tires, get gas, whatever.

Just showed like the Daytona in ’81. Everybody would make a pit stop. They did their strategy. Then he comes back and does something different. Luckily we didn’t run out of gas, and we did win the race.

But it was a gamble to a certain extent, but he knew we wasn’t going to win the race if we didn’t do something like that. You see more and more of that stuff coming along.

But of the 180 some, 90 some races that we won together, there’s probably dozens of them in there that I don’t think about or he don’t think about, made the right call at the right time to make the thing all work. And in doing that, it made it good for me, it made it good for him, it made it good for the racing, and from the standpoint of the things that he’s accomplished, from, okay, I guess 1964 to 1984, he won eight championships, and that’s pretty good in 20 years.

And like I say, almost 200 wins, seven Daytonas, 27 races one year, ten in a row. I mean, it takes a pretty good crew just to have a car running ten races and not thrown out of the race to begin with. But the big deal that Dale had that really made the whole thing work was people. He knew how to work with people. If he was going to get on to you, he’d take you off to the side and tell you about it. He didn’t let you know it, get in front of somebody and really make you feel bad. He knew how to work people.

And the deal with working people was what it was all about. We started out, we had five or six people, then we had ten people, then we had 15 or 20 people. And as time went on, he was able just to bring more and more people in, do different things and make the whole deal.

And I always looked at the way that Dale approached things, with attitude, confidence and focus. That’s what he did with his people, and that’s the reason he was able to be a winner like what he is.

I’m supposed to say this: It is now my honor on this 20th day of January, 2012, to present the Hall of Fame inductee ring and special induct Dale Inman into the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

(Applause.)

DALE INMAN: I’m kind of familiar with this ring. For the last two or three years Richard has put it in my face a bunch of times. (Laughter.)

I want to introduce my family, Mary, my wife of some 52 years; my daughter Tina; her husband Chris; my granddaughter Taylor; Logan; my son Jeffrey; his wife Melissa; and my grand daughters Peyton and Addison. I’m so proud of all of you.

Linda is here tonight, Linda Petty. I’m so glad you’re here. You’ve meant so much to me and Mary over the years, it’s just — there’s no words for it. I’m so glad you’re here.

And of course Terry Labonte and his wife Kim. Terry, the ’84 season was very special. And Terry, we’re going to have to worry about the Cowboys and the Indians this weekend, will we? They’re gone.

Richard hit on me and Maurice driving the race car to Riverside, California, in 1958. He didn’t clear that up very good. Him and Maurice was supposed to drive it, and he was out in the yard showing off and trying to walk on his hands and hurt his shoulder, so I was his substitute driver, and I won’t go into that much, but you didn’t race but you drove the race car to Riverside, California, run a 500-mile road course, then got home and rode down in Wilcox, Arizona, had to order a housing from another town, and it come in on the bus. I didn’t think this country boy would ever get home.

And then in today’s world, we talk about track conditions. We might have a ten-degree change in temperature. We might have a cloud cover. But I happen to be lucky enough to be with the Pettys on the beach in 1958, the last race on the beach. Four miles out — how many miles down the beach? A long way. And then you go through a sand bank, up the beach when the tide is out, and Junior has run there, but you’re talking about track conditions, now, that was some track conditions.

And then we still get back to 1958, and back then the drivers had to be 21 years old before they could drive, and that would affect a lot of it today. But Richard turned 21 July the 2nd, 1958, and ten days later, me and him and the Red Miler took a convertible to Columbia, South Carolina, eight miles of dirt, slick track. We get down there and Richard had never driven. We didn’t know whether he could last or not. Joe Willy was down there without a car, so we talked to Joe and said if Richard needs help, will you help him. He said, well, sure.

And of course this was before radios, so we had to communicate with black boards, and the signal for a driver was go to your head. Of course the drivers today with radios uses some gestures, but they’re pretty expensive. But Richard went to his head two or three times, and I’d go get Joe and Joe would come and put his helmet on, his little golfing gloves. Going home, I said, Richard what was you doing, he was wanting relief and you wouldn’t come in. He said, oh, my head was itching.

So it’s come a long way. And of course you probably haven’t raced until the mid ’60s when we’d leave home with a race car in a period of about ten days. We’d run five or six races where we’d come home, and that was — I guess it was fun. I don’t know.

