Evernham, Atwood building foundation

Hank Kurz Jr

Thursday, Sept. 14, 2000 | 1:33 a.m.

RICHMOND, Va. - Ray Evernham, labeled a genius while guiding Jeff Gordon to greatness, sweated out qualifying like a novice.

"I've probably been as nervous on pit road as I've been in my whole life," Evernham said, wearing his Winston Cup crew chief's cap for the first time in almost a year as Casey Atwood made his debut in NASCAR's top series.

"It's just a different feeling," Evernham explained.

Very different.

Evernham spent seven seasons as the brains that turned Rick Hendrick's money, Gordon's talent and the best over-the-wall pit crew in the business into three series championships. But Evernham walked away from that dynasty last September to be his own man.

He has signed on as the lead car owner in Dodge's return next year to stock car racing's premier circuit, with 20-year-old Busch Series protege Atwood and 1988 Winston Cup champion Bill Elliott as his drivers.

Last weekend, at Richmond International Raceway, Atwood was 35th after the first round of qualifying. Two spots lower would mean he'd miss the cut, but Atwood stood on his time and made the field.

Evernham always helped Gordon through their rare moments of disappointment. So he was ready in case Atwood failed.

"I told him, 'You've got to be a big boy, win, lose or draw,"' Evernham said. "This is a lot tougher than it looks like from the outside.

"You can't slit your wrist if you don't make it. You find out why you didn't, you find out where you made your mistakes and you go on."

Chemistry is a word that essentially became part of the NASCAR vernacular because of the way Evernham and Gordon clicked, and it's one Evernham uses often.

Now, though, he speaks of it as a goal, not a given.

"It's too early," Evernham said. "Chemistry is something that you've got to work on. We're still learning each other. It's the first time that we worked together under pressure."

Atwood is as excited to drive for Evernham as he is to race against Gordon, Dale Earnhardt, Mark Martin and the others.

"It's the best opportunity I could possibly have," Atwood said. "I said all along I was going to stay in the Busch series longer, but with Dodge's return to Winston Cup and having Ray on my side, it's just a great honor for me."

Evernham's choice of Atwood - a winner only twice in 70 Busch starts - might have been unconventional. But it was made with a lot of consideration.

"He did things at 17 and 18 years old that people just don't do," Evernham said of the kid from Nashville, Tenn. "When I talked to him, I realized he wasn't just a flash."

Evernham said Atwood understands race cars and is able to convey vital information to the crew. Many veterans lack such a gift.

"I felt like if we spent a couple years investing time in this kid, it'll be a good investment," Evernham said. "If we spend five years developing him, he's still only 25 years old. And he's got a cool name."

Evernham doesn't plan to remain Atwood's crew chief for long, and used the Chevrolet 400 to show his team how he calls a race. He plans to do the same thing when the team takes its Ford to Martinsville, then to Homestead, Fla.

"I want my guys to hear me on the radio. I want them to see what I do," Evernham said during a break from tinkering with the car. "You can tell people what you want them to do, but until you show them sometimes, they really don't understand."

At Richmond, the goals were simple: make the race, finish the race and begin laying the groundwork for the team to be ready to hit the track running in 2001.

Atwood did his part. He wound up 19th, finishing 398 of the 400 laps.

"If we can take that and improve on it, then it was a good weekend," Evernham said. "I think he's certainly a different driver now than when he started the race."

The process is only beginning.