“That really shattered my confidence, even if the general public don’t know it. I think that’s one of the reasons
I had to go out and get me that big chopper. You know, the crowds go wild when I fly in and out in that thing, and it helps my confidence and maybe makes the fans think I’m the Big Guy even if the way I’m heading, I’m not gonna be big for much longer. ”
Hammer was getting impatient as she glanced at her watch and Andy pulled out a chair, listening intensely to what Brett was saying.
“Look, ” Andy said, “There are twenty or twenty-five cars out there and every one of them, including number eleven, has the capability of running up front. ”
“Yeah, now you are right about that, ” Brett said, sipping his Pepsi and looking pretty miserable. “Anybody could win. The competition’s about as tight as it can get, and that’s why my confidence just cracked when I came in eighteenth last time I was on this damn racetrack. ”
“On any given race weekend, ” Andy went on, “any driver can make a big move and win, and I think you’re the one to make that big move tonight. You can do it, Donny. You’re a Bud Pole winner just like Rudd, Labonte, Skinner, Wallace, and Earnhardt, Junior, are. You sat on the pole for the Daytona Five Hundred and had a starting position in the Bud Shootout, right? And don’t forget, you still lead in the Raybestos Rookie of the Year standings and you grabbed the checkered flag at The Winston in Charlotte. ”
“But I came in eighteenth, man… ” Brett obsessed. “That’s the only thing I’m thinking about as I get ready to go out there tonight, and when you start choking, that’s when you start beatin’ and bangin’ off the corners or get nudged into a spin ’cause you aren’t really focused and are misjudging which way someone’s going. ”
“You’ve always been known for your instinct and judgment, ” Andy reminded him. “Remember the Busch Series in ninety-nine?”
“We’ve got to go, ” Hammer said as her tension mounted to a screaming pitch. “If we don’t go now, it’s going to be too late!”
“How could I forget?” Brett replied with a shake of his head. “That was one of my best. ”
“Exactly, ” Andy encouraged him. “And why? You had to work for every piece of the track you got, and there were wrecks and door-banging tussles going on everywhere. And what did you do? Right after an accident in Turn Four took out number forty and caused a seven-lap caution, and Hamilton spun off Turn Two and took out Burton and Fuller, you were smart enough to get off the gas and get on the brakes, and then you shot out ahead on the back straightaway and just stayed in it. ”
“Yeah, ” Brett said, looking up and greatly fortified, “I sure as hell did. ”
“And that happened right here, ” Andy concluded, measuring his words by tapping the table with his finger. “That was right here at the Richmond racetrack. ”
“I know, I know. I guess it’s my nature to dwell on poor performances, ” Brett said with a grin. “And guess what? I’m just not going to do that tonight, and if you want to use my bird, you go right ahead as long as someone knows how to fly the damn thing. ”
“You bet I do, ” Andy said. “And when you’re out there tonight, remember what I said. Make your Big Move. You’ll know when. ”
“What in the world was that all about?” Hammer asked Andy as they flew toward downtown Richmond in Brett’s glorious 430, which was painted black and emblazoned with his car number and endorsements in brilliant yellow, purple, and red. “I thought you didn’t go to races. ”
“I don’t, but I watch them on TV occasionally and study strategies, whether it’s of race-car drivers or tennis players or Navy SEAL snipers, ” Andy replied through his mike as he pushed ahead at a hundred and fifty knots and overflew I-95, which was a solid line of barely creeping cars for as far as he could see. “Glad we’re up here and not down there, ” he added.