|
My Ongoing Tribute to the Greatest NASCAR Driver Ever Dale Earnhardt* please wait for all the graphics to load * |
           |
Earnhardt Jr. 'real satisfied' with report
By Marty Smith, Turner Sports Interactive
DARLINGTON, S.C. -- No matter the circumstance, situation, or subject, every time Dale Earnhardt Jr., opens his million-dollar mouth he spills forth an understanding of life far beyond his 26 years. Wednesday was no different, as Junior convened at Darlington Raceway with a room full of anxious media to discuss his feelings on NASCAR's investigation into his father's death, made public 24 hours earlier in a national press conference in Atlanta. Oddly enough, Wednesday's get-together wasn't in reaction to Tuesday's announcement. It was previously planned as part of NASCAR's winner circle program.
With his usual quick wit and thought-provoking style, the namesake of NASCAR's greatest ambassador left everyone howling in laughter with his candor and on the brink of tears with his sincerity. "First off, I'm real satisfied with how NASCAR handled it. I think they did a great job," said Junior, clad in a red Budweiser shirt and hat, a pair of blue jeans and boots. "They took a lot of scrutiny for being secretive about everything, but I think they handled it in a very special manner.
"Once everything was released I think everyone understood why. Everything they believe and they have found was real consistent with my beliefs and understandings and my family's interests. So we're very content with everything and the way it was done." Junior didn't watch Tuesday's report, but that's not exactly by his own doing. His television wasn't exactly functional - he "got busted with a cheater card" -- an illegal satellite card. Despite his transgressions, Junior was willing to discuss at length several topics about the report and how it will affect the future, including the art of mounting seat belts, saying it is common practice change the mounting position regularly to achieve maximum comfort. Bill Simpson, whose company manufactured the broken seatbelt in Dale Earnhardt's car during his fatal crash, continues to claim that improper installation techniques resulted in the belt's failure. "I've changed my seatbelt mountings a few times," Junior said. "A lot of times, for some reason you can mount a seat the same in every car and the seatbelt will still not really feel the same across your hip and across your body. At Chicago, the belts were digging into my hips a little bit so we changed the location of the seatbelts, just to get them more comfortable. "If I had hit anything, I felt like I'd have shattered my hipbone the way it was digging into me. I don't think it's uncommon and I don't think it's anything I worry too much about. When you mount the seat belts you just take a look at where you're mounting them and what might be in the way. I'm always in the car with the guy, getting comfortable." Junior also voiced his opinion that a set of standards for seatbelts be instituted, like those used in the military, and discussed his newfound interest in the Hutchens Device head-and-neck restraint system, which he used for the first time last weekend at Michigan at the urging of NASCAR's veterans. "I didn't feel pressure (to wear it) but a bunch of drivers had asked me to wear it," Earnhardt Jr. said. "Terry Labonte was probably the first guy that really said he wanted me to be around for a long time.
"He (Terry) don't say much of anything to anybody, so I figured I better listen. A friend of mine is a state trooper, and he said (the device) is like his (bulletproof) vest. You don't have to wear it; you can be a bad ass. "But why not wear it while you can? I thought I'd try it, see if I was comfortable with it. It was kind of uncomfortable, but had the rain delay to adjust it. I put hooks on the helmet too far into back. I was afraid if I hit something it would pull at the helmet off the back of my head. It's cool. It's probably something I am going to use more often possibly get to where I'm using it every week." When asked his opinion on Simpson and his products, Junior said he holds no grudges. Well, sort of. "I'm not worried about seat belts, not concerned with Simpson products," he said. "The only thing that upsets me is that my (Simpson) uniforms shrink up. I can't get a uniform that doesn't last more than three months." |
;){kind=link}