Fuel Economy Tune Up

As a young man of 16, I knew where I wanted my life to go, I wanted to work in racing. I was a believer and an engineer with the spirit of a racer. At age 17, I began my career at a 3/8 mile dirt track the running late model sportsman series. My driver won seventeen races in a row. The track put up a $200 bounty for others to come try to outrace our '56 Mercury. Though many tried, we prevailed and won the championship. Things progressed and I soon found myself eyeing the Grand National Series, now known as Winston Cup or Nextel Cup. I became a successful mechanic, crew chief, and engine builder that became widely known for my chassis work and fabrication. I redesigned the front snout of racecars for Holman and Moody at Centerworld Racing for Ford Motor Co. I became a successful crew chief with L.G. DeWitt, the former owner of North Carolina Motor Speedway, known as The Rock. Our first driver was John Sears. After John, I spent time at DeWitt working as crew chief with Benny Parsons. Soon I went to work with James Hylton and his independent team. It was there that I got my Talladega 500 victory. In 1970, Bill Gasaway, on behalf of NASCAR, asked me to take rookie Dick Brooks who was racing a Plymouth and try to get him into the Union 76 Oil Hall of Fame. To do so, we had to break the track record at Darlington. We broke the record, and rookie Dick Brooks entered the Union 76 Oil Hall of Fame.

Some of the people that Larry Shankle has been associated with over the years need no introduction. Richard Petty, Bobby Allison, Cotton Owens, David Pearson, Donnie Allison, Davey Allison, Clifford Allison, LeRoy Yarborough, Cale Yarbrough, Smokey Yunick, Ray Fox, Junior Johnson, Bobby Isaac, Elmo Langley, Pete Hamilton, Benny Parson, Marty Robbins, Hoss Ellington, Harry Hyde, Dale Inman, Maurice Petty, James Hylton, Buddy Baker and Buck Baker to name a few.