Racing Hero's

For pics of Lealand's Trophy Room a Click here to view
For The pics of his ride's Click here to view

Lealands photos from everywhere

Lealand "Tempe Tornado" McSpadden

Lealand

Lealand concentrating

Lealand with his JW Hunt hat

Lealand receiving a most fast times award at the CRA banquet

Lealand

Lealand

Lealand

Lealand in the pits

Lealand

Lealand autographing at the Wagsdash. He was the 1999 Grand Marshal

Lealand doing autographs at the Manzy Hall of Fame race

Lealand still signing

Lealand talking

Lealand signing for Ellen

Lealand signing still

Lealand getting honored at the Legends of Ascot

Lealand autographing

Lealand helping Bondio at the Chili Bowl

Lealand working

Lealand at the Chili Bowl in the grandstands

Lealand

Lealand in Goodyear wear

Lealand 1990

Lealand

Lealand

Lealand

Lealand with a present from Dave Darland's car

Lealand

Lealand

Lealand getting an award

Janet

Janet wandering the Hall of Fame

Janet in a cheer group?

Janet

Janet and Mrs Wags at Manzy

Janet with Ed Rausch
Lealand and Janet

Lealand and Janet at the river

Lealand with Kim Lafond

Lealand with Wags

Lealand and Wags

Lealand giving Wags what for

Lealand with Ellen

Lealand and Verne Sweeney

Lealand and Wags

Lealand with a friend of Darleen Dils

Lealand with Bubby

Lealand and Ellen

Lealand and Mrs Wags

Lealand and Wags

Lealand getting the framed Wagsdash Lealand poster from Steve Lafond

Lealand and Wags passing autographed pictures to each other

Lealand Interviewed by Jay Agajanian

Lealand interviewed by Chris Holt

Lealand and Wags

Lealand and Wags

Lealand with Shane Carson

Lealand with the Hanford trophy girl Evelyn Pratt

Lealand and Wags

Lealand

Lealand and the Gasman

Lealand interviewed by Chris Holt

Lealand with Kim Lafond

Lealand walking the track with Woo boss Ted Johnson

Lealand with Billy Chester

Lealand with Jerry McLung

Lealand

Lealand

Lealand and Shane Carson

Lealand and Darleen Dils

Lealand and Darleens friend

Lealand and same friend

Lealand at the Chili Bowl

Lealand visits with the Strawberry King JW Hunt

Lealand with Ellen Ellis and Mike English

Lealand autographing Ellen's sign with Joe

Lealand at the Ellis Hacienda with an Aussie

Lealand and Wags

Lealand at the Arizona Museum

Lealand with Emment Hahn

Lealand at Kent Shockley's marriage at Perris

Lealand

Lealand

Lealand with son Jeff and daughter Michelle

Lealand and Janet and Jeff

Lealand with Cory and Carrie Kruseman

Lealand with Jay Agajanian and Jimmy Oskie

Lealand with Tony Simon and Cory Kruseman

Lealand getting a Wagtimes award from Wags with jay Agajanian

Lealand visiting with The Wags in 1991

Lealand at the Ellis Hacienda

Lealand with Keith Brian and Wags

Lealand with Tony Simon and Dean Thompson

Lealand and Janet with Bubby

Lealand and Janet with the Wags

Lealand and Janet with Wags

Lealand and The Wags

Lealand with Jimmy Sills and Dave Argabright

Lealand and Janet with Mickey Meyer

Lealand with Mickey Meyer and Billy Shuman

Lealand and Janet with Jimmy Oskie at the AZ hall of Fame

Lealand with Gary DeWitt and a go cart?

Lealand with Ron $human at Arizona Hall of Fame

Lealand with Billy Shuman and Ron $human

Lealand and Frank McDaniel

# 75 Lealand with another trophy girl

Lealand

Lealand and trophy girl

Lealand and a trophy girl

Lealand with trophy girl

Lealand with two cuties

Lealand with Chuck Gurney and Sammy Swindell

Lealand in 98 car

Lealand with the Plaque! Note JW Hunt at right

lealand after another win

Lealand in the winners circle

Lealand has a big trophy here with Janet

Lealand with Dean Thompson and Jack Hewitt

Lealand getting an award at Ascot

Lealand getting interviewed

Lealand with a trophy girl and a plaque

Lealand with a trophy and the trophy girl

Lealand interviewed

Lealand with another award

Lealand and Janet in the winners circle

Lealand winning at Ascot

Lealand on the podium with Dean Thompson and Steve Kinsewr

Lealand in the winners circle

Lealand with Dean Thompson and Jack Hewitt

Lealand always a winner

Lealand at the Knoxville Nationals on the podium with Bubby Jones and Doug Wolfgang

Lealand and their big family at Manzy

Lealand introduced

Lealand autographing

Lealand visiting with the Wags at the Chili Bowl

Lealand with Wags, The Barber and Matt Pecharich

Lealand talking with my son Kevin Wagner, Richard Griffin and the Bakersfield promotor

