Q&A: Bill Wilburn.

Rusty Wallace's new crew chief Bill Wilburn talks about how he and Rusty are getting along so far.

Q:
How have the first two days been like?

Rusty Wallace's new crew chief Bill Wilburn talks about how he and Rusty are getting along so far.

Q:
How have the first two days been like?

Bill Wilburn:
Busy, real busy. It's been okay, but missing Jeff (Thousand) has put us a little bit out of sync as far as our chain of organization is concerned. We've moved a couple of guys around. We're a little bit slower than we'd like to be, but we're doing all we know how to do, we just can't get any speed. We're working on some things, but we're not coming up with the numbers like the Chevys and Dodges. We're probably gonna have to have a little help in the spoiler area or wherever we can get it because we're definitely behind.

Q:
How has your communication been with rusty?

BW:
The communication with Rusty has been good so far, I'm just glad we're racing at a place like Daytona first because you can kind of knock the rust off of things right off the bat. Everything is going well.

Q:
How long of a transition period do you see for yourself and rusty?

BW:
He's probably gonna have to adjust to me more than I'll have to adjust to him because I've listened to him for 12 years on the radio. I kind of know his moods and what he expects and wants. Now, whether or not I'll be able to give him all of that is yet to be determined, but think after Tuesday of this week when we started testing, I look for us to be successful from that day forward. I'm the only rookie here. He's not a rookie and this team isn't a rookie team.

Q:
You've worked with a lot of these crew guys for the last 12 years, but now they answer to you. How do you handle that?

BW:
Everybody is aware of that and I've even discussed that with some of them. I think they understand that I'm in a different position now. I'm not gonna use this authority against anybody. We're gonna work together just like we always have by being a crew guy for 11 years here. I'm just one of the guys making decisions.

The guys are professional enough on this team that they don't even put me in a position where I have to make those kind of decisions. They do their job and we all work together. It's not a situation where I've got to lower the boom on somebody or anything like that. They understand that I'm in a position where I have to make decisions that sometimes might not be popular, but I hope the decisions I make are good for the majority. Everything in that respect is going good so far.

Q:
Will you go over the wall and change tires still?

BW:
No, Jeff Fabian is gonna change front tires. He was with the 12 car last year and he's gonna take over changing front tires. We've got a new front tire carrier too, so, as far as the pit crew is concerned, we've had a few changes.

Q:
Did you have any idea robin was going to leave?

BW:
I had no idea that Robin was gonna leave this team. He evidently talked to Rusty and the owners about some options. I don't know why, but that didn't work out. The first thing I heard about it was when they called me and said Robin was leaving and wanted to know if I was interested in maybe being the crew chief.

Q:
What was your reaction?

BW:
My reaction was, 'Are you sure about this?' I hadn't really patterned my career to become a crew chief, although I think I can be one, it's just an opportunity that came along and I'm glad it did. It's something I couldn't pass up.

Q:
Do you feel the fact you've raced will help as far as understanding and communicating with rusty?

BW:
I think so. I think it'll help me a lot listening to him by having been in the driver's seat before. I don't know if I can offer him a lot of advice, but it will help me understand what he's wanting to have in the race car.

Read More