NOTEBOOK: Sprint Cup Series experience leading K&N Pro Series East teams
Loudon, NH — Lee McCall is no stranger to working with young talent.
He worked in the NASCAR development ranks with the likes of Reed Sorenson and David Stremme for Chip Ganassi-owned teams in the Nationwide Series not all that long ago. And, more famously, he was the crew chief atop the pit box when Jamie McMurray vaulted into NASCAR consciousness by winning at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 2002 — the year he replaced an injured Sterling Marlin in the No. 40 Sprint Cup Series ride.
Now, McCall is the crew chief for Revolution Racing’s No. 2 Changing Lanes Chevrolet driver Ryan Gifford in the K&N Pro Series East.
“It’s a great opportunity to try and teach these kids the dos and the don’ts and try and build their confidence and get them ready for the next level,” McCall said Thursday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, following qualifying for Friday’s New England 125. “You know, I enjoy it. It’s a challenge, but it makes you feel good when you go home at the end of the day.
“If you teach them one good thing in the day, you feel like you’ve done a good job.”
McCall is not the only shot-caller in the K&N Series garage with ties to teams at NASCAR‘s upper reaches. Mike Greci, crew chief for championship leader Ryan Truex, is a former head of driver development at Dale Earnhardt Inc., and Ryan Huffman and Cale Gale both serve as K&N Series crew chiefs after stints as Nationwide Series drivers. Huffman is the crew chief for Darrell Wallace Jr., and while Gale is Ty Dillon’s crew chief with Richard Childress Racing.
“It’s pretty tough. There’s good race teams and good race car drivers all through (this garage),” Greci said of the K&N Pro Series East competition level. “And as young as some of these kids are, they’re really talented.”
Greci said that one of the things he likes about development drivers is their energy.
“These kids are pretty ambitious about wanting to go out and put laps in. Sometimes you’ve got to slow them down, because too fast too soon isn’t always the way to go,” Greci said. “They’re pretty gung-ho right now, and that’s good. It’s enjoyable.
“You don’t have to motivate them, I can tell you that.”
For McCall, he said the benefit of working with development drivers and young talent is two-fold. It’s a rewarding experience — and less stressful than working in a Cup organization.
“It’s a lot more laid-back atmosphere, and I enjoy that. That’s my style,” McCall said. “The Cup level is very demanding, very stressful. You’ve got to do it 24-7. This deal here, you’ve got three or four weeks between races most of the time where you an really prepare your cars with the smaller amount of people and have fun.
“That’s really what it’s all about — having fun and being competitive at the same time.”
FRONT ROW: It’s an all Joe Gibbs Racing front row for the New England 125 on Friday.
Brett Moffitt completed a season sweep of poles at New Hampshire with a new track record of 29.863 seconds (127.542 mph), and he’ll have teammate Max Gresham to his outside when the green flag flies.
Gresham said that’s a good thing, knowing that you can trust the driver next to you at the start. Moffitt added that there’s a good reason to trust one another.
“We go back to the same boss,” Moffitt said with a smile. “If I blow it in there in Turn 1 and take him out and shove him to the fence, even if I have a straightaway lead going into the third turn — I’m going to get my butt chewed, too, when we go back.”
SWINDELL FAST AGAIN: After winning the last two pole awards at Lee USA Speedway and Gresham Motorsports Park, Kevin Swindell qualified third for the New England 125.
But there’s no question about whether Swindell has been fast at those races — though on-track encounters with Eddie MacDonald and Ryan Truex ended promising runs early. Swindell hopes to change his luck around on Friday.
“I think stock cars on the whole owe me a lot,” Swindell said. “I’ve been used up more than anybody has so far, the last two especially.
“Last time (at New Hampshire in June) we had a really good car and didn’t have any trouble. Nobody got stupid around us and we ran second, so hopefully we can just pick up a little from where we were last time and we’ll be good.”
NOTES: Three-time New Hampshire winner Eddie MacDonald qualified fourth on Thursday, the start of a busy weekend for the New England native. MacDonald will make his Camping World Truck Series debut on Saturday and also compete in the ACT Late Model Tour Invitational the same day… Seven rookies were among the Top-11 qualifiers for the New England 125.
Sources: Travis Barrett, Special to NASCARHomeTracks.com