FIVE MINUTES WITH JAMES ‘CUBBIE’ WALLACE FROM JORDAN ANDERSON RACING
Meet Jordan Anderson Racing’s hauler driver and crew member, James Wallace
James Wallace (left) speaking with Jordan Anderson (right)
Few racing calendars are as gruelling as the top tiers of NASCAR. Week in and week out, the Cup, Xfinity and Truck Series teams cover hundreds, and sometimes thousands of miles to go racing in all corners of America.
Our first ‘Five minutes with’ story featured Wilko Kleine from MotoGP team, LCR Honda IDEMITSU. And this week, we’re lucky enough to be crossing the Atlantic to introduce James ‘Cubbie’ Wallace from the world of NASCAR. James drives the Kenworth W900L hauler for popular NASCAR Xfinity and Camping World Truck Series racer and team owner, Jordan Anderson.
But steering the big Kenworth is just one part of James’ job. When it’s time for the Jordan Anderson Racing Chevrolet Camaro or Silverado to pull in for Sunoco fuel and a new set of Goodyear tyres during the race, James also passes over the fuel can and catches the worn rubber on the pit wall. All in a weekend’s work!
We got in contact with James as he rolled into Talladega Superspeedway last week, and he was all too happy to field our questions as preparations began for a big weekend of racing for the #31 Bommarito Automotive Group-backed squad. It turned out to be a very successful trip south, with Jordan Anderson steering his Chevrolet Camaro stock car to a top-five finish in the Xfinity Series, after finishing 11th on seven cylinders in the Camping World Truck Series earlier that day.
But before the engines fired last Saturday, James sat down to answer our questions during his downtime at the Alabama venue.
Trucks at Tracks: G’day, James! Can you please tell us about your background?
James Wallace: “I was born in Orlando, Florida and was raised in Apopka, Florida, which is around 25 miles northwest of Orlando. My family were always fans of racing, but we never did any racing ourselves. I got the racing bug primarily from my grandfather. The story goes that when I was little, he’d sit me with him in his recliner and I’d watch the races with him. The love and passion for cars, and racing, pretty much grew out of that.
“My dad drove trucks as long as I can remember, primarily locally, but did some over the road driving, and every once in a while, we’d get to take a day off school or in the summer and ride with him.”
TaT: How did you get into motorsport?
JW: “I caught a good break in 2013 when JHE Production Group (now CSM productions) needed someone to fill in on the Fox Sports NASCAR tour. They had a guy get hurt at the end of 2012 and he wasn’t going to be ready in time for Daytona, and I had just happened to contact them to see if they had anything open. I think it was the next morning I was on a flight to Charlotte. That’s how it all started.”
The Jordan Anderson Racing rig outside Bristol Motor Speedway last month
TaT: What was the first truck you drove?
JW: “The first truck I drove in motorsport was a custom Freightliner Coronado that had a Jumbotron that fitted into a box on the back of the chassis. Kind of a wild setup I had there, and I also towed a Chevy Suburban behind it.”
TaT: What’s your favourite trip on the NASCAR schedule?
JW: “This is absolutely a two-part question for me. Growing up in central Florida, I was lucky enough to grow up going to Daytona as a kid. I went to my first race there in 1997 and have been there every year in some way, shape, or form since. Race fans of all forms of motorsport, all over the world, understand the significance of Daytona. It ranks up there with Indy, Le Mans, and Monaco, so to be able to call Daytona home is something truly special.
James parked at Daytona in August
“If I had to choose another stop on the schedule, it would have to be Martinsville, VA for the racing and Las Vegas, NV for the outside the track entertainment. Short track racing is at its finest at Martinsville, and who doesn’t love to unwind and have a good time when you leave the track? Vegas is the place to do that for sure!”
TaT: What’s your favourite part of the job?
JW: “Before and after the race, I think my favorite part of the job is knowing that once the race car is loaded into that hauler, from the time I leave the shop until I park in the garage, the responsibility and the pressure is on me to perform and do my job.
“During the race, I hand in the fuel cans and catch tires, then after the stop, run the cans to Sunoco for filling for the next time we come in. The focus and precision that each job of a crew member requires in that 14-16 seconds is an absolute adrenaline rush. As fast as that stop is, when you are in tune, everything slows down and allows you to lock in to your responsibility, and I really enjoy that part of things as well.”
