Men behind the scenes at EGR sitting on Cloud 9

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- There's plenty of room on Cloud 9, and that's a great thing, because after the Daytona 500, Earnhardt Ganassi Racing had a double-handful of inductees from its No. 1 Chevrolet team.

Jamie McMurray was the obvious leader, and his emotional acceptance of the kudos commensurate with winning the sport's marquee event was genuine -- and genuinely moving.

Story of redemption

After being the odd man out at Roush Fenway, Jamie McMurray went back to the two men responsible for his Cup career -- Chip Ganassi and Felix Sabates -- and Joe Menzer says the move paid instant results.

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• Will never be the same

Chip Ganassi and Felix Sabates were up there, shoulder-to-shoulder as partners in an endeavor that's had too few first places. To see their joy was righteous.

"I've been trying for almost 25 years to find Victory Lane in the 500," Sabates cracked, in between checking apparent congratulatory messages on his blackberry. "I don't get lost for words very often, but I'm lost for words."

That was a first -- and it had to be Cloud 9 altitude that caused it.

And don't forget Teresa Earnhardt. She may appear to be distant and detached, and Sunday she was, because she wasn't in Daytona Beach, Fla. But she pays attention, and this one was big.

"I know she watches, is interested," Ganassi said. "This business is very inclusionary. You got to include people. It takes a team. I don't have all the skills it takes, that's why I got this guy [Sabates] sitting on my left and people like Teresa. It takes a lot -- a lot of effort on a lot of people's part.

"I'm lucky that I have Felix and Teresa with me, because sometimes I'm at some other race somewhere, and they're standing in when I need them. It's good to have great partners."

And it must be good to have a great team. Because it sure was a thrill to see them floating around the garage -- figuratively speaking, of course -- because it was out in the garage where this blissful ecstasy was really apparent, even as an hour after the checkered flag approached.

If Cloud 9's a place, I bet Keith Barnwell was up on about Cloud 29. I'm sure he was in the garage -- though I never found him. Barnwell was part of the ownership group, with Greg Pollex, when Jeff Green won a then record-setting Nationwide Series championship in 2000.

You might figure this was better, considering an exchange Barnwell offered earlier in Speedweeks.

Barnwell started the season spotting for McMurray. After the Budweiser Shootout, Barnwell absolutely bounded across pit road, where McMurray remained, signing a few autographs and posing for pictures.

Barnwell's one of the most-respected spotters around and he's been at it a while. But he was almost giddy when he explained "we had a shot to win! Last year we didn't lead a lap. I'm not knocking anything about [Richard Petty Motorsports], but this is great."

You had to think he believed, after those 75 laps, that McMurray, and their team, had a shot to win the Daytona 500. And three days after the fact, once it had a chance to sink in, Barnwell paused from his new managerial role with TriStar Motorsports to confirm that strong feeling.

"This was much better than the championship," Barnwell said via text, "because it wasn't expected." (Continued)