Chat Transcript: Richard Childress

March 14, 2001
10:47 AM EST (1547 GMT)

Nascar Host1 Welcome to NASCAR.com's chat with Richard Childress!

Richard Childress Thank you for attending my chat this evening. I am looking forward to answering your questions. Thank you for all your support.

Nascar Host1 Question from: Teressa Congratulations on the win on Sunday. How did it feel? I know for us fans it was pretty special!

Richard Childress It was the medicine that this team needed. Kevin Harvick has stepped in and taken the competition-side over. He has helped our race team like a driver and to win a race like that was unbelievable. It was almost like we played out a script on Sunday.

Nascar Host1 Question from: Gilbreth Is it true that Dale had handpicked Kevin to replace him in the #3 after he retired?

Richard Childress We had talked about the caliber of driver we wanted to put in the car and Dale Earnhardt was involved in who was going to drive the car when he retired. We talked about Kevin but we decided he couldn't wait until Dale retired. Dale knew his ability and he once told us at a test that we were at the he would hire him to drive his car, so we know he had a lot of respect for Kevin's driving ability.

Nascar Host1 Question from: DaleFan Richard, congratulations on Sunday. Will there be any Harvick merchandise coming out this year with the 29 car?

Richard Childress Yes, we are going to do that and we will have some #29 Goodwrench merchandise by Bristol, but we might even have some t-shirts at Darlington.

Nascar Host1 Question from: GordonFanatic Mr. Childress: I would first like to congratulate you on a great win this past weekend. Through all that your team has been through for the past few weeks, what have you used as your stronghold? Is there anything key that has helped you and your team the most?

Richard Childress I think the whole stronghold of this race team is that all of us knew that Dale Earnhardt was a racer and we are trying to make him proud of what we are doing. We all knew that we had to do well for Dale.

Nascar Host1 Question from: kellythe3fan Richard - Do you have any special speeches or pep talks with your drivers before a race?

Richard Childress We do sit down and sometimes come up with some different strategies. I always tell them to be safe and have a good race. Sometimes we have a conversation after the race though.

Nascar Host1 Question from: Bigestzit Richard, is racing as fun as it was 10 years ago?

Richard Childress I enjoy racing and it is my life. I think each era of racing has had its own fun and enjoyment. I don't know if racing will ever be the same after Daytona but I still want to stay in racing. It is a big part of my life and my family's life. It has its moments.

Nascar Host1 Question from: kath Tell us the about your racing background.

Richard Childress I started out first driving little cars at Bowman-Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem and then I just started racing around the country. I did that up until 1981 when I became an owner. I never won a Winston Cup points race but I won some other races over the years. Dale Earnhardt drove 10 races for me in 1981. Then came Ricky Rudd in 82-83, and then Dale came back in 1984. I guess you could say the rest is history.

Nascar Host1 What is the latest news on the AOL/RCR program?

Richard Childress We are still going to go forward with the AOL program. We will make an announcement at Bristol as to who the driver will be and what the 7 races are. Then we will announce the schedule for 2002 and the seasons beyond. We are very excited about the AOL deal. Nascar Host1 Question from: IronheadFan You stand 3rd in owner points right now with the 29 team. While early in the season, with the way Harvick has taken to Cup racing, do you think you stand a chance at a 7th championship?

Richard Childress Our goal today is to take it race by race and to see where we are at by the end of the year. We want the best performances the team can do and go from there. We all worked hard this winter on ideas on what we wanted to do to win the 8th for Dale Earnhardt, and we are using that information right now. Being a rookie, it is going to be tough for Kevin but he might be able to take us there. We are going to go to tracks that he hasn't been to but he adjusts very well and we have a lot of confidence in his ability.

Nascar Host1 Question from: andrshel Hey Richard, how do you keep Kevin thinking straight with such a big job on his shoulders?

Richard Childress Kevin is a 25-year-old young man that thinks like somebody that has been in this sport for many years. We are blessed to have someone with his maturity and his ability. I don't know what else an owner would want in a driver. He has to have a lot of pressure, but when you talk to him and watch him, he never lets the pressure show.

Nascar Host1 Question from: IDkTm Who do you see as other great up and coming drivers, other than Kevin?

Richard Childress There are a lot of young guys out there that we are looking at. If I say who they are, someone else might go out and hire him! We are watching a good pool of drivers right now and who knows whom it might be. We are watching kids as young as 16 years old.

Nascar Host1 Question from: Angela3Fan Richard, how where you able to adjust from car driver to car owner?

Richard Childress I think that was a really tough situation but what made it so easy was to have Dale Earnhardt get in the seat when I got out. The first race was at Michigan and watching that car go by without me in it, I didn't think they should have started without me! Dale made the transition easy for me and it is the toughest thing for a driver to get out of the car and say he is retiring.

Nascar Host1 Question from: Roni_3 Hi Richard. I just wanted to know how you felt about the proposed indoor track in Pittsburgh, and do you think this kind of track will help bring more spring races to the Northeast?

Richard Childress I feel very positive about doing an event like that. It was a great concept and one of my partners put that together. Ted Brant passed away but they are still trying to put that program together. It would be great to watch a 1-mile event in a dome.

Nascar Host1 Question from: Texlady Richard, how long are you signed up with Goodwrench? What do you think the key is to your team's success throughout the years?

Richard Childress We are signed up for 3 years, so 2 more after this, which is 2003. I think the success at RCR comes from the people you surround yourself with. You start with people like Dale Earnhardt, and Crew Chiefs like Kevin Hamlin, and I could just go on and on mentioning the people that have been involved in the history of our business.

Nascar Host1 Question from: alisha How did y'all celebrate Sunday evening after your very emotional win?

Richard Childress The first thing we did was have a prayer and we all prayed together. We had some champagne on the way home and told some stories, and then we went back to work on Monday morning hard.

Nascar Host1 Question from: Guest60907 Richard, what are the objectives for Harvick? To run for the points Championship this year or for Rookie of the Year?

Richard Childress Definitely one of the objectives is Rookie of the Year in Winston Cup. We were running for the Busch Championship this year but we are just taking it race by race now. We just don't want to burn him out by racing him all over the country.

Nascar Host1 Question from: earnhardtfan Have you talked to Kevin since Sunday and has the reality of his win set in with him yet?

Richard Childress Yes I have talked to him a couple of times but he is in Nashville tire testing at the new track right now. I haven't asked him about the reality setting in yet. I am still shaking my head about it sometimes.

Nascar Host1 Question from: debbiann Are there any plans to add more teams to the RCR stables?

Richard Childress No, right now our focus is on the 3 Winston Cup race teams. We are going to see where we end, and our goal is to get the AOL car up and going. We also have some contracts left with our Busch teams. We have another year after this one in the Busch and right now our goal is to get AOL up, get a win for Mike Skinner, and get Kevin Harvick ready for the Championship next year. Never give up though -- we are not giving up on his chances this year as he is still in 11th.

Nascar Host1 That's all the time Richard has for us today. Thanks Richard!

Richard Childress We all thank you for your prayers and support through these tough times and it is a difficult thing for all of us to go through. We will all miss Dale and we are just going on with what he would like to see happen.