447 - Robbie Reiser - I Earned My Way Everyday

Dale Earnhardt Jr. reconnects with one of his fiercest rivals from his NASCAR Xfinity Series days, former crew chief Robbie Reiser. During Dale’s 1998 and ‘99 Xfinity Championship season runs, his main competition was fellow up-and-comer Matt Kenseth, for whom Reiser was calling the shots. Dale and co-host Mike Davis chat with Robbie about his family’s history in racing the short tracks of Wisconsin, where his father John was a champion dirt late model driver. Robbie recounts a hilarious story of how he came to be behind the wheel, thanks in part to wrecking his sister’s Ford Pinto in a street race with a friend. After quickly rising through the local ranks in Southern Wisconsin, Robbie and his father John took the plunge into the world of NASCAR, moving their operation to Denver, North Carolina. After nearly losing everything due to a lack of funding, a series of events led to Robbie putting his former rival from home, Matt Kenseth, behind the wheel. They immediately found harmony and became contenders in the Xfinity Series, where they impressed the likes of Mark Martin and Jack Roush. Before long, the Reiser operation was absorbed by Roush Racing, and they took on the superstars of NASCAR Cup, where they would win a championship in 2003.