Summary9 min read

The Dale Jr. Download

Episode: "Cleetus McFarland Gets Racing Advice from Dale Jr."
Date: March 4, 2026
Host: Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Guest: Cleetus McFarland

Overview

In this engaging and lively episode, Dale Earnhardt Jr. welcomes YouTube sensation and rookie racer Cletus McFarland back to the Arby studio for a candid conversation about transitioning from viral car content creator to ARCA and NASCAR-level race car driver. The episode centers on Cleetus’s unconventional path into professional racing, his new deal with Richard Childress Racing (RCR), learning the ropes in real stock cars, the pleasure and pressure of going "from YouTuber to racer," navigating criticism, and candid advice from Dale Jr. on balancing ambition, preparation, and expectations in motorsports. The episode is filled with actionable racing advice, behind-the-scenes anecdotes, and memorable moments between host and guest.

Major Discussion Points & Insights

1. Cleetus’s Big Announcement: New RCR Deal

[04:41]
Cleetus reveals his major career milestone: a multi-race, two-year deal with Richard Childress Racing (RCR) to drive the O'Reilly’s car, becoming a paid driver—even if only making a symbolic "$1 salary."
Quote ([05:14]) – Cleetus:
"I'm just so excited. It doesn't even sound real coming out of my mouth still. I'm like so blown away."
The deal is notable not just for the opportunity, but for the full access to RCR’s professional support, resources, and driver development infrastructure.

2. Dale Jr.’s Advice: The Value of Experience & Mentors

[05:44–09:18]
Dale walks Cleetus through the importance of surrounding himself with experts, learning from sim time, and collecting feedback from mentors (like Greg Biffle and RCR’s staff).
Quote ([07:15]) – Dale Jr.:
"If that is what you want to do, the best way for you to do that is get around people that can actually give you the preparation and the tools."
Simulation, data analysis, and close coaching massively compress the learning curve versus going it alone.
Quote ([08:09]) – Dale Jr.:
"They don’t want this to fail. They absolutely want this to succeed. So they’re going to try to do everything they can."

3. Unconventional Pathways in Racing

[10:54–13:05]
The duo discuss how Cleetus’s route from YouTuber to ARCA racer is rare but not unprecedented. Dale Jr. offers historical context—Kyle Petty debuted young, others from different disciplines have found success.
Quote ([12:49]) – Dale Jr.:
"You’re trying to become a race car driver at 30 when a lot of guys … have been driving cars since they were 5, 10 years old."

4. The Challenge of Seat Time & Practice

[13:05–16:38]
Cleetus outlines how hard and expensive consistent seat time is at this level, prompting a plan to buy a late model car and host his own events to gain experience.
The hosts emphasize the need for humility and consistent effort to improve—especially in public, for fans and longtime racers.
Quote ([16:31]) – Dale Jr.:
"People need to see you… actually acknowledging that you need experience."

5. Dealing With Criticism and Social Pressure

[15:15–18:38]
Cletus and Dale address the scrutiny Cleetus faces for being a "rookie interloper,” especially with a large audience. Both advocate humility, relentless effort, and thick skin in the face of racing’s critics.
Quote ([16:34]) – Cletus:
"I'm acknowledging that I need experience... and that I do want to do better. I do want to understand."
Cleetus remains clear—given the opportunity, he’ll keep showing up and doing the work.

6. On-Track Mistakes and Learning (Truck and ARCA Experience)

[17:20–18:09]
Detailed, non-judgmental breakdown of Cletus’s crash adventures at Daytona—what went wrong, how little mistakes balloon in these cars, and shared stories of both men making rookie errors.
Quote ([16:38]) – Dale Jr.:
"That happened to me. Like, I wrecked a cup car all by myself off turn four… It can happen to anybody."

7. History and Evolution of Driver Clearances and Safety

[19:36–20:03, 34:34–38:33, 79:13–79:42]
Dale offers nostalgia-laced history on ARCA, old-school paths to Cup, and evolving NASCAR safety standards—including his own experiences with concussions and gear requirements.
Quote ([35:03]) – Dale Jr.:
"I started driving race cars that didn’t have headrests… now we got this massive cocoon."
Both appreciate today’s heightened safety, even if it means constant scrutiny for following the rules.