And then, of course, Mr. Helton hit on it last night. He said they used to run the Daytona race, the July race on the 4th of July no matter what day it turned out on, so in ’69 it turned out to be on a Friday. And this was great. The only problem was we had run Dover on Sunday and had never seen the place. Nobody had ever seen it. And of course we won that one. (Laughter.)

Of course I’d like to say a special thanks to all branches to the military, the men and women that keep us free. It is so great for the military.

And of course I’m proud that I served my time, you know what I mean. And it’s just — when I look back over all this, the wins, the Daytona wins, the championships and all that, I think over the years the people I’ve met, the places I’ve seen, the friends I’ve made, both in and out of racing, that sticks out big. Now, maybe years ago it wouldn’t have, but I know some of us older people respect that.

I’d like to thank the entire staff here at the Hall of Fame and NASCAR, what a wonderful job they’ve done for us, and they’ve been so nice to me and my family. And congratulations to the other four inductees and their family. I know they’re very proud. And of course you know we’re coming up on the 2012 season. Imagine that.

And I want to wish all the luck in the world to all the active crew chiefs now, and especially to the 9 and the 43; get after ‘em, boys.

I just want to thank everybody. It’s been such a big night tonight, really a thrill for me, and thank you so much. Thank everybody.

An Interview With Dale Inman

THE MODERATOR: We’re here with Dale Inman. Dale was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame tonight. We’ve got two drivers that have won seven championships, but as a crew chief you have won eight. Talk about — you look back on all those championships. Talk about how all of that came together working for the Petty Enterprises and then all of a sudden you’re in the Hall of Fame.

DALE INMAN: Well, the Hall of Fame is great, no doubt about that. And when some of them was coming around and being accumulated, we didn’t think there would be a Hall of Fame, and we really wasn’t running for anything other than trying to beat the competitors and get enough money to survive on and stuff like that. And it’s growed into this great big sport that we’ve got now.

You know, what an honor it’s been to work with the different drivers over the years but most of them with Richard. They used the term eight championships, but it’s in a different league from what the drivers are, and I give that respect.

But to be the first crew chief to come in, I’m sure there will be more after this, is quite an honor.

Q. What did you mean when you walked off the stage and said, it’s such a long ride, I hope it’s not over yet?

DALE INMAN: Well, if you look at our date of birth, you’ll see what I’m talking about. We’ve been around a long time, you know, and to still be as active as we are with the sport and everything, you know what we’ve been through, and we’re still surviving. I think that’s great.

But no, it was just a phrase. I didn’t mean nothing by it. But look at our date of birth, and you might understand what I’m talking about.

Q. Do you think your induction is going to pave the way for more crew chiefs to get consideration for this hall?

DALE INMAN: No, I’m sure there will be, and like I said — I don’t know if I said it on stage or not, but I’m really looking forward to what the next group will be because there’s certainly some other categories out there that should be added. But no, there’s crew chiefs that will be in for sure later on down the line. They haven’t asked me to say who do you think, and boy, I wouldn’t touch that with a ten-foot pole.

Q. We hear a lot of talk today from teams and competitors and owners talking about how long the season is and how much it takes out of them. You guys ran twice as many races back in the day. What did you do? How did you all manage to not get burned out?

DALE INMAN: Well, I retired there for a while at the end of the ’98 season, and there’s two words I hate about it, I paid my dues and I’m burned out, but I think I was both of them at that time and enjoyed a little bit of time off and Richard came back to me and said he wanted me to come back and be a consultant. I don’t take the full brunt of it like I used to. And my theme to him, it ain’t always been this easy.

But it’s tough on the crew chiefs now. I mentioned the wave-around, the lucky dogs, the pit strategy, two tires, four tires, track position is so important. And years ago we practiced from early in the morning until late at night. Now if they give you an hour and 15 minutes of practice, man, it’s right on the nose, so you’ve got to schedule — there’s just so many — it’s just a different world from what it used to be.

But my hats off to them even in this era that we talk about now.

Q. When you served in the military, did you have any of your non-commissioned officers that helped you learn a little bit about dealing with people, because when Richard said in his remarks, said that you were a great people person and the way that you got things done was through your people, could you expand upon that, please?

