http://sports.espn.go.com/rpm/columns/stor...avid&id=2759262Kahne still trying to adjust to fame, public life
By David Newton
ESPN.com
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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Kasey Kahne seems almost embarrassed when talking about the commercials.
"A lot of things I do are things I never would have expected growing up, [things] I would have never even wanted to do, whether it's doing a commercial or having to speak in front of a camera."
-- Kasey Kahne
You know, the ones where a minivan full of starry-eyed soccer moms are so distracted daydreaming about the 26-year-old Nextel Cup driver almost old enough to be their husband that they run into an object that falls and crushes his shiny red Dodge.
The one where all Kahne has to do is look dreamy in his driver's suit, look shocked when his car is destroyed and occasionally smudge grease on the face of one of the moms.
"A lot of things I do are things I never would have expected growing up, [things] I would have never even wanted to do, whether it's doing a commercial or having to speak in front of a camera," Kahne said.
"I've always been shy and embarrassed growing up. All that stuff I had to learn and get better at."
Kahne remains somewhat shy and he still gets embarrassed.
But thanks to three years of media training -- at one time working with the same person who coached Colts quarterback Peyton Manning -- he realizes that being comfortable in front of a camera is almost as important as being comfortable behind the wheel.
"The first time I saw him do an interview, it was pretty tough," said Evernham Motorsports teammate Elliott Sadler, who shared the same apartment complex with Kahne a few years ago. "He was pretty shy, not knowing what to say and almost trembling.
"He has definitely come a long way. The more time he spends in the spotlight, he'll loosen up and you'll see his true character."
Most saw Kahne's true character on the track last season when he bounced back from a near-disastrous sophomore campaign to collect a series-best six wins and six poles.
He also made The Chase for the first time before a couple of unfortunate incidents early in the 10-race playoff forced him to settle for eighth place.
"That's where I feel the most comfortable," Kahne said of his car. "That's where I feel I'm the best at. I'm not as comfortable in front of a camera. I'm not as comfortable in front of a lot of people.
"But when I'm sitting in a car in front of a lot of people, I don't even realize they're there until it's over, and then you realize how cool it is that we get to do what we do."
Kahne was anything but cool in 2005. After a rookie season in which he was a runner-up five times, including twice in his first three events, he became as restless inside his car as he was uncomfortable in an interview.
He went from 13 top-5s to five and 14 top-10s to eight. He failed to finish nine races, six because of crashes; several of those by his own admission were his fault.
He did it at Kansas in 2005. He did it at Atlanta this past season, proving he still had room for improvement.
"I got pissed off and lost my head," Kahne said as he recalled the Atlanta race. "I went into the pits third and came out 12th and it was late in the race. We had fought our way up there. I was mad because of a pit stop and I just screwed up, lost my head.
"I was looking ahead trying to think of how I was going to pass Mark Martin, and when Kyle Busch went to the outside of him I thought, 'Man, I would do the same thing.' I forgot there was a man [David Stremme] beside me. Just a problem because I was pissed off."
Yes, the shy kid has a temper.
You don't see it on television. You don't see it when he's out of the car signing autographs or shooting commercials.
But inside the car he gets as hot tempered as NASCAR's resident bad boy, Tony Stewart.
"That's my problem," Kahne said. "I get way too mad. I've come a long way trying to control myself. It's not mad at certain people. It's not mad at certain things. It's just that I want it so bad that I get frustrated when things don't go my way.
"That's like being a kid, kind of, but it's just something you learn when you grow up."
The addition of crew chief Kenny Francis helped calm Kahne inside the car the way his speech coach calmed him for an interview. He helped Kahne realize the team is strong enough to overcome a mistake, and that some days it's OK to finish 10th.
"That's learning to get to a championship," Kahne said. "[Last] year, when I was mad, I just calmed down and actually raced, and still went out and finished."
Francis is able to calm Kahne because he can relate to what he's feeling.
"He's a lot like me when I used to drive," Francis said. "I would get so mad I'd push the button on the radio and start yelling and screaming inside the helmet. Then I'd release the button and start hollering at myself."
Francis also relates to Kahne's shyness out of the car.
"I'm probably worse than he is about that," he said in a soft voice. "We could probably ride from [Daytona Beach] back to Charlotte and not say two words."
Car owner Ray Evernham likes the calming effect Francis had on Kahne and believes the two are on the verge of something special if they can become more consistent on superspeedways and short tracks.
He also likes what he's seen from Kahne off the track.
"He's changed a good bit," Evernham said. "He's maturing. He knows [being in front of the media] is part of what he needs to be a champion. He wants to be a champion. That's his priority."
Mike Accavitti, the director of Dodge Motorsports, said Kahne has turned down numerous opportunities outside of racing because he's so focused on being a champion.
Not because he's shy.
"He's like, 'Mike, I really just want to drive and win races,'" Accavitti said. "That's great. More power to him. With that kind of focus and dedication, we're going to see that some day."
Sadler hopes people get to see the real Kahne, the one he sees when the two are hanging out at home or a restaurant, one day. He's working with him to make that happen.
"The real Kasey Kahne is a very funny, cool guy," said Sadler, one of the more media-savvy drivers in Cup. "It's just when he gets in this environment with people around him he wants to say the right thing, to do the right thing. So he kind of goes into hibernation and puts his guard up.
"I tell him it doesn't matter if they're holding a camera or notepad, to be yourself. They want to interview Kasey Kahne, not the guy you pull a string and he says whatever he's supposed to say."
Kahne admits he still has a ways to go. He also insists he's not the shy kid from Enumclaw, Wash., that he was three years ago.
And he likes doing the commercials now.
"I actually have a blast doing them," he said. "Those girls are pretty fun. Whoever came up with the idea, they did it right."
David Newton covers NASCAR for ESPN.com. He can be reached at dnewtonespn@aol.com.