8. YouTube and the Freedom Factory: The Business and the Risks

[23:15–30:13]
The duo shift into Cleetus’s content creation empire—balancing fun, risk, and business at the Freedom Factory, and the pressure (or lack thereof) he feels to "up the ante."
Cletus describes a wild Honda Civic Challenge that ended in a dangerous wreck but reinforced the importance of safety and dialing back risk.
Memorable moment as they debate liability waivers and the "Jackass disclaimer."
Quote ([24:43]) – Cleetus:
"If you would like to join, we’re going to ride. But understand you are off the clock and what we are doing is at your own risk."
Quote ([30:13]) – Dale Jr.:
"Damn it, dude. You’re such a crazy man."

9. Comparison: Real Stunts vs. Racing vs. YouTube Dares

[32:06–34:19]
Dale and Cleetus compare the Evel Knievel aspect of car stunts to professional racing risk – with the consensus that although calculated, danger is real whether you’re on the strip, the track, or a parking lot runway.
Cleetus processes dialing back his wilder pursuits in favor of more serious prep and safety.

10. Learning Racecraft: Technical & Mental Adjustments

[47:00–52:27]
Deep dive on the throttle, brake, and line techniques Cleetus is working on, with tangible lessons from sim work, data overlays, and feedback.
Quote ([48:02]) – Dale Jr.:
"You were probably under driving the entry... and you get down in the corner and you’re back in the gas way too soon."
Dale outlines "game day goals" and maintaining focus on improvement, not perfection—especially for nervous rookies.

11. Balancing Racing with Content Creation and Personal Life

[56:53–61:11]
Cletus and Dale reflect on the challenges of balancing the demands of a full racing schedule with an active YouTube/content business and growing family.
Both agree a limited, intentional approach to racing is best for now.
Quote ([61:13]) – Dale Jr.:
"I don't suggest the all-in option."
Key insight: It’s OK to take things one manageable step at a time—and allow space for priorities outside the car.

12. Late Model Racing: The Next Step

[62:26–66:17]
Cleetus details plans to buy a late model "tall man" car and get more track time. Dale counsels on differences between pro and super late models, car setup, and using local tracks for affordable, repeatable laps.
Quote ([65:15]) – Dale Jr.:
"That's short track, grassroots, local racing… You’ll love that."

13. Thick Skin and Persistence: McFarland's Ethos

[67:12–68:36]
Cleetus credits his YouTube roots for developing thick skin and the resolve to stick with racing no matter the criticism—something Dale Jr. says will serve him well.
Quote ([67:28]) – Cleetus:
"As long as I'm having fun, I'm going to keep showing up at these NASCAR races… their words on Facebook will not change the fact that I'm going to come back and try again."
Dale emphasizes that fans—and other drivers—want to see real effort, humility, and incremental progress, not instant mastery.

14. ARCA vs. Truck vs. Xfinity/Cup: The Progression

[44:31–46:23, 69:40–75:24]
Cleetus expresses affection for ARCA's format, the more forgiving pace, and space for rookies. Dale contextualizes differing competitive levels and why starting small is smarter.
Future goals: Cleetus to race Rockingham, then aim for Talladega, pending NASCAR approval and a "rookie test."
Key advice: Understand—and practice—the etiquette for being lapped, managing "blue flags," and making life easy for front-runners.

15. Best Practices: Managing Expectations and Race-Day Mindset

[52:27–54:14, 75:11–75:24]
Both discuss not getting lost in being a hero on lap one; finishing clean is a major success.
Quote ([75:11]) – Dale Jr.:
"No one is going to care where you finish. It’s not about a performance thing. Can he get out there, understand the etiquette and the racing, and get it home?"

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

Cleetus, on the RCR offer ([04:57]):
"RCR called me up, offered me a ride in their O'Reilly's car for three or four races a year for two years."
Dale Jr., on preparation ([09:09]):
"They’re going to be there for me, overload you with, like, all of the tools to try to prep you."
Dale Jr., on entering stock car racing late ([12:40]):
"You're trying to become a race car driver at 30..."
Cleetus, on seat time ([13:56]):
"The thing that's so hard about the sport too is to get seat time. It's very expensive and there's not really a good chance to practice."
Dale Jr., on humility ([16:24]):
"People need to see you ... actually acknowledging that you need experience."
Cleetus, explaining his critics ([67:28]):
"As long as I'm having fun, I'm going to keep showing up at these NASCAR races... their words on Facebook will not change... I'm going to come back and try again."
Dale Jr., on driving etiquette as a lap car ([71:24]):
"You will be judged by how well you get out of their way. That will be a thing that people will pay attention to."
On risk and content creation ([29:02]):
Dale Jr.: "Damn. Yeah. Yeah. I would have been panicked."
Cleetus: "We had to back her down a little bit after this one."
Dale Jr., on long-term commitment ([61:13]):
"I don't suggest the all-in option [for racing]."
Liver mush moment ([39:06]) – comic relief as Dale and Cleetus eat and rate liver mush on-air.

