2002 SEASON ::: Le Mans Gallery MORE RACING NEWS THE CAR #3 GUYS! OK, I apologize for not getting anything up here lately, but I’ve been totally busy painting my house. I’ll bet you thought that once the season was over Ron and I would be on holiday somewhere lying in the sun !!! Well not yet atleast…Jan Magnussen is planning on going to an island sometime over the winter and get married, and if that happens, Robin and I will for sure go. Jan was a great teammate to me when I was at Panoz, and it would be worth the plane fare just to see if he can muster up the words “I do”. The guys have been very busy at Pratt and Miller, and we are going to be doing some testing in the near future. Although we had another great year, we recognize that next year will probably be even more challenging as the Ferrari is so strong, and the Saleen is still a rocket ship. I strongly believe that if a big team had one of those cars, with a strong driver line-up, everyone would be in trouble. But that said, I know there are still a lot of tricks up our sleeves, and am guessing that next year we will again be successful. Now probably the most important reason for the success that the number three car has had over the past two seasons is the guys that work on the car. They are so completely dedicated, and always give a strong piece. Bill Delong has been our crew chief the whole time, and it is his responsibility to look after the entire car, and coordinate what the other three guys on it are doing. Perhaps the best thing about him, is his always positive attitude. As drivers, you are always suggesting changes that would make your job easier. Moving a switch here and there, changing positions of belts, seating positions, types of mirrors…the list goes on and on. I can’t tell you how many times we have suggested something, only to ask him to change it back to the way it was. When this happens, most guys would get frustrated, and perhaps complain ….but never Bill. He’ll just smile, and get it done. As far as set up goes, he and the other guys always get the car spot on where the engineers want it. This is not as easy as one would think, but so crucial for us to have a consistent car. For the past two years, Bill has been voted the Mechanic of the Year in the ALMS GTS category, and it is an award well deserved. Now of the three other guys on the car, I have to talk about Gary Young first. Back in 1986, Gary was one of the crew guys on my super-vee. We were often very competitive, and should have won a few races, but it seems that whenever we were in a good position, we would have engine problems. Now so that you know, the guys that work on the car just change engines, they don’t generally work on them. You have an engine builder for that. The problems that we tended to have were assembly problems from the engine guy, and man it beat on us all. Anyway, we did get on the podium a few times in ’86, but really should have been much more of a factor in that series. Moving on, when I joined Corvette in 2001, it was great getting reunited with Gary, and begin getting the wins that we should have gotten years before. He is an amazingly thorough and conscientious mechanic, and always gives everything he has. Dave Albright I’ve know for a long time as well, as he used to be a crew guy on the Oldsmobiles when I was racing for Nissan. I think he worked on Darren Brassfields car, but I’m not 100% sure of that. Anyway, back then he was always a fierce competitor that you knew really wanted to beat you, but was always fun and a good sport about it. When I joined the team, I could tell he was very happy about it, as he knew that we would fit well together, both of us burning inside to win races. Like Gary, he is one of the best and most talented guys I’ve worked with. David James is the third guy on the 3 car, and like the other two, completely dedicated to what he is doing. I’ve only known him since last year, but like everyone else at Pratt and Miller, he is one of the best. When we are at the track, you can see how much pride and enjoyment he takes in what he is doing, and I know I can always count on him to lighten up the mood when things are getting intense. He totally has the best sense of humor, and is great to joke around with. But don’t let that good nature fool you into thinking he is not all about winning. He is as focused as everyone and his desire to dominate is at the same level as the rest of us. Over the last two years, it has really been amazing the success that we have enjoyed. It is extremely unfair that Ron and I get most of the credit for it. The four guys I just spoke about are every bit as responsible as Ron and I are in winning races. It is incredible how all of them get along, and how they work together as a team. If you get the chance next season, take the opportunity to watch them when they are working on the car in the paddock. What you will see is four friends, working together to accomplish a goal. Their desire to win is every bit as intense as Ron and mine, and next year, when you see them at the track, be sure to let them know what a great job they do. Heck, ask them for an autograph as they have won the same number of races that Ron and I have !!!! Johnny O MORE RACE NEWS & REPORTS...   Site contents © 2002 Johnny O'Connell GM, GM Emblem, Corvette and the Corvette Emblem are registered trademarks of General Motors Corporation and used with permission.