Huffman gets second chance as car chief
By Tony Bolick
Friday, September 28, 2007
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A race car driver makes a hard decision to get out of the car - another chance to drive may never come again.
Shane Huffman had worked too hard to get to the Busch Series, and not being there was the worst. So when Rusty Wallace came along and made him an offer to get back to the track every week, he took it.
"To say that I haven't lost any sleep over it would be a lie. It was hard," Huffman said. "I had to borrow some Ambien from my mom to get some sleep for a couple nights there. Ultimately, it seemed like the right decision."
Huffman, who has been with Rusty Wallace Inc. for a little more than two weeks, is the team's new car chief. This weekend's Yellow Transportation 300 at Kansas Speedway is the first time the former Hooter's Pro-Cup Series champion will have his work take to the track.
Huffman, 33, drove the first 18 races of the season for JR Motorsports before losing his ride. He had one top five and four top 10s. Overall, he has 29 Busch and seven Craftsman Truck Series starts.
Huffman has built or worked on his cars much of his career. At times, he even worked without a crew chief and calling his own shots. Wallace, the 1989 Cup champion, did a lot of that in his career.
"Shane Huffman is a world-class racing driver and will undoubtedly add a whole new dimension to our team's operations," Wallace said. "Just like I was during my career, Shane is really hands-on with the chassis and knows a racecar inside and out."
Huffman also will help Rusty's son and driver Steven mature in RWI's No. 66 Dodge. The 20-year-old second-generation driver is in his first full Busch season. He has no career top 10 finishes in 47 starts and has two poles in 2007. But his average finish has slipped from last year's part-time mark just inside the top 25 to just outside it this year.
"He knows that I can help Steven grow and mature as a driver," Huffman said. "I just got to the Busch level myself, but at the same time, I've raced a long time and experienced a lot of things. I worked for 16 1/2-17 years to get to this level that I was at."
Steven Wallace understands what Huffman brings to the team.
"There are a lot of times when you're on the track and you're feeling something that you just can't seem to explain correctly to the guys in the pits," Steven Wallace said. "Having someone on the pit box who has been there and felt what I'm feeling, like Shane has, is going to give us an advantage."
Huffman hopes to drive again one day. But for now, he is giving it a go at being part of a crew, committing to helping RWI be successful.
"Rusty presented me with an opportunity to maybe start another chapter in my career," he said. "If I get in there and do a good job for Rusty and Steven, who knows where it may lead. To have someone who knows where I'm at (in my career) and to give me this opportunity, people like that don't come around often."
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