Lennie Pond, whose stock car racing successes stretched from central Virginia short tracks to the superspeedways of the sport’s elite series, died early Wednesday.
Family members said Mr. Pond, a Chester resident who grew up in Ettrick, died of complications from cancer at VCU Medical Center in Richmond. He was 75.
Mr. Pond’s brother, Wright Pond of Colonial Heights, said fans and fellow racers had been sending messages of support to his brother during the past months as he battled his disease through surgery and treatment.
“Racing meant so much to Lennie,” Wright Pond said. “He gave his life to the sport.”
Wright Pond said his brother started racing in 1959 on Virginia dirt tracks, driving cars he worked on himself. He also helped prepare cars for other drivers, including Eddie Crouse, a two-time national champion in NASCAR’s Modified series.
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Lennie Pond moved on to race in the Modified and Late Model Sportsman series, and eventually NASCAR’s Cup series, winning at every level.
John Dodson of Chesterfield County, a retired judge who has owned race cars for several drivers, said Mr. Pond drove for him in 1969 and 1970, running Late Model Sportsman races in several Southeastern states.
“We won races together at lots of places,” Dodson said. “Lennie was fast and reliable. He brought the car back in one piece. He never wrecked once the whole time we raced together.”
The car Mr. Pond drove for Dodson was a yellow Chevrolet with “1 Va.” on its doors. Mr. Pond’s cars would carry that designation throughout much of his decades-long Late Model Sportsman racing career.
Dodson said Mr. Pond’s talents extended beyond his driving ability because he had experience working on race cars as a mechanic.
“Lennie understood a race car’s chassis long before a lot of drivers did,” Dodson said. “His forte was the front-end setup. ... He had a feel for the car, and he knew exactly what he needed to make it faster.”
Dodson said Mr. Pond was “a good man and a talented racer who had a great, great career.”
Mr. Pond also drove race cars owned by longtime friend Ronnie Elder.
“Lennie and I met in high school,” Elder said. “We were in auto mechanics class together. Lennie was a mischievous devil back then. ... you never knew what he was going to do next.
“Years later, I heard that he was racing. I had a construction company, and I went to his garage to see his car. I was impressed with the workmanship and the looks of the car. ... so I started helping the team out.”
The team formed by Elder and Mr. Pond was among the top short-track teams, winning NASCAR Late Model Sportsman track championships and state championships in Virginia (five times), Maryland and North Carolina.
Elder said Mr. Pond’s move from Late Model Sportsman to NASCAR’s top series, the Cup series, came after some friendly advice from NASCAR’s most famous driver.
“We were buying parts from Richard Petty,” Elder said. “Lennie and I drove down to his shop in Randleman (N.C.) to pick something up. Richard was there and he said, ‘You boys are pretty good — why don’t you move on up?’”
With Elder as owner and an all-volunteer team, Mr. Pond made the move to the NASCAR Cup series in 1973 and won rookie of the year, defeating future Hall of Famer Darrell Waltrip for that honor.
Mr. Pond finished fifth in NASCAR Cup series points in 1976.
He scored his lone Cup victory in August 1978 in the Talladega 500 at the 2.66-mile Alabama International Motor speedway (since renamed Talladega Superspeedway). At the time, his average speed of 174.7 mph was the record for a 500-mile race in any racing series.
Mr. Pond also qualified for the pole position for five races during the 1978 season, when he drove for owner Harry Ranier.
Mr. Pond’s last Cup Series race was in 1989. He had 234 career Cup starts with 88 top-10 finishes.
After retiring from racing, Mr. Pond got into car sales. Until his illness, he was a member of the staff at Heritage Chevrolet in Chester.
Bobby Allison, a NASCAR Hall of Fame driver, in Richmond last week for a tribute to Mr. Pond at an Arena Racing USA event, recalled racing against Pond for decades — both at NASCAR’s major races and in smaller races at short tracks such as Southside Speedway.
“Lennie was a tough competitor,” Allison said. “I raced against him lots of times over the years. He was fun and fair to race against. And when the race was over, if you needed help, Lennie would help you out.
“You knew he was going to be competitive,” Allison said. “He worked hard with his part of the deal and came to the track ready to race.”
In addition to his brother, Mr. Pond’s survivors include his wife, Catherine Thomas Pond; two sons, Lindsey Pond and Kent Pond; and daughter Laura Pond — all of Chester.
Plans for memorial services were incomplete as of Wednesday.