Timestamps to Key Moments

[04:41] – Cleetus announces the RCR deal
[07:15] – Dale Jr. details the best way to learn as a rookie driver
[13:56] – Conversation about the challenge of getting affordable seat time
[16:31] – Dale Jr. explains what the audience needs to see from Cleetus
[16:58] – Honest recounting of Cleetus’s crash and learning moments
[24:43] – Debate about waivers, risk, and creating wild content
[39:06] – Liver mush tasting segment for comic relief
[47:00] – Deep-dive into Cleetus's in-car data and learning racing lines
[61:13] – Advice on not going "all-in" and maintaining life balance
[65:15] – Discussion on late model racing and grassroots progression
[67:28] – Cleetus's attitude toward criticism
[71:24] – Instructions and etiquette for being a lapped driver

Tone & Style

The tone is irreverent, supportive, and insightful—Dale Jr.'s wisdom is matched by Cleetus’s eagerness, humility, and humor.
The episode is equal parts "old-timer advice" and modern YouTube-era energy, making technical racing discussions accessible and engaging for a broad audience.

Summary & Takeaways

Cleetus McFarland is taking a bold, humble, and well-supported leap into ARCA/NASCAR-level racing with RCR, intent on doing the work to gain acceptance and skill.
Dale Jr. offers specific advice: seek mentors, maximize seat time, focus on incremental improvement, ignore critics, and above all, keep it fun and realistic.
Both agree that humility, preparation, and patience—not aggressive risk or career tunnel vision—are the real keys to earning respect and making the transition a long-term success.
Fans and critics alike are encouraged to observe the effort and growth, not just the results.

