The week of the first race is finally here and I can’t wait to get inside the No. 8 Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) Chevrolet Silverado at Daytona. This is a moment that I’ve been planning for more than a year and getting this season underway can’t come soon enough.
For me, one of the brilliant things about NASCAR is the amount of time that we get behind the wheel. There are so many races, the season is long and I’ve had the opportunity to test in the off season. Compare that to some of the single-seaters in Europe, where the time in the car seems to decrease with each year, and you can see that NASCAR, whether it’s the Sprint Cup Series, Nationwide Series or Truck Series, is the place to be if you are a driver that is genuinely passionate about driving as much as feasibly possible!
A lot of people have asked me how I’m adapting to living in America and the different culture. I really love it and have not found the change difficult at all. English was the language we spoke at home growing up in Europe until I was 8, and then I went to an American school in Brazil until I was 16, so there is no language barrier. I’m also used to moving around – I’ve lived in France, Brazil, Monaco and England, so it’s another adventure in life to be in America now. It’s such an easy place to live. Everything is simple, everyone is friendly and helpful, and I’m finding the whole experience of living here great.
Just last month I made the move to North Carolina to be near the KHI shop. This is an important year for me, there’s a steep learning curve and I want to be able to go to the shop as much as possible. I couldn’t have wished for a more welcoming team. I feel like I’ve been there forever already and my teammate Ron Hornaday has been incredible. He’s a true professional and has had so much success. I’m learning so much from him already and I know that will continue. To be with such a successful team is brilliant for me and I’m determined to make the most out of this opportunity.
I’ve been preparing hard for this season and really immersing myself in everything that is NASCAR and KHI. Keeping fit is not something that is as crucial in NASCAR as it was in Formula 1, but I still like to exercise. It helps to keep the mind and reflexes sharp and I think that is really important when you’re concentrating on racing a short circuit for up to three hours. I’ve made myself a little gym at my new house and assembling my new furniture has helped build up my muscles too!
I’m looking forward to letting you know about my progress and adventures throughout this year. For now, I’m eager to get to Daytona and will let you know my experience of my first race afterwards. Happy Valentine’s Day, SPEED.com readers!
http://nascar.speedtv.com/article/in-the-cockpit-nelson-piquet-jr-talks-nascar/