Since the season-opening Daytona 500 on Feb. 14, more than a third of the regular teams have switched crew chiefs at least once. More changes are expected during the remainder of the season. The pace has been uncommonly fast and furious in 1999. They are in charge of everything from overseeing the shop assignments and hiring crew members to developing race strategy and making decisions in the pits. In a performance-driven sport, crew chiefs often are used as scapegoats.
Sponsors spend millions to sign with a race team and to promote the team's driver.
When lofty goals are not met, the fingers usually point to the pits. It comes with the job and is part of the industry. The driver-chief relationships are so brief that Pemberton, who has been with Wallace since 1995, finds himself with one of racing's longest tenures. Evernham is the dean, teaming with Gordon to win three Winston Cup championships since 1992. However, the long hours and intense pressure of the job finally seems to be wearing on Evernham.