Delana Harvick: A year in the life
By Liz Allison, Turner Sports Interactive
January 30, 2002
12:38 PM EST (1738 GMT)
COMMENTARY
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Liz Allison
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Delana Harvick experienced what some people would call an overwhelming year in 2001.
It started with her marriage in March to Kevin just a few weeks after losing Dale Earnhardt, and everything else the year had to offer. She never would have dreamed that not only would Kevin had won his first Cup race in his first few events in the Winston Cup Series, but that he would be named the permanent driver for the famous Goodwrench Chevrolet seat left vacant after Earnhardt's untimely death.
Delana's roots in racing go deep. Perhaps it was those roots that had her ready to make it as a Winston Cup racer's wife during some pretty chaotic times.
LIZ: Many people do not realize you and Kevin got married during the 2001 race season. You are still newlyweds.
DELANA: We got married in Vegas last year so it has not been quite a year. We went straight to Vegas after the rain date at Rockingham on that Monday.
LIZ: You certainly would have never known that Dale Earnhardt would lose his life just a few short weeks before your wedding in Vegas, but as we all know, he did. This must have been a difficult time for you and Kevin. Was there ever a thought on postponing your wedding?
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Delana Harvick
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DELANA: The thought crossed my mind a time or two. We were all upset and had to make a lot of decisions about many things. I asked (car owner) Richard Childress if we should postpone, and he said if we ever needed something happy it would be now, so we went on with our plans.
LIZ: Vegas would really be the start of your crazy and exhausting year.
DELANA: I do not even know how to describe my year. I used every emotion, that's for sure. The traveling was tough especially during the summer because of the split race weekend with the Busch and Winston Cup schedules. The hardest part was not having any time to have a day off, just a day away from everything where Kevin and I could relax with our animals (two cats and three dogs).
LIZ: Before you married Kevin, you had a career in racing which is what led you to meet him.
DELANA: I was a PR rep for Randy LaJoie before I got married. I still continued to work after we started dating but later quit my job. I miss it a lot because I love my work and I was very close to Randy and his family. Anytime you work that close to someone you get to be friends with their family and I really like his whole family.
LIZ: You are going to work for Randy again this year for the 2002 race season, but quite a bit different from before as you are now married to Kevin. Will this be a hard balance?
DELANA: I hope not. It will be somewhat different, but I think it will work. I hope so anyways. I will be doing the PR at the tracks that are companion races to the Cup, so I think it will be OK. I am looking forward to being with Randy and his family again too.
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Kevin and Delana with Richard Childress at Atlanta.
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LIZ: You are no stranger to the race track. You have been around racing all your life, so I believe that makes you a "racing brat."
DELANA: Yes, I am a racing brat. I was at the race track for the first time when I was three weeks old. My dad (John Paul Lineville) raced Busch until 1995 so I have been around it all my life.
LIZ: You have done a little racing yourself.
DELANA: I drove some Late Model stocks in North Carolina for a while. Kevin and I bought a Legends car for me to hopefully run a little bit in. I was going to try to run the Summer Shootout last summer, but that was impossible with our schedule; but hopefully we can do some of that soon. We both enjoy it.
LIZ: You, being a racer yourself, are acutely aware of the dangers involved in the sport. Do you see yourself as a fearful wife?
DELANA: No I don't. I feel very comfortable with what Kevin does for a living and I believe that somethings are just not in our control. That is how I try to deal with all things in my life.
LIZ: Let's talk about Atlanta in March when Kevin got his first Cup win in only his third start -- not to mention he was in the car that Earnhardt used to drive. Was it unbelievable?
DELANA: I could not believe it when he won the race. I am a pessimist so I kept thinking that he might get a good finish there, maybe top 10 and how great that would be. I never thought he might actually win it. I was overwhelmed with emotions like I had never felt before.
LIZ: Then of course the Busch championship came down to the last few races where he captured the crown in Rockingham. What were your thoughts at the end of that race?
DELANA: I felt like all the stress had been removed, like a big release. I was so frustrated with the race that day and how Kevin was running. I just wanted it to be over. When they came over the radio to say he had won, I said he did it! It was great.
LIZ: What was the 2001 race season like for you?
DELANA: I cannot even describe everything that I felt this year. But I did learn a lot. I had a lot to learn, like how to be a good wife and especially a good wife on the road. That is very important to me.
NOTE: Liz Allison's column appears every Wednesday on NASCAR.com and the opinions expressed here are solely those of the writer. To reach Liz, you can contact her at alli65@aol.com.
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