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The Hendrick engine runs on

Sporting News, The, Nov 8, 2004 by Lee Spencer

Danny Emerick is scrutinizing the engine under the hood of Jimmie Johnson's No. 48 Chevrolet one last time before the team rolls the car through inspection and out to the grid for Sunday's race at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

He checks the throttle four or five times to make sure it won't hang during the race. He tests the lines with a gentle tug and makes sure the parts aren't rubbing. He rubs away any dirt and goo, like a mother tending to a family heirloom.

In a way an engine is that and more. The thought of an engine breaking can rot the stomach lining of the strongest man. This isn't a job for the meek or the overly emotional, especially at Atlanta, where even the most conservative engine setups are no guarantee against sudden failure.

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Emerick is an engine tuner. He's 27 years old and one of the youngest proteges of the late Randy Dorton, who ran the competition engine department for Hendrick Motorsports. In the last 20 years, Dorton built the engine shop from a three-person operation to 103-person juggernaut.

Dorton was one of the l0 who died in the Hendrick plane crash on October 24 on the way to Martinsville Speedway. His legacy lives in the top engine shops in NASCAR. Mark Cronquist at Joe Gibbs Racing, Charlie Siegars at Evernham Motorsports and Richie Gilmore at Dale Earnhardt Inc. all worked for Dorton at Hendrick. Jeff Andrews and Scott Maxim, Dorton's top assistants, are working to pick up the pieces at Hendrick, carrying out his principles as if Dorton himself were looking over their shoulder.

Emerick is doing the same. After he finishes heating the engine oil, he reexamines the cowl. Once Johnson climbs through the window and straps in, Emerick monitors the gauges. He inspects the cockpit again--and again. It's the Dorton method.

"Randy always emphasized examining every angle" Emerick says. "Just when you thought you had everything covered, when you thought you were at the top of your game, he could just easily walk up and put another seed in your head.... He knew precisely what he was doing--that would make you consider exploring another side."

Emerick peers through the window one last time before the cars roll off the grid. In Dorton's absence, it's Andrews and Maxim who are planting the seeds. And lending support throughout the engine department.

The Hendrick Motorsports family lives under a motto: Life is a team sport.

That was never more evident than it was when the four Hendrick Nextel Cup teams and the HMS staff greeted Johnson last Sunday in victory lane, all wearing rally caps.

And what a rally. With three consecutive wins, the No. 48 crew has moved from ninth in points to second. More important, the Atlanta victory is a step in the healing process.

Before Johnson can climb out of the car, crew chief Chad Knaus gives Emerick a hug and pats him on the back.

"We lost a lot of engines in the past, but the engine department really buckled down under the leadership those guys received from Randy Dorton," Knaus says. "However it all plays out, that engine shop will be run by people that Randy Dorton hired. Those guys are going to want to make Randy proud."

Dorton would have been proud of his crew Sunday. Emerick, Andrews and Maxim stood quietly in the background, half hoping, maybe even half expecting, Dorton would join them.

"He would just walk in here with a smile, his eyes half-squinting like he swallowed a cat," Andrews says. "He'd be so excited and tell you how proud he was of you."

Emerick says: "I can see him sneaking up on me and giving me the biggest hug. He was the most fair guy, the most compassionate guy. I learned to be a better person from him, and that's a lot more important than building engines."

As long as Hendrick engines continue to run, Dorton will be with them.

SPEED READ

* The trip by NASCAR officials to Mexico City this week to observe CART's racing procedures will benefit both the sanctioning body and the competitors. The Busch Series rolls across the border next March, and competitors have many logistical concerns. This fact-finding mission should help assuage many of the teams' fears.

INSIDE DISH

Kurt Busch's engine failure--he completed only 37 laps Sunday at Atlanta--tightened the Nextel Cup point standings. "We did everything we could to alleviate this type of problem;' Busch says. "We ran a conservative gear and had high air pressures. We didn't risk anything." It was the third race Busch didn't finish this year. Teammate and fellow Chaser Matt Kenseth also fell out because of an engine failure.... Dale Earnhardt Inc. signed Bass Pro Shops to a three-year deal for Busch points leader Martin Truex that includes full sponsorship in Busch and seven races in Nextel Cup next season. Bass Pro Shops will sponsor Truex in the No. 1 Chevrolet in Nextel Cup when he runs a full season in 2006.... Greg Biffle recently shook down the No. 16 Ford at Darlington Raceway in preparation for the November 14 Southern 500. "We wanted to see what's working with the current tires and the shorter spoiler since the track has changed so much since last year," Biffle says. "We want to make sure that the shock and spring package is still the same." Biffle led 70 laps in the Southern 500 last year before finishing 10th.... Rich Heinrich, Goodyear's product manager for stock cars, says teams can expect new tires in 2005 for all tracks longer than New Hampshire (1.058 miles) to help compensate for the shorter spoiler the Cup cars will have. An open test will be offered to teams in January at Las Vegas and California to test the new tires. "The whole effort is to add mechanical grip to the car, which can be accomplished by changing both the compound and construction of the tires," Heinrich says. Drivers who tested the new tires at Las Vegas, Bristol and Charlotte reported the tires improved the balance of the cars.... Put Mike Bliss' name back on the list for the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Busch team. Although it had been reported earlier in the year that Bliss, 39, and JGR would part ways at the end of the 2004 season, he says he could return. "I think they have an 'A' plan, and if that falls apart, I'm the 'B' plan," says Bliss, the 2002 Craftsman Truck champ. "But my heart is with the 20 team, and that's where I want to be." Bliss won the Busch pole last weekend at Atlanta but finished 27th.... Bliss and rookie Brendan Gaughan are being considered for the Haas CNC Racing No. 0 Chevrolet in 2005. Team owner Gene Haas says he wants to see how current driver Ward Burton performs with crew chief Bootie Barker before he makes a final decision. "We've given Ward three different crew chiefs; now it's up to him," Haas says.

The Hendrick engine runs on

Sporting News, The, Nov 8, 2004 by Lee Spencer

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