Which driver’s personality was I most wrong about?
The other day, race fan Barb Parsons (@bjparsons on Twitter) posed an interesting question: “Pick one driver about whom your personal opinion has most changed since the start of the season.”
I didn’t have to think about the question for very long. Immediately, Kasey Kahne’s name came to mind.
Sometimes you misjudge people, and I think over the years I had misjudged Kahne. Though we are the same age and started in Cup racing the same year (I covered my first NASCAR race the week after his Cup debut), I never thought Kahne was particularly interesting or quotable.
I knew he was popular with fans, but I found it difficult to get much out of him. I had all but given up.
In fact, when I made a “NASCAR All-Quote Team” earlier this season, I even put Kahne in the lowest category: “Start and park,” along with Bobby Labonte and David Ragan.
“Isn’t overly insightful, enthusiastic or funny,” I commented at the time.
Now, I’m sure I was wrong. Kahne seems to be one of the more intriguing drivers on the Cup circuit. Maybe I was just asking the wrong questions.
In a couple interviews throughout the summer and fall, I found Kahne to be extremely insightful on several issues. I had mistaken his laid-back manner for a lack of interest or personality.
My opinion of Kahne changed so much that when working on an upcoming story during banquet week in Las Vegas, he was the first driver I consulted.
Kahne is never going to be as outgoing or energetic as someone like Carl Edwards, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have interesting things to say if you take the time to listen.