DALE INMAN: Well, when I was drafted in the service, I went in in 1959, and I’d been around racing a little bit. I took my basic training in Jacksonville, South Carolina, sent me to Dover, Delaware for basic training, and then I went overseas in France, and they put me in an ordinance company, which is maintenance on vehicles, and I was over there about probably six weeks, and they rotated a sergeant out who had been in 18 years, and they put me in charge, and I’d been in about three or four months.

Maybe I took some of my skills to them. That’s what I was doing at that time, which was working on vehicles.

Q. I have a question concerning the 1970 or ’71 season. At that time Petty Enterprises’ was running the Superbird with a big rear wing. How did you prove that this car was working on the track?

DALE INMAN: Yeah, the Superbird, we only lasted one year with it, and the way that story goes, we were running Plymouth, and of course we was working for Chrysler, and the Dodge came along, and in 1969, they came along with a Daytona which had a wing. Richard said he couldn’t compete if Plymouth didn’t come with a wing. So we went to Ford in 1969, and then they said, and what does it take to get you back into racing with us, and he said, put a wing and a nose on a car, and they did.

And we done right good with it, but Pete Hamilton won three races with us that year. But as good as that car was, we probably got a third of the knowledge out of it because of — like you said, there wasn’t a wind tunnel and all that other stuff, but we learned from what looked good, most of the time was good, and then of course the next year NASCAR didn’t outlaw it, but they put an engine rule on that crippled it so it wouldn’t run.

Q. I know during some of the announcement ceremonies in the past couple years, I think it was just good natured ribbing between you and Richard about the fact that you felt like you should have been in before him because you had eight championships and he had seven, but over the years have the two of you taken the time, whether it’s in what little bit of an off-season we have or maybe on the farm on a non-race weekend, sit back and realize how much you used to beat the crap out of everyone else that was in the sport?

DALE INMAN: No, Richard has been special to me all over the years, and of course Lynda has, too, to our family and everything. The reason some of that comes about, he’s told me he would have won 400 races if it hadn’t been for me and 14 championships. Then I come back and tell him, yeah, you’ve made pit stops at Martinsville for directions. That’s just the relations that we have. So no, that was nothing like that. It was only the joking end of it.

Q. Similar to what this gentleman was said, 1967, when you had 27 wins and ten in a row, is that something today you look back on and think, that’s one of the special achievements, and was it at the time where you just thought it was always going to be that way?

DALE INMAN: Well, you know, it was certainly a special season for us, and we just got on a streak there, and it was — put a lot of pressure on us because you was winning and then you knew some day you was going to lose. I didn’t want to see that day, but it happened.

We just got on kind of a roll that year, and it seemed like that particular car would not lose a race. It didn’t want to lose. I don’t know these stories about horses and everything, and I guess that car was kind of like that.

But then we come back in ’68 and had a decent year, but things just happened to us that wasn’t supposed to happen. You know, and like Richard — he’s real good at it. He’s never praised me but he’s never scolded me, but he just says you can’t overcome circumstances. This is a different version of it, but there’s been two races where we were leading, 500-lap races, one at Dover and one at Bristol, leading, blowed the engine, coasted, got white flag and couldn’t coast back and get the checkered. You talk about frustration, that sets in then.

Q. The crew chiefs today have computers and engineers and specialists on everything. How much fun would it be to see those guys work through what you did in order to get championships?

DALE INMAN: Well, to start with I’d have to have a little bit better education and use some of the stuff they’ve got now. But I tell them the stopwatch tells it all. You make a change and you read the stopwatch, and if it’s better, that’s good. If it’s worse, you go back the other way. But they ask the computers and everything and the models and all the stuff that they’ve got. We’ve got two engineers on each car, and some teams might have more than that.

But the big critical thing right now is the tires are so critical to these race cars, and we first started hearing they was changing the air pressure two tenths of a pound, and heck, we didn’t have a gauge that would read within two or three pounds of each other and certainly wouldn’t repeat. It’s hard to believe how sensitive these cars are, and my hats off to them because they’ve just about got them so fast they can’t race them.

THE MODERATOR: Congratulations on being inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame. Enjoy the rest of the weekend, and we’ll see you at Daytona.