Dale Jarrett Good Quotations

Today is about guys back in the fab shop and the cars they gave us, ... It's a brand new race car. (It's about) the adjustments Todd (Parrott) and these guys did to get me ready to make two laps today. So, my job really starts tomorrow - getting it ready for the race. I'm looking forward to that. I think we've got a good car for Sunday so it should be fun.

You know, driver-crew chief relationships, if you get six good years, that is longer than a lot of marriages, ... We do have a huge amount of respect for each other, and Todd has brought back a leadership that we haven't seen since he left, really.

You have the ability to keep that thing right around the bottom, then you can get off the corner good enough and that's what a lot of people work on.

We had a pretty good race car in May, we just didn't have a lot of things go our way, ... We had a wheel come loose and we actually were down a lap. Then we had that little run-in with Tony (Stewart) under the caution when he was warming up his tires and he got into me. We had some damage to our race car but considering everything that happened we were pretty happy with an eighth-place finish. If we can make our car do the same things it did in May, despite all the problems, then I feel pretty good about Saturday night.

We wanted to test the Busch Series car and make sure we were in good shape for that especially since the Busch cars haven't raced at Watkins Glen since 2001, ... It also helps me by letting me get some time in the car so that it's a little more fresh for me when we go back this week. I was able to go and get some laps. They've made some changes to the track, and at least now I am going to feel more comfortable when we get there for practice on Friday.

We had a good race car, but the lapped traffic was pretty tough. There was prime real estate, and everybody was trying to get to the same spot.

We feel like we've made some gains because we know that the competition has stepped up. It's incredible what's out there right now and I know you hear this from everybody, especially the guys that are trying to make their way into that top 10 about how tough it is, but you get around looking at time sheets from practice and things and you realize just how difficult it is. There are literally 22-25 teams every week that you say, 'Those are good cars.' And you're gonna have to be on your game to outrun those.

As the race goes on, the track changes a lot and you'll find yourself changing the racing groove in which you're running. So, while it does require a good handling car, it also takes a driver that is able to adapt to those changes.

I see something that's a little bit scary for the rest of us, ... He's getting smarter out there, knowing when he can go and when he can't. When his car isn't exactly right, he doesn't try to force the issue now, so they've done a really good job.

Dale's death accelerated a lot of the safety provisions we have today. Anytime you see your Superman, your hero, taken away I'm not saying that would have been the savior for Dale, but we know that it gives everyone a much better chance of surviving that type of situation. If that hadn't have happened, those things would probably come a lot slower. From such a horrific accident, we can look back and say that some good things did come from that.

It's definitely having an impact. I don't know that you can say yet that it is good or bad.

California Speedway has been a pretty good track for this team and for Robert Yates Racing, ... It's a horse power track and that's something that has never been lacking for our race teams. California is one of the tracks where we ran decent this year. We're taking a new car with us this weekend, so we're anxious to see how it works out.

Hopefully, in these next nine races we can see some good things that are going to happen for the entire organization. That's what all this was done for.

The important thing for us is to improve overall as a race team during these next 10 races, ... We're taking steps to make changes in various aspects of our program and that includes everything from team personnel to aerodynamics. The biggest thing we need in the immediate future is a good run. We haven't put up a good effort since Daytona where we finished fifth. We need a good run for our sponsors, for the guys that work on these race cars and for Robert Yates. The other thing that is important to us is getting back to victory lane. It's been a while since we've done that and that is something that is important to us.

A good run in the Bud Shootout doesn't guarantee a good run in the Daytona 500, but it is a nice indicator that this part of the program is at least headed in the right direction. The extra seat time is always good to have, and I think there are things you can learn by participating in that race that the teams who aren't competing don't have the opportunity to learn.