H
Happy29
Guest
former #88 Crew Chief and RYR Team Manager Todd Parrott made his first appearance at a race track Saturday since he parted ways with Dale Jarrett [actually Robert Yates Racing] in April. "I missed eight races, the most since 1983 when I graduated from high school," he said. "From that point until this year, I had missed just one race and that was in 1992 when my son was born." Since stepping back from the sport, Parrott said he's been spending time with his family. He almost went to the Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte in May, but got stuck in traffic and turned around and went home. But he came to Daytona with his father, Buddy, and the two were making their way through the garage Saturday, stopping every few feet to exchange greetings with old rivals. Then Parrott went to the Winston Cup sign-in and officially announced his arrival by signing his name on Jarrett's list of team members. He's under contract at Robert Yates Racing, but said he's talking with other teams about opportunities. "I've missed it," he said. "I probably shouldn't have stayed gone so long, but I've been resting and relaxing and I feel great." Parrott, who spent seven seasons as Jarrett's crew chief and won the 1999 Winston Cup championship, and his younger brother, Brad, both left the #88 team in April as Jarrett [actually team owners Robert/Doug Yates] tried to shake things up and get his season back on track. Todd had been working as the team manager at the time and Brad was in his first stint as a Winston Cup crew chief.