From: dans@rehab1.UUCP (Dan Schein)
Newsgroups: rec.autos.sport
Subject: Re: NASCAR: Steve Bird and Fe-head (was: Birdie calls it quits...)
Date: 1 Sep 92 17:33:54 GMT
Reply-To: dans@rehab1.UUCP (Dan Schein)
Distribution: na
Organization: Reading Rehab Hospital, Reading PA
Keywords: Birdie, Crew Chief Quits, #36, Dirt Devil

In article <1992Aug28.154307.20705@lambda.msfc.nasa.gov> cornutt@lambda.msfc.nasa.gov (David Cornutt) writes:
>dans@rehab1.UUCP (Dan Schein) writes:
>
>>  Heard last night on 'NASCAR Live' that Kenny Wallace's crew chief, Birdie,
>> has quit. DW's ol chief (who was going to lead his Winston Cup effort in
>> 93) will take over.
>
>Well, Sabates hired Jeff Hammond about a month ago, with the explicit
>intention of putting Hammond in charge of Kenny's WC ride next year.
>Bird was a holdover from when Rusty Wallace owned the team.

  True, but that doesn't mean there was/is no place for Birdie on the team.

>This is going to sound like sour grapes... well, it IS sour grapes, but
>bear with me anyway.  Two years ago, Steve Bird was out of a job after
>being canned by the WC team he was working for at the time (I forget
>who it was).  Steve and Phil Grissom gave him a job, and Phil stepped
>aside as crew chief and let Bird take it.  And they started winning --
>Steve won four races in 1990, all in the second half, and Bird's
>reputation was restored.  So, just as they were getting geared up to
>run for the BGN championship in 1991, what does Bird do?  Jump ship
>to Rusty's operation!  To this day, the Grissom team has never really
>recovered from that.  So, pardon me if I'm a little short on sympathy.

  Birdie helped Rob Moroso win his BGN championship. He then went to
 Winston Cup with Rob. Birdie was left go by the moroso team. As for
 'jumping ship' all I can say is you can't blame a person for reaching
 for that brass ring. Lets face it, Kenny Wallace looked darn good the
 year he won the BGN championship. Then with his introduction to Winston
 Cup via Team III and Dirt Devil - things looked real good. However we
 all know the rest of that story. :-( If memory serves me correct, there
 was something in Winston Cup Scene about Birdie wanting to spend more
 time at home. Wasn't the Grissom team located some distance from his home?

>Is Steve Bird a candidate for a WC crew chief?  Well, I'd say he
>definitely has the talent.  The question is, does he have the dedication
>to not walk away the first time the team hits a little snag?  Only
>Bird himself can answer this.  Let's keep an eye on him for the next
>year or two.

  Your 100% correct that Birdie has the talent. However the face of Winston
 Cup racing is changing. And with that change a crew chief is starting to
 get a fair amount of tv time. Birdie is not only less than good looking,
 he lacks that polished tv style. So I don't honestly see him doing much in
 Winston Cup.

 -Dan

 PS: Good to see someone else who knows who Birdie is!
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