Rondeau finds right time to make his return to pit box (cont'd)

"We've shown moments here and there where we can do it, when we can run up there and be 10th, 12th, 13th, in that ballpark. This year, stupid stuff happens and keeps us from being able to finish the deal off," Smith said. "Obviously, we want to first make sure were we're top 20 consistently, then get to top 15 consistently, then work for top 10 consistently. It's not an overnight thing. We're not making one change thinking we're going to be top 10 instantly. But we're leaning. We've gained a lot of knowledge since the year began already, and it's a matter of time before we break into that next level."

Can Rondeau's veteran perspective help with that? The crew chief believes so.

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"It's a good group of guys, but a young group of guys," said Rondeau, 44. "I think that's what [general manager] Joe [Garone] and Mark did was, they put a young group of guys together and then tried to fill in around them and get them some experience, give them something to feed off of as they go through the year. I think what we're looking for now is stability, trying to keep these spikes less high and less low. I think I can help them with that."

Signing on with Furniture Row requited a certain degree of commitment, given that the team is based in Denver. But Garone had talked to Rondeau about a shop job while he was still at RPM, and Rondeau liked the fact that there might be opportunity for advancement, given that the organization had hopes of one day fielding a second car. But he also liked the people and felt comfortable with the situation, paramount concerns after an experience at DEI that, he will admit, left a sour taste in his mouth.

"It's a completely different situation," he said. "Different people, people who are sentimental to you and what you're doing, and know the work you put in. It's not just all money figures to them. Hard work pays off in something like this."

Rondeau said he has no hard feelings over how things ended at DEI, even though the breakup was something of a messy one, with allegations about unsigned contracts and firing without cause. But clearly there were lessons learned. Looking back, he realizes he could have turned the opportunity down. He knew there was hype, he knew there was pressure, but he said he didn't feel it. At the time of his firing, Earnhardt was 11th in points.

"That this is corporate America. This is corporate America, and in corporate America, when people say they're going to take care of you, and when stuff actually goes down and you don't get taken care of, you learn from those people," he said. "You learn from that situation. And you just move on and try not to put yourself in that situation again."

Smith -- who qualified 32nd for Sunday's Coca-Cola 600 -- said he hasn't talked to Rondeau about his previous stint as a crew chief, but the driver fully understands what it's like to get a taste of something and then have it taken away.

"It's like when I was at Ginn, and I got to do five races that year, and then went away for the second half of the year," he said. "You appreciate it a lot more when you get to do it again, and that wasn't nearly as long a term away from it as he was. And Pete's been in the sport. It's not like he hasn't been doing stuff regularly. He just hasn't been in that top role in the box on a regular basis. I'm sure he appreciated being back as a crew chief again, and we're excited to have him."

And Rondeau seems happy to be there. His son Seth is 16 now, and occasionally comes to the race track, making the relocation to Colorado somewhat easier. Furniture Row's status as an under-the-radar entity seems to suit him, even if it's his job to try and change that.

"Being with the right people, to me, that's the biggest thing right now," he said, as engines roared in the garage area in preparation of Cup Series practice. "I'm only going to do this with the right people, and I feel like these are the right people to do it with."