KEVIN HARVICK – Reflections of 2014 and Dreams of the Future
Michelle Hoskin, December 20th, 2014
michelle@racegear.com
Recently I was lucky enough to talk with Kevin Harvick, our 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Champion. Though the off-season may not appear hectic to us, quite the opposite in fact as we patiently await the first race of the 2015 season, this off-season for Kevin, his crew and his family, it is probably more like playing catch-up.
With 5,043 in total points, 36 starts, 14 top five finishes, 20 top ten finishes, five wins and six poles, Kevin proved to himself and his Stewart-Haas Racing team that he HAS what it takes to win a Championship…this being only the #4 SHR Budweiser Chevy Sprint Cup stats; Kevin also raced his #21 car in the Xfinity Nationwide Chevy in 15 races this past season under JR Motorsports. Considering this was veteran driver Kevin’s first year with SHR and his new crew chief, Rodney Childers, I think he definitely proved his worth.
Kevin Harvick, Chicagoland Garage, September 2014
The questions I asked Kevin:
Now that it’s probably hit home after a few weeks break, has it finally sunk in that you’re the Champion?
“Honestly, nothing’s changed. Obviously we’ve done some year-end events and some pretty cool stops on the PR tour, but in the end we still have to do the next years photo shoots and all the things we have going on at home have to be taken care of that we put off till the end of the year … but I think the Banquet in Vegas was where it all hit and seeing all the championship logos and apparel and different things … you know your proud of that, but you also have to move on to next year to be prepared and hopefully do it all again.”
If Keelan wants to follow in your footsteps anytime soon, will Delana be able to handle both you and him driving?
“Dad will probably be as big of a road block as Mom in preventing that from happening. I want him to do what he wants to do but I’d rather him play golf and go to school or do something normal. It’s just really hard to get started in this area of work and the opportunities are very few and far between now-a-days.” Kevin and Delana have been bringing two year old Keelan along to most of the races (as well as to the Vegas Championship Celebration) and Keelan plays a huge role in cheering on Daddy and comforting Mommy during the stressful times!
Kevin and son Keelan, Homestead, November 2014
Any comment on your 2015 Pit Crew?
“I honestly have no idea at this time.”
We all know Tony promised you a Championship, and did follow through; did you make him any promises?
“I promised him that I would give it everything I had, but you know with Tony and everybody at SHR, with all the effort and everything they put into year one, I think we still have a lot of room to grow and I think that’s the exciting part and trying to really get everybody headed into a good direction that leads into the future.” Kevin joined the SHR team just this past year after leaving Richard Childress Racing (RCR), replacing Ryan Newman, who then went on to race for RCR.
Kevin with Tony Stewart, Homestead, November 2014
Favorite race in 2014, besides the last one?
“Hmmm…my favorite race … I think our first win together was probably my favorite because I think there was so much anxiety over whether things were gonna go good or gonna go bad or just how it was gonna go in general …You lay it all out on paper and you think you’ve done the right things but I think that that first win really justified that everything that everybody wanted to do was being in victory lane contending for wins week in and week out.” The race Kevin is referring to was the March 2nd race at Phoenix. Kevin started 13th, led 224 laps, and scored 48 of his 5,043 points in that race.
Kevin, Keelan & Delana Harvick, Las Vegas banquet, 2014
Kevin Harvick Burning It Down in Charlotte!