End of Summary

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Transcript552 lines

[00:00]
Cletus McFarland
It's one of those things, you know, I think being a YouTuber for so long, like I've just, I've had everything in the world said about me. People can say whatever they want, but when, when I keep coming back every time and they realize that their words don't affect me time and time again, they're going to run out of breath. As long as I'm having fun, yeah, I'm going to keep showing up at these NASCAR races.
[00:23]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
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[01:25]
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[02:25]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
The following is a production of Dirty Mo Media.
[02:32]
Cletus McFarland
You're Dale Jr. Should I say it? Dale Jr. Podcast. I gotta say it.
[02:41]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Hey, everybody, it's Dale Jr. Back again for another episode of the Dale Jr. Download in the Arby studio. Don't forget about Arby's new meet in three box. You get more meal for your money at Arby's. Arby's, we have the meats. We also have a great guest for you today. Cletus McFarlane is coming back to the studio. You know, Cletus wasn't here too long ago, but lots happened in his life since then. And he's continuing to dive headfirst into driving race cars and trying to be a part of the ARCA NASCAR ecosystem. And he's got a big announcement for us today. And so he called me about a month ago or so, maybe more, and said, hey, I got this opportunity. What should I do? And he's really, really, you know, vetting this out. Is this something I should do? Are you sure? Called me about three or four weeks later, man. They want me to sign this deal. You still think I should do it? Well, he's here to announce what he's going to do. I'm excited about it. You know, we saw things didn't go exactly as planned in the truck race at Daytona. Got out there in ARCA race the next day and had a decent run. And he's going to take on more ARCA races, maybe another truck race or two. He's going to do more racing this year. He's told me that he might be getting a short track car to run somewhere. I encourage him to get behind the wheel as often as possible and he's going to come here to talk about the day. Let's get started. Let's get this guy in the room and see what the breaking news is today.
[04:13]
Cletus McFarland
Is it cool if I put my sponsor hat on the table?
[04:15]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Okay, cool.
[04:17]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. Tommy's Express Car Wash. Check that out, man.
[04:22]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
So this deal.
[04:23]
Cletus McFarland
Here we are. Yeah, this deal.
[04:24]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Let's talk about this deal. You got the hat on.
[04:29]
Cletus McFarland
Rocking the little bit of a giveaway.
[04:30]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I know the rcr, so let's just get the cat out of the bag, man. You're here to make an announcement. You're here to tell the world about Some great news.
[04:41]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. Got some really exciting news which you, you knew about, man, maybe a month ago.
[04:47]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[04:47]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. RCR called me up, offered me a ride and they're O'Reilly's car for three or four races a year for two years.
[04:57]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[04:59]
Cletus McFarland
Pretty unbelievable to me and I'm just so thankful and excited. And like I said, we got a sponsor in a day and now I'm assigned a paid driver. Well, got a $1 salary, so for Richard Childress Racing.
[05:13]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
A $1 salary.
[05:14]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. I just am so excited. It doesn't even sound real coming out of my mouth still. I'm like so blown away.
[05:21]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah. So this is a great opportunity and we're going to get, we're going to dive into, you know, what you've experienced since the last time you're on the show and all the racing you're doing and your life's completely changed. Yeah. And so a lot of your life is still the same, but there's some, there's some new things. But the, the opportunity to race with rcr, I think is a very good one.
[05:45]
Cletus McFarland
I asked you, you're the first person I talked to, you know, when they first got a hold of me and you said, absolutely, that's something you got to do. And even after my trials and tribulations in Daytona when I was, I was, you know, a little scared at that point. When I called you on that Monday, I was like, am I jumping the gun? Or I texted you, I said, am I jumping the gun? I got to sign this contract. They're asking me to sign it. And so that was a lot to take in.
[06:12]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah, of course. I mean, this is the whole thing, man. Your, your, your pathway into all of this is absolutely unusual and unorthodox. But I think about like, you know, it's not precedent and it's not, it's not, it's not the first time that it's, it's ever happened this way. Kyle Petty, you know, one of his very first races was at Daytona in the ARCA series, which he would go out there and win. And Richard Petty, the king of nascar, Right. He is the king of nascar, the all knowing being of nascar. Right. And he's sitting there going, yeah, you don't need to mess around with this and that and the other. We're going to put you right in there. If you're going to race cup, you might as well drive cup cars and get right in there and do it. Now, that was 50 so years ago. But you know, the, the idea that there's only one way in Is. Is. Is not correct. You are trying to become a race car driver at a late point in your life.
[07:12]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah, I'm a YouTuber trying to become a race car driver.
[07:15]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah. And you know that, right. And so if that is what you want to do, the best way for you to do that is get around people that can actually give you the preparation and the tools. And that's why I like this thing with rcr. So you can, you know, you can run some ARCA races, which you should still try to do, and we're going to get. We're going to dive all into that. You got a lot of. You got a lot of things you want to try to achieve, to continue to give yourself time behind the wheel. But getting better behind the wheel, it takes experience, but it also takes sim. People telling you, people helping you, people willing to be in your ear. You had that with Greg Biffle, Right. You had somebody that was a mentor, somebody that was always going to be telling you the right thing to do, what to be focusing on in that moment when you're making mistakes, how to fix them. You had that, and I think you'll have that with rcr. That's why they're. I think that they're kind of aligned in. In terms of how you'll fit the person you are, the individual you are. But they have. They have all of the tools to be able to make you a race car driver faster.
[08:30]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. Which is what we got to do. We got what we got to do.
[08:33]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
That's right.
[08:34]
Cletus McFarland
They, you know, yesterday we sat in a room with a simulator, you know, and I'm just on there, and there is, like, five people, you know, working on it, talking to me, giving me data. And, like, just the amount of time I was able to improve the laps was so much shorter than if I sat on my own simulator.
[08:52]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Doing it by yourself for hours. And that's kind of.
[08:55]
Cletus McFarland
It was.
[08:56]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
And that's the difference. Yeah, that's the difference. If you're racing in ARCA car, right? You go run the ARCA car, and I know there's people there that are trying to help you, but this RCR deal, they are going to totally.
[09:08]
Cletus McFarland
They're going to be there for me,
[09:09]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
overload you with, like, all of the tools to try to prep you. They don't want this to fail. Right. They want. They absolutely want this to succeed. So they're going to try to do everything they can. Yeah.
[09:19]
Cletus McFarland
The ARCA car, you know, I was trying to explain it on my channel Yesterday, you know, they give me a great car. That's their goal