Inside the Garage: No. 5 team spotter Jeff Dickerson

Spotters are men of few words but the words they do say are paramount to a driver's race and chosen wisely.

A slight stutter or spike in a spotter's pitch has the potential to unnerve a driver who relies heavily on that voice to steer him clear of accidents, debris, passing traffic and, on rare occasions, flying HANS devices.

No one knows that better than Jeff Dickerson, 31, spotter for Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet.

During the recent Busch Series race in Phoenix, NASCAR.COM stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Dickerson atop the spotters' stand for a bird's eye perspective into his profession.

Q: What happened when your driver slammed into the back of Dale Earnhardt Jr. at Texas Motor Speedway? Was it your fault or Kyle's fault?

Dickerson: It was no one's fault. We win as a team and we wreck as a team. When the 20 [Tony Stewart] spun, there was a ton of smoke. It was one of those rare occasions when the driver is driving blind and the spotter is spotting blind. But if Kyle sees daylight, a hole through a wreck, he's going, no matter what I say.

Q: You scan the track for driving patterns, fast lanes, etc. You're somewhat of a performance tool, right?

Dickerson: Yeah, we can offer a competitive advantage, especially at restrictor-plate races. We can help the driver chose a better lane. We also can warn the driver about certain factors.

For example, in Texas, I was watching the No. 20 car in the back of the field tangling with the 13 [Joe Nemechek]. I knew the 20 was keyed up so I gave Kyle a warning he may be driving aggressively.

Q: You spend a lot of time with Kyle; watching football, playing cards, etc. You say he's gotten a bad rap from fans and is misunderstood. Explain.

Dickerson: He definitely doesn't have a filter; he tells it like it is. But most fans say they want more personalities on the track, but when Kyle's personality comes out, there's a backlash.

Privately, he's one of the fellas and a very thoughtful person with boatloads of talent, not the brat-punk kid people want to portray him as. (Continued)