Chastain didn’t run his way to the top 10 alone, either. As he said after the race, he had help from a little-known sidekick just to his right during the race.
“That’s Larry the Lion!” he explained with a laugh. “It’s a running joke with Jeff and the guys and me. We were out at dinner at Daytona and we won him in one of those claw machines games by the bathroom in the back of the sports bar. I think we spent about 20 bucks to get him and he probably costs about a nickel!”
“It’s cool, though. I’ve got a full-time partner in there with me. It’s something to laugh about when we’re getting ready at the shop to take the stress of all the stuff out.”
The Florida watermelon farmer also added he’s not sure when his next race in the No. 66 will be, but that he hopes it comes soon.
“Go ask Jeff Bolen, because I don’t know!” he said when asked if he had anything else lined up with the team. “I hope so!”
“After Atlanta, I wanted someone to come and drive this thing that could kind of help put stuff on the sides of the truck that would get it where Jeff wants to get it. But now I’m stingy and I don’t want anybody to drive it! As long as it doesn’t conflict with the No. 4 car, my focus (and Jeff knows this) is the No. 4 car with Johnny Davis and Gary Keller running that full-time, but any time I can come run this thing, I’ve actually had to buy a second and third set of everything so I can have backup helmets and gloves and earbuds and shoes and things you don’t think about so I can leave it in this hauler so whenever he calls I’ll be ready!”
“If someone comes and gets in this thing, somebody can come and go fast and learn a lot if the right person came along … but until then, I’m the guy in the No. 66.”
The Gamecock partnership was just the latest in a recent line of college partnerships in NASCAR, following on from University of Michigan and Penn State University partnerships with Hendrick Motorsports over the last three years.
“Jeff is an alumnus of the University of South Carolina, so he had all the connections there to put this together,” Chastain said about the paint scheme. “The women won last night and we’re gonna tune in here in about 30 minutes and watch the men (who ultimately lost to Gonzaga).”
“It was a long day, but we rebounded! We’ll go home, we’re happy. It definitely was an eventful day, but hopefully we got some good T.V. time for the Gamecocks and we’ll see what’s next.”
About the Writer
James Pike is a multi-faceted reporter for Race Chaser Online and an analyst on the Motorsports Madness radio show, airing at 7 p.m. Eastern every Monday on the Performance Motorsports Network.
Pike is the lead correspondent for Race Chaser Online’s coverage of Australian Supercars and also covers regional touring series events in the Carolinas, including the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series, NASCAR K&N Pro Series East and the CARS Tour.
He is a graduate of the Motorsports Management program at Belmont Abbey College and currently resides in Winston-Salem, N.C.
Email James at: RaceChaserJames@gmail.com
Follow on Twitter: @JamesVPike
Email Race Chaser Online: news@racechaseronline.com
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