Junior in Jamaica

By: Tammy Brewington

For more pictures from Jamaica, click here

Ahhhh, Jamaica. The land of cooling waterfalls, rugged mountains, and beautiful white sandy beaches fringing the clear, turquoise Caribbean Sea. But, Jamaica may best be known for it's friendly people living life in the "casual lane." Jamaicans are the first to tell you they have a slow, laid-back approach to life with two exceptions. They talk fast and drive even faster, which made for the perfect backdrop for the first ever "Air Jamaica NASCAR Busch Beach Bash".

The driver's on hand to participate in all the activities were Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Bobby Hamilton, Jr., Randy LaJoie, Matt Kenseth, Steve Park, and Hank Parker, Jr. Also, gracing the islanders with their presence was none other than Benny Parsons, who hosted a live radio broadcast from the beaches of Negril, and crew chiefs Ryan and Robin Pemberton.

The Air Jamaica Tour representatives made sure the participants and fans had a week long itinerary of fun and games. Margueritaville, an open, airy beachfront bar and restaurant, was host to the daily and nightly activities. These activities included all kinds of fun water games, concerts by country music star Chad Brock, local reggae bands and Elvis. Who would have dreamt that Elvis has been hiding out in beautiful Jamaica all these years?!!!

The extraordinary week was topped off by the inaugural "Negril 500," and a farewell bash for all the driver's and fans. The "Negril 500" was in fact a jet ski watercourse race marked off by colored water buoys. After all the qualifying heats were completed, the two finalists were appropriately Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Bobby Hamilton, Jr., the driver of the Air Jamaica-sponsored Busch car. Both young driver's handled the jet ski's with as much ease as the fast cars they drive. After the race was finally over, Earnhardt, Jr. was declared the winner. But, as Earnhardt came ashore he admitted he had missed one of the required buoys, therefore forfeiting the race to Hamilton, Jr., which made the Air Jamaica crew ecstatic!

Seizing the rare opportunity to get an upclose and personal chat with Earnhardt, Jr., he expressed his feelings about Jamaica, his Busch career, and his upcoming Year 2000 Rookie Winston Cup season.

Tammy Brewington: Tell the fans about your experiences while here in Jamaica.
Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: It's a little slow considering it's December, but I really have enjoyed my week here. We drank a little beer (Budweiser, we hope) and wandered around the resort. The day games, volleyball, watersports, etc. were the most fun. All the fans and locals were great and the Air Jamaica people treated us all so well. It's been a great, restful week.

TB: Talk to us a little about the upcoming Busch Grand National Banquet and your second Busch championship.
DE: I think this year's banquet will be a lot more fun for me. Last year, I was way too nervous, but this time around, I know what to expect so I'm ready for it. The 1999 championship feels so different from the 1998 championship. In '98, I had no idea we'd win the title, but in '99, we had no other plans but to win! We also did some Winston Cup runs and appearances in '99, so it was a huge year.

TB: Who do you see stepping to the forefront in the Busch Series now that you're moving on up to Winston Cup?
DE: Jeff Green is the man I'm betting on. In my opinion, he is definitely the toughest in the Busch Series. Casey Atwood is good too. Casey's still really young though, but will be better in 2000 than last year, but Jeff's been around longer and he and his team are in the best shape ever.

TB: Expectations are high for you as a rookie in 2000 for many different reasons, what are your thoughts?
DE: We have some tough competition as everyone knows entering the Cup Series, but we can do what we need to do. We have to start things off well in February, however. I know we have a good chance of winning the "Rookie of the Year" title. I don't see it as being tough when people place high expectations on our team. I see all the stories written as keeping me and my Budweiser Chevy team in the public eye and the exposure is good for us I think.

TB: So it's ready, set, go for you in the year 2000?
DE: I am sooooooo ready for next year to start. The only thing I'm not really looking forward to is all the testing we have to do. But, all in all, I'm ready to get started and see where we stack up against a great field of driver's. I AM READY!

Click here to see Tammy's pictures from the Air Jamaica NASCAR Busch Beach Bash.