Black History Month: Crew breaking barriers

Chris Justice, Calvin Gravely and Mike Harris. Three guys from different backgrounds who find themselves with one thing in common: they are all over-the-wall pit crew members for Brendan Gaughan and the No. 77 team at South Point Racing.

And all three are black. But to the three of them, that's more of a coincidence.

Chris Justice Credit: South Point Racing

Justice gives up pigskin for air gun

You don't hear about guys turning down an opportunity to play professional football for a job in the pits of a Craftsman Truck Series team ... but that's exactly what Chris Justice did.

Justice went from the gridiron to the asphalt, and knows he made the right decision.

"In a sense it was a tough [decision], but at the same time I knew I wanted to continue in racing and the opportunity of working with Brendan Gaughan out-gains the football aspect," Justice said.

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"It is nice to have two other black guys working hand in hand but we raise the flag of racism so much, I think I have the job because I'm qualified," Gravely said. "Its not just about black guys and white guys, we have a compilation of races here at South Point Racing.

"I think my boss pretty much wants to be in Victory Lane. We could have Martians out there and he wouldn't care as long as he was in Victory Lane."

And Gravely is right. Gaughan could care less what race, creed or religion any of his pit crew guys are. He just wants top talent, the kind that will deliver wins on a regular basis.

"This wasn't like a planned deal where I wanted to go do something for the diversity program," Gaughan said. "I hire individuals that are good at what they do. My main concern is having quality people."

Gravely grew up in Martinsville, Va. He worked for a textile plant in town and wanted to see if he could take what he learned at the plant and transform it into a career in NASCAR.

Gravely went into a motorsports program at Patrick Henry Community College. After graduation, he worked in Charlotte and received a call from Gaughan. The driver was looking for a crew member and wanted to know if Gravely was interested.

At first, Gravely had to give it some thought.

"I didn't have a clue who Brendan Gaughan was, didn't have a clue," Gravely said with a laugh. "I was very much interested but two different parts of the country ... Martinsville and Las Vegas. I met Brendan at a test in Daytona and I really liked his guys and we just really hit it off."

The rest is, as they say. history.

Justice and Harris are both graduates of NASCAR's Drive for Diversity program.

Justice, in the words of Gaughan, is "an athlete." He was a defensive back at Wake Forest from 1998-2001. Justice was also a track star for the Deacons, as a member of the ACC champion 4x100 relay team. It was his connections at Wake that turned Justice to motorsports.

"A couple former teammates from Wake Forest -- Dion Williams and Mike Washington -- got into racing before I did and they contacted me, telling me about the diversity program and how NASCAR was trying to get more athletic individuals for over-the-wall pit crews. So from that point I contacted Drive for Diversity and was selected for the 2004 class," Justice said.

Harris found the Drive for Diversity program not by word of mouth, but by opening his local paper. A self-proclaimed lover of racing, five years ago Harris was reading an article about diversity in motorsports. He did a ton of research and came across NASCAR's Drive for Diversity program.

But Harris wasn't originally hired for what he learned in the three-week session with Drive for Diversity. Harris can also drive a hauler, and it's that experience that brought him to Gaughan's attention.

The three pit crew guys don't think a big deal should be made about what they do, yet they all understand that being black in NASCAR carries responsibility.

"I think I see us as trendsetters," Harris said. "Many African-American people haven't been followed too much in racing in the past, but I think once they see some guys that are getting into it and start following the sport, I think there will be more of us in the sport."

Justice agrees with Harris, and wants his performance on the track to stand out instead of the color of his skin.

"We definitely view ourselves as trendsetters or pioneers if you will," Justice said. "We just all want to really show everyone there's not a color barrier -- it's all about performance.

"Anyone [of any] shape or color can do well in this business. It's definitely gratifying personally to continue to do the work of icons like Wendell Scott, who did a lot in his time and era to open the doors for myself, Calvin and Mike."

But Scott was a driver. And it's been more than 30 years from his last race at Charlotte yet there isn't a full-time black driver at NASCAR's highest level -- the Nextel Cup Series.

"As I'm learning the business -- and this is only my third year -- but it's an expensive thing," Justice said. "And if you don't have the backing to get started in go-karts or whatever like the Jeff Gordons and the Tony Stewarts or whoever, then you are going to fall by the wayside."

Gravely agrees with Justice but believes more can be done to get more black drivers in the sport.

"It's like any other sport," he said. "You can mold a driver, you can't make anyone a driver, but you can take a select group of guys and give them a chance and give them the training and you can get there.

"I'll be a part of that if needed, but if you think you can walk up to someone on the street corner and ask them if they want to drive a racecar, you aren't going to get many 'yeses.'"

Harris says it's on him to get more minorities interested in the sport, and Justice and Gravely both agree they would love for young minorities to see them on the track, proving you can follow your dream, if that dream is racing.

But all three agree the race issue isn't going away anytime soon. In 2007, all they can do is perform at the top of their game and get the No. 77 Chevy into Victory Lane as much as possible.

"I don't think there will ever be a point where [race] is not a factor," Harris said. "But I think there will be a point when it's not as bad as it used to be in the past. I haven't had any problems so far so we will see how it goes."

"It's important to get the diversity thing out there but it's all about winning races," Gravely said. "But being the champion is what I want this year with this team.

"You know what I want more than anything, to make history. To be selected and have them say 'you were the best in what you did in 2007 or 2008 or whenever.' I want to win every race."