In the Field: Elliott Sadler (cont'd)

We needed to do something as a company because none of the three teams are running like they should.

We were very successful last year and the year before last when Josh was really the head guy as far as running the computer programs for the tire data and stuff like that.

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As Goodyear changes the tires each and every year, it seems we've got to have somebody in the company that's really just focused on that 100 percent and that's going to be his role.

I like Scott a lot so far. We talked a lot last week and over the weekend at Daytona, and despite breaking the transmission as the race started, we had a lot of fun.

Moving ahead, I'm looking forward to working with him -- and we've still got everyone else on the team in place.

It's going to be tough to make this change in mid-season. I feel like I can do it, because this is my ninth season in the sport and I've worked with different crew chiefs.

Scott and I have had good talks about what I like to say as a driver and what I like to feel as a driver. He told me what he likes to hear as a team director so we'll go from there.

It might be some tough times at first until we get each other felt out, like determining how loose is too loose and how tight is too tight?

To help that, the neatest thing we did at the Pepsi 400 -- for the third time this season -- was that Ray was up on the box calling race strategy for me.

We did that because we didn't want to just throw Scott into the lion's den, right off the bat. We wanted to ensure the communication is good until Scott and I are clicking and get a good feel for each other.

It wasn't like we were putting the whole load on Scott in the first race. Ray wanted to help him with race strategy so Scott and I could really concentrate on our communication.

And I think Ray really enjoyed calling the race. We had an awesome racecar, and then we had transmission trouble before the race even started. I was looking forward to working with Ray at a track that he'd already won at five times, but we'll have a few more opportunities in the coming weeks before me and Scott take over the deal.

But I think Ray really enjoyed calling practice and the race, and I know I really enjoyed working with him.

We had fun, but I continued to find out that Ray's an amazingly smart man. He does not leave any stone unturned and he's always thinking outside the box -- always thinking of new ways to make our cars better.

I now understand, after having the chance to work with him since last summer -- and really up close in the three races we've done, like the Daytona 500 where I scored my best finish of the year -- why he was so successful when he was at Hendrick Motorsports.

Elliott Sadler, now in his ninth full season in the Cup Series, shares weekly with NASCAR.COM readers life on the road through staff writer Dave Rodman.