Conversation: Jason Keller

JOLIET, Ill. -- Jason Keller has been about the NASCAR Busch Series so long that his age is deceiving. He's only 33 years old, which puts him close in age to folks like Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Greg Biffle and Jeremy Mayfield.

	Jason Keller

He's hardly a young gun, however. Keller has been racing in the Busch Series since 1991, but lately he's been one of the guys to beat, finishing third or better in the championship race the last three years.

Keller hasn't won the championship yet, but this could be his year. He won two races ago at Milwaukee and is within striking distance of the points lead.

Recently, Keller sat down with Lee Montgomery of NASCAR.com to talk about his age, racing in the Busch Series, racing for the championship and his upcoming Winston Cup appearance with Dale Earnhardt Inc.

Q: Everybody thinks you're this "old veteran," so to speak. Is that a misprint in your bio? You're really 43, not 33, right?

Keller: "No, not quite to 43. Been here a long time, started when I was real young, but never really moved on from the Busch Series. Still 33. Feel old sometimes, but 33 is correct."

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Q: I think one reason people think you're so old is that you've been in the Busch Series so long. Certainly you've had some Winston Cup opportunities though the years. You just never took them for whatever reason.

Keller: "The phone has rung a couple times. I've always wanted to accomplish things in the Busch Series, and I haven't done them yet. I want to win a championship. I still want to win races here in the Busch Series, and I have an opportunity to do that.

"Some people view the Busch Series as just a steppingstone. I've never viewed it as that. I've viewed it as a great place to race and a great place to call home. Now, there are certain calls I haven't gotten on the Winston Cup side yet, or I'm sure I would have already moved on. We'll just take it one race at a time, and if the opportunity presents itself that's good for me and my family to go Winston Cup racing, we'll do that. If not, we'll stay in the Busch Series and be as happy as we can be."

Q: You did get a call from DEI, though, last year to do this one race. That's upcoming. Do you look at that as some sort of proving ground for yourself. What's your approach to that?

	Credit: Autostock

Keller: "I want to put all my eggs in one basket and say, 'This is the only chance I'll get over there' and have to do big and maybe push myself too hard. But it is a huge honor to be called by DEI and to get a chance to do this with that type of organization. They're putting a lot of effort into the program, into the race. It's not just a one-race deal -- and let's get it over with. They're really going all-out, and I'm just riding along. Hopefully, we can do well."

Q: Last year, you and Biffle had a pretty close race for the championship for a while, but then he started pulling away. How frustrating was it to watch him inch forward, and you guys couldn't gain any ground on him?

Keller: "We broke a couple motors down the stretch, and that was probably the most discouraging thing, that some of the things that happened were out of our control. We battled all year long, and all of sudden, right there at the end we couldn't continue the battle.

"Hopefully, I learned from losing that championship. Greg and I have talked since on several occasions that he felt like he had learned a lot from losing the truck championship he lost. Hopefully, I can take those same things, learn from it and be stronger the next time around."

Q: I've heard that before. What do you learn? More patience?

	Credit: Autostock

Keller: "I don't know yet. I'm still going through that process. Hopefully, I can come up with an equation here this year the second half of the season. Really, looking back, I don't know what, if anything, I would have done different in 2002. Because our performance was really strong at the end of the year. We just seemed to have some things break that were out of our control. I'm not so sure what I can learn, but Greg says I'm going to learn, so I'll listen to him. He won the championship last year, so I'll listen to him."

Q: Does losing it last year, did you guys as a team do anything different? Did you change your approach at all with the way you went to the race track with your cars or engines or whatever?

Keller: "No, not at all. We felt like we did a lot of things right last year. We feel like if we minimize our DNFs, then we're going to be right there in the championship chase. That's what it's all about: consistency. We felt like we did everything possible we could last year. We're doing the same thing this year."

Q: You were on MRN at Daytona. Is that going to be a second career at some point?

Keller: "I don't think so. We were promoting the Kraft 100th Anniversary car for Chicago on MRN, and the guys asked me to stay in the booth with them for a couple minutes. It's nice to see that side of things. Sometimes you're so wrapped up in racing. Everyone has a job here to do, so it's nice to see the TV aspect, the radio aspect and all the media aspect. You can sympathize and say, 'Hey, we need everybody.'

	Credit: Autostock

"I don't think they're going to have to worry about their day job. I'm going to stay with mine and let the radio guys stay with theirs."

Q: You don't want to be a writer, do you?

Keller: "No, I can't write. (Media-relations representative) Heather (Kincel) tells me everything I need to spell and spells it out for me, so I'm not too good at that."

Q: You've been third or better in the championship in the Busch Series for three straight years. On the one hand, that's pretty awesome. On the other hand, there are some people, critics, who are like, 'Well, Keller can't win a title. He hasn't done it yet.' What's your response to that?

Keller: "I hope I prove them wrong this year. I can't do anything any different. I can't drive any harder than I drive every week. Hopefully, we can prove to ourselves and everyone else that we can win a championship. Only time will tell that. We just don't know that yet."

Q: Your kids are obviously very important to you. Your daughter is the reason why you shaved your mustache. Is there any way to put into words just what it means to be father and what it means to have those two as your kids?

	Credit: Autostock

Keller: "It makes everything else seem very small. We get wrapped up in our profession sometimes, in our life. When I go to the motorhome or go home at night and get the kids, I forget about racing. That's really the only time I forget about all the hustle bustle of racing -- and actually, Life. It puts everything into perspective. I can't describe how gratifying it is to be a father, to be a parent. I try every day to be a better parent and a better father. That's what I strive for. All the other stuff's second."

Q: Do you try to push Joe or Jade into racing or away from racing?

Keller: "Really, neither. Joe is into his in basketball and baseball, and that's good because he likes the team aspect, and that's great. Jade really hasn't found anything she likes quite yet. They're still young yet. Joe's 7 and Jade's 4. If one of them chooses racing, at least I'll know what to tell them. If they choose baseball or basketball, I'll let somebody else team 'em that. We'll just have to wait and see."

Q: There are no Albertson's in Greenville, S.C., so where do you shop for groceries? Or do you have it trucked in on a weekly basis?

Keller: "I shop at Albertson's grocery stores whenever I can. But unfortunately, there are not any in Greenville, S.C., but we still have to get groceries."