Bowyer's 'sweet emotion' caps weekend celebration

Imagine if you will, one of the most influential men in all of NASCAR breathlessly huffing his way up to the apex of a freezing misty mountain halfway around the world, satellite phone dutifully in tow. He's in a landlocked country tucked neatly between China and the former Soviet Union and he's just got to get to the peak of this mountain.

In roughly 40 years of involvement in NASCAR, I believe it's fair to say that Richard Childress has been to the mountaintop more than once, but his Monday morning (East Coast time, God knows when it was for Richard) jaunt in the far reaches of Asia was unlike anything he's done before. What could motivate the mastermind of RCR on such an improbable journey? Let's just say that the answer intriguingly rests somewhere between a shot of Jack Daniel's, a dinner conversation with Aerosmith's Steven Tyler, and the nervous tension of a Nextel Cup driver hanging on for dear life during his first win.

Beau Estes co-hosts the Jack Daniel's Post-Race Show with Nikki Alexander. It can be seen following every Nextel Cup race live on NASCAR.COM.

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It's for reasons like the above that I try to stay in close contact with Clint Bowyer. Even before he won his first race, the man always knew how to spin a good yarn.

Q: What did you do Sunday night? How did you celebrate?

Bowyer: I got back home and had some friends that surprised me at the house and had a lot of fun with my good friend Jack Daniel's. Once we got back to the house we did it up good.

Q: You didn't expect your friends at your house?

Bowyer: No. It was funny. My gate was all decorated up and when we went through the door of my house and there was about 20 or 30 of my friends there to help me celebrate and we had a good time.

Q: Have you had a chance to catch-up with any of these journalists who were questioning your place in the Chase because you didn't have any wins?

Bowyer: That's what makes it put a smile on your face more than anything. I mean the timing couldn't be any better to get my first win. If you have to wait, well this is the time to do it. This Chase is very important -- this is for all the marbles -- and to be able to get it started off on the right foot means so much, confidence- and momentum-wise, going into these last nine races.

Q: I understand you've received a call from Mongolia.

Bowyer: That was cool. That was the neatest phone call. I wanted to talk to Richard just to thank him for giving me the opportunity. He took a chance on a kid from Kansas -- a no-name kid from Kansas -- he took a long shot at best and gave me my first Cup win and it meant a lot for him to call and congratulate me.

Q: Where were you and when did you get it?

Bowyer: I actually had just got off the plane and was on the way to the house when he called. It sounded like he was in an elevator. He was on some satellite phone standing on top of a mountain. He had to crawl on top of a mountain to get reception. He was freezing his butt off but nonetheless he crawled up there to call me and it just meant so much to hear him say congratulations and you deserved it -- it meant a lot.

Q: I think you may be the first NASCAR driver to win a race and get a call from the top of a mountain in Mongolia -- I don't know if we can confirm that, but that's probably true.

Bowyer: I would say you're probably right. I'm also probably the first one to walk into Victory Lane, too. That was kind of different.