Q&A: McCarthy

What is your favorite word?
• Dad

What is your least favorite word?
• Won't

What turns you on?
• Laughter

What turns you off?
• People who believe the world revolves around them.

What sound do you love?
• The old Formula One 3.5 liter V-10s at 19,000 rpm.

What sound do you hate?
• Chalk on a chalkboard. It doesn't even have to screech. Good Lord.

What profession other than yours would you like to attempt?
• Helicopter ambulance pilot

What profession would you not like to participate in?
• Accounting

What was the first car you owned?
• 1971 Oldsmobile Cutlass SX convertible -- one of 347 made. A great sleeper with a 455, Olds trumpet exhaust and power everything. It taught me how to hustle an ill-handling pig through corners.

Which city is your favorite on the circuit?
• Hands down: Kansas City. Great food. Great jazz and blues. Family. Friends.

Most memorable race you've attended?
• The 1992 Daytona 500. My first NASCAR race. Davey Allison won. I was a guest of the NFL, who was a sponsor of Dale Jarrett and the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 18 Chevrolet. My friend with the NFL had just secured the sponsorship deal that also had Dale wear a Dallas Cowboys paint scheme on his crash helmet. Brilliant marketing. I remember coming away utterly impressed with NASCAR and seriously wanting in on the action.

Most enduring memory of your career?
• Driving a V8 Thunderbird at Atlanta Motor Speedway during the filming of a Ford commercial in 1993. Two things stand out: First is the director asking me to tuck in closer to the Mustang GT in the steepest part of the banking. "Closer ... Closer ... Closer ..." We bump side-view mirrors. "Perfect. Hold formation."

Second, they let us drive a few unrestricted laps on the track as long as we didn't wad the cars. The fastest I could muster was 105 mph going into what was then Turn Three. The pucker factor was unbearable.