DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Dressed casually in jeans and a black, button-down oxford, Ray Evernham leaned back into his chair and twirled the large gold ring on his right ring finger - the ring he received as crew chief for Jeff Gordon's 1999 Daytona 500 victory.

"I've got two of these Daytona 500 rings, but I can't get a parking pass," Evernham joked Wednesday from the infield of the Daytona International Speedway.

A decade ago he was celebrating in victory lane. A year ago he was on the pit box guiding another young driver, Kasey Kahne, to a top-10 finish in the Daytona 500. This week, he had to borrow a parking pass from fellow ESPN television analyst Rusty Wallace.

Evernham Enjoying Life in Slow Lane originally appeared on Motorsports FanHouse on Wed, 11 Feb 2009 22:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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