James with the Goodyear race tyres in pit lane
TaT: Do you have any favourite moments from your hauler driving career?
JW: “I have a couple actually. The first is back in 2019. I was working at SS GreenLight Racing, another Xfinity Series team. We were an underfunded team that was trying to do a lot more than what our equipment was capable of, and having some success. When we rolled into Talladega in April of 2019, we knew we were going to be fast. The guys on the team built one hell of a superspeedway car, and we were able to go out and finish 2nd with Gray Gaulding in that race. That was such an incredible day. I’m actually at Talladega now as I answer this question and because of that day, I always come here with the confidence knowing anything can happen here on any given day.
“The second is working with some of the drivers I have gotten to work with since joining Jordan Anderson’s team. We’ve had a lot of super talented drivers come through since I’ve been here. A lot of NASCAR Cup Series experience has helped us improve our team, so that’s been a lot of fun.”
The Jordan Anderson Racing hauler and Camaro stock car at Richmond Raceway
TaT: Can you please tell us about the truck you’re driving now?
JW: “Absolutely! My current truck is a 1999 Kenworth W900L with a big ol’ CAT motor under the hood. This truck is probably my favorite truck I have driven. It has that classic Kenworth look to it, and it’s just a tough truck. It’s got that deep, throaty sound that brings a smile to your face. She’s got just shy of 800k miles on her now, but is an absolute workhorse!
“We’re very lucky to have the support of Joel Black and our friends at Capital City Towing, who own and service our truck.”
The Jordan Anderson Racing hauler at Road America earlier this year
Photo: Jay Bonvouloir
TaT: What advice would you give to somebody wanting to get into NASCAR hauler driving?
JW: “The advice I would give to someone who is wanting to get into this is to find a team that may be in the back half of the garage to cut your teeth. There is a lot to learn about this job; it’s not just driving a truck. You are the face of your team from the moment you leave the shop until you park in the garage. The way the truck and trailer and all the equipment look inside and out are extremely important.
“You won’t be able to walk into a Penske or JR Motorsports or Jordan Anderson Racing on day one. Put in the hard work, keep your head down and keep digging, and just like Jordan noticed the way I worked in the garage, you’ll get opportunities when people see your work ethic.”
TaT: What are you most looking forward to for the remainder of this season?
JW: “I’m most looking forward to trying to get some solid finishes and maybe a shot at the Top 25 in owner points. Because of the way things played out for this team back in February at Daytona with qualifying being rained out, we’ve run 10 less races than the teams around us in points, so Top 25 is the goal with six races left.
“We’ve got a lot of exciting things happening at JAR for 2022, so looking ahead has us excited to get there and continue building and growing our race team. We’ve got a great core group that gets along and enjoys working together, and that’s a very important piece of the puzzle. Jordan has assembled a great group with Artie, Terry, Brian, Andrew, and Chris, who put an amazing amount of work into these cars and have us in the position we are in moving forward.”
TaT: Jordan is one of the fan favourite drivers in both the NASCAR Xfinity and Camping World Truck Series. What's the best part about working with him?
JW: “I couldn’t ask for a better team owner than Jordan Anderson. His passion for this sport is evident in everything he does. He has a vision for where he wants to be, and he’s got a plan on how to get there. And he appreciates the effort and sacrifices of the guys on this team. If I have a question, or an idea, or anything, he’s always willing to listen. My favorite saying of his is “if its gonna make us run better, or look better, I’m already on board.”
“This is a guy who has worked extremely hard for everything he’s accomplished and has had nothing handed to him. When you walk into the shop on Monday morning, that’s the guy you want to work for. And he’s in the trenches with us, so we know that he’s seeing what we see, which just helps to make us a better team all around.”
Some of the Jordan Anderson Racing crew during a pre-race ceremony. James is second from the right.
James loaded up Jordan Anderson’s Camaro after the top-five finish in the Xfinity Series at Talladega and made the 385-mile trip back to the team’s workshop in Statesville, North Carolina.
The team’s Kenworth W900 won’t burn much diesel this week, with just a 40-mile trip south to Charlotte Motor Speedway with Sage Karam driving the #31 Camaro on Saturday.
The Drive for the Cure 250 Presented By Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina gets underway on the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course on Saturday afternoon local time.
You can follow James’ travels across America on Twitter and Instagram. And if you can find Jordan Anderson on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. A big thank you to both James and Jordan for helping to make this story possible.
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