Meanwhile, Back At The Ranch… Er, Racetrack

It may have been overlooked in all the Chase conundrum, but did you know Carl Edwards won the race in Phoenix this past Sunday? Just checking.

‘Twas not all that long ago that Flipper was widely heralded as the heir apparent to the “who can challenge Jimmie Johnson” title. Unfortunately, his fortunes slumped along with everyone else residing in the House of Roush the past couple of years, where the motto was apparently “happy to be here is good enough.” That said, things seem to have picked up. Assuming complacency doesn’t sink in during the off-season, 2011 will see Roush battling alongside JGR and Hendrick for team dominance.

I say Hendrick with a certain amount of reservation, as the organization has definitely had an off year. The presence of Johnson and Jeff Gordon in the Chase is far more a testimony to their skill behind the wheel than anything being provided for them at the shop. In Gordon’s case he also has to overcome Steve Letarte’s penchant for mediocre pit calls come crunch time. Or snack time, or nap time, or… you get the idea.

Every racing organization is a four-legged table. There is the shop, the over the wall team, the crew chief and the driver. Each must do their part for success to take place. Should one falter, no amount of ability and competitive fire on the part of the three remaining elements will be sufficient to overcome the handicap. You can eke out a respectable finish now and then, perhaps even steal a win or two via extreme good fortune combined with your competitor’s misfortune. But win consistently or contend for a championship? No.

It’s highly doubtful that Mark Martin and/or Dale Earnhardt Jr. have forgotten how to drive this year. The cars haven’t been there all that often. While in the Junior Nation Lance McGrew enjoys slightly less favor than Bucky Dent at Fenway Park, Martin has been a speed bump in most every race this year. And no one has accused Alan Gustafson of being an inept crew chief. The malaise with the 5 and 88 teams runs deeper than the crew chief. Conversely, the 24 and 48 have succeeded more in spite of than because of the shop. Certainly it helps that Johnson has Chad Knaus calling the shots. However, should Johnson win the championship next Sunday it’ll be much more a testimonial to his and Knaus’ skill than anything going on at Hendrick circa 2010.

Organizations have slumps. How the owner deals with them varies from team to team. Jack Roush is quick to pull the trigger on personnel changes; Matt Kenseth has requested the name of his crew chief be printed on the front of the pit box so he’ll know who it is this week, and even with that it’s written on a chalkboard. Rick Hendrick proceeds at a far more deliberate pace. That said, it’ll be interesting to see what transpires at 4400 Papa Joe Hendrick Boulevard this off-season. One suspects there’ll be a thriving business being done by whoever supplies Hendrick with business cards due to assorted new names and job titles coming into play.

As the cap’n says, stay tuned.