Chase drivers good at keeping their cool, for now (cont'd)

Clint Bowyer, a two-time Chase driver, said a week doesn't go by that he doesn't snap at someone or say something he regrets.

"Yeah, you've got to check your emotions at the door when you pull into the tunnel at these places," he said. "It's a hard business to be a part of. It's very serious. There's a lot of pressure on everybody. They're going to fire back at you and you got to be able to take it. It's a family. You race with each other so much week in and week out throughout the year and you're together so much, you got to be able to take that and take it in stride and know they don't mean it and go on."

Denny Hamlin said a level head is easy to maintain when things are going well.

"But when things go bad, it's easy to hit the panic button," he said. "I did that last year. Having one bad race [Dover], and the next thing you know, I was trying to make up for it on the racetrack at other racetracks, one after another, and I ended up getting myself in crashes. It's hard not to hit the panic button, but you have to realize that there's no one week that's more important than the next."

Hamlin warns that a Chase can't be won in the first week, which is why it's a 10-week process. A driver can, however, lose it in one week, as in lose his mind if not careful.

"I take every chance I get to hang out with friends, because every time I do that, I'm not thinking about being at the racetrack," Hamlin said. "This September, for instance, has been very, very busy for me. As long as I'm busy, I'm not thinking about racing, even though it's a FedEx sponsor deal or what have you."

Sitting at home mulling over the points and crunching numbers in his head is a recipe for disaster, Hamlin added.

As it seems, the 2008 Chase class is full of cool cucumbers, but the games have just begun and stories of crew chiefs and drivers going postal en route to a championship can and do happen.

If you happen to run into former crew chief Gary DeHart, ask him about one of Terry Labonte's championship runs and a flying set of axles. Or ask Danny "Chocolate" Myers, Dale Earnhardt's gas man, about the time the crew flew over the wall at Bristol Motor Speedway while their car was on the track.

Just keep in mind that NASCAR drivers don't operate under normal standards so don't expect normal behavior under extreme pressure.

With growing experience, Jimmie Johnson, looking for his third championship this season, is learning to find and foster his lighter side.

"Before and during the 2006 championship battle, I didn't have any fun. There was no fun to be had," Johnson said. "A victory was good, but it was short-lived. Tuesday morning or Wednesday morning or whenever it was when you're flipping things around in your mind to get ready for the next race, that pressure would set it. And it's like, here we go again.

His bid for the 2007 Cup championship was different.

"Last year, I had some fun through it," he said. "And this year I hope to expand on that and have more fun. I'm doing what I love, racing against the best drivers in the world. I'm confident in what I can do in the car. I'm confident in my team. I need to have some fun with this. I operate better and my team operates better when we're enjoying ourselves and having some fun. We'll see."

Chase leader Carl Edwards echoed those sentiments and retreats to family for mental clarity.

"For me it's really easy, I just go back to Missouri and spend time with my brother, my mom and dad and my girlfriend, you know, a normal environment," Edwards said. "That's how I maintain my sanity. No matter what happens out here I still have a great group of people at home."