Twelve years later, his 28-year-old protégé - Jimmy Elledge, became the crew chief for Winston Cup driver Kenny Wallace and his Square D sponsored racing team in 1999. The similarities don't end there."When I first met Jimmy, he was just a kid," said Petree, who first worked with Elledge as a crew chief in 1993 at Richard Childress Racing (RCR). "At first, I thought he was just another kid who had been hired. But the more we got going, I would have a challenge for him and he would be able to handle it. He had a lot of expertise in a lot of different areas. For a young guy, he had done a lot and learned a lot. He's smart, he's sharp and he's got my same sense of urgency. He gets things done. He's got the same personality that I do."Like his boss, Elledge has grown up around racing. His father, Terry, is a highly respected Winston Cup engine builder who is currently supplying the horsepower for Bill Davis Racing and driver Ward Burton.With direction from his dad, Elledge began racing quarter-midget go-karts in 1984 before transitioning into street stocks and then late model stock cars at tracks around his Redding, Calif., home.

"I started racing a lot of asphalt stuff in the late '80s and early '90s," said Elledge. "That's what really led me here (North Carolina) with aspirations to drive. I was trying to follow in the footsteps of guys like Dennis Setzer, Dale Earnhardt and Dale Jarrett. I raced at Hickory (N.C.) and Tri-County Speedway because they had produced a lot of good winners. And if you were going to be anything, you raced there."While trying to make a name for himself as a driver in the NASCAR Winston Racing Series, Elledge was a full-time employee at RCR. Between 1992 and 1997, Elledge toiled on the cars of Dale Earnhardt and then Mike Skinner when Skinner became a teammate to Earnhardt in 1997.

"My racing had gotten to a point where I didn't have the money to do it like I needed to. I didn't have the time to do it like I needed to. And it was taking away from the job that I needed to do for RCR," said Elledge. "It was a lot of fun though. It kills me every day that I can't do it. But in life you're forced to make decisions that you don't have to like, but you have to deal with. Driving race cars was one of those decisions. I had to honestly admit to myself that that wasn't going to happen."While his driving career may not have been realized, it has certainly helped Elledge become a better crew chief. In addition to his mechanical and technical knowledge, he has the ability to relate to what his driver is saying about the race car."First of all, if you've been there and you've driven anything before, you know it's not easy," said Elledge. "It's not just a matter of getting in there, mashing the gas and turning the steering wheel. So, you're able to relate to your driver better. Now, there is a difference between entering a corner at Michigan and entering a corner at Hickory, but you still have a better understanding of what your driver is feeling while he's in that car. Because you know what you've done, tried and felt when you were racing.

Augmenting his driving experience, Elledge also has an impressive racing resume. His first job in Winston Cup racing was at RCR in 1992. From 1993 through 1995, Elledge and Petree worked together on the No. 3 Chevrolets of RCR driver Dale Earnhardt. During that time, they enjoyed the spoils of back- to-back Winston Cup championships in 1993 and 1994 along with a total of 15 victories. During his tenure at the Welcome, N.C., outfit, Elledge worked his way from general mechanic to fabricator, and then to car chief and tire changer before leaving at the end of the 1997 season to pursue a crew chief job with a NASCAR Busch Series, Grand National Division team.

Elledge started the 1998 season as crew chief for Busch Series upstart Jeff Krogh and his family-owned operation. While there were some positives such as a solid 20th place qualifying effort at Daytona's season-opener and a fifth- place finish at Texas, the chemistry wasn't right. After a sixth month tenure, Elledge left the Ingle Hollow, N.C.-based team."It tore me up that I couldn't get the results that I wanted to," said Elledge. "But it prepared me for a lot of things that I wouldn't have been ready for as a crew chief at Andy Petree Racing. It was an extremely valuable learning experience."

The five-car Winston Cup stable of Roush Racing quickly picked up Elledge upon his departure from Krogh's team. He acted as shop foreman for the No. 6 team of Mark Martin during the week, while serving as the front tire changer for Martin on race day.When the call came from Petree to be the crew chief for Wallace, Elledge knew that the time was right to reunite with his former boss at RCR."Andy and I had been in conversation about this second team on several occasions," said Elledge. "In fact, before I took the job at Roush, this was an opportunity for me.

"I hated to leave Jack (Roush). Everyone over there had been really good to me. But when I sat back and asked myself, 'This (being a crew chief) is where Jimmy Elledge wants to be, so how is he going to get there?' I knew what the answer was."I know what I've got with Andy," continued Elledge. "It's more than face value. I know that I have the proper support behind me in order to excel at the level that I need to."