Lealand with his daughter and Keith Hall

Lealand, Janet, Michelle and Gene Tussing tailgating at Susquehanna in PA

Lealand with Sylvia Watkins at Susquehanna tailgate

Lealand and family at Susquehanna in 1992

Lealand and Janet with The Wags

Lealand with The Wags and Joe Ellis

Lealand and Janet with Mrs Wags plus Stephan and Judy Pettigrew

Lealand about to go racing ..... on a barstool

Lealand leading as his competitor looks in trouble

Family Portrait

Lealand bid on this side piece with the JW Hunt strawberry held by Marilyn Thomas in the Wags auction and Jim Naylor has a question

Lealand signing Tory's t-shirt with Mrs Wags and her son Chris looking on

Lealand with Wags, Jay Agajanian and Jimmy Oskie

Lealand and Janet with The Wags and Joe Ellis and Norm Bogan

Lealnd with George Rimmer, an Ausie in town and more

Lealand and Janet at the Ellis Hacienda

Lealand and Janet at dinner with Wags and more

Lealand and Janet with The Wags and Joy Paulson at Calistoga

Lealand with The Gasman, Ron Chaffin, The Demon and Mike Spencer

Lealand with Lee Vodden, Don Read, Cory Kruseman and Wags

Lealand and family coming to Canyon

Lealand getting an award from Keith Hall

Lealand and Janet at Joe's 80th party

Lealand with Wags at Joe's party

Lealand with Jimmy Oskie, Shane Carson and Jimmy Sills

The Lealand McSpadden Classic was won by Billy Chester

Lealand and Janet a christmas a long time ago

Lealand with Bruce Bromme Sr and a crowd

Lealand and son Jeff at an early arrival at the PAS

Lealand Legacy

Lealand's thanks for the memories cake

Lealand passer of the wheel

Lealand

Lealand

An Ascot program

Lealand ready to go in the # 91

Poster

Lealand pic

Lealand on Open Wheel

Lealand's T-shirt from Reid's Diesel

Lealand fan card

Open Wheel cover

A Western World poster
Lealand is a two time CRA Champion. He won 92 CRA Main events. Up thru 1992 he had 54 fast times, 44 trophy dash wins and 69 Main event wins. I don't have the totals for his last 3 years of racing, but he was pretty good, an understatement. One of the most charismatic drivers who was the example of how to interact with everyone, fans and racers alike, as his legendary career unfolded. He was the best with fans, staying until the lines to visit with him were empty and he could load up and go home. He often manhandled his cars as he won without brakes, missing shocks and flat tires, never giving up. He won with junkboxes and evil handling cars. He once told me, he never raced his competitors, but raced against himself, trying to go faster and faster. That bit him a few times, especially one particular Western World in a black car, but he competed to the Nth degree, always on the gas hard. He is in the Knoxville and Arizona Hall of fame's. The man is just plain the greatest! He won a lot of big races including the Western World and the Chili Bowl. He was the Wagtimes favorite Driver in 1993 and the Wagsdash Grand Marshal in 1999.
Born in Gallup, New Mexico, McSpadden's family moved to Tempe, a suburb of Phoenix, Arizona, in 1954. He began racing in 1968 with a supermodified bought from local racer Billy Shuman. He recorded his first sprint car feature race win at Manzanita Speedway in 1972.
McSpadden's 26-year career included nearly 200 feature wins, including 25 in five different divisions at Manzanita during the 1977 season. His awards are numerous; he is a three-time winner of the Western World Championship for sprint cars (1978, 1993, 1995) and he won the 1991 Chili Bowl midget car event. He also entered and won the Belleville Midget National Championships on the high banks in 1992.
As well as racing in the United States, McSpadden was a frequent visitor to Australia, where he made guest appearances at "Australia vs the USA" nights at Parramatta City Raceway. He also won the 1995 Australian Speedcar Grand Prix (Midgets are called Speedcars in Australia), joining other American winners of the event including Cal Niday, Bob Tattersall, Jimmy Davies, Dave Strickland, A. J. Foyt, Ron "Sleepy" Tripp, Steve Kinser and Johnny Pearson.
One particular race at Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico, California, saw McSpadden crash out in his heat. He was badly shaken and his car took severe damage but promoter J.W. Hunt offered to add $1,000 to the winner's purse if McSpadden could come back through the qualifying B-main race and win the main event. He won both the B-main and the main event to win the increased purse.
He retired from competitive racing in 1996 after winning the SCRA non-winged sprint car championship
In 1998, McSpadden was inducted into the Arizona Motorsports Hall of Fame. He was inducted in the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 1999. In 2000, the Arizona Republic named him the fifth-greatest driver from that state in the past 100 years.

Updated 8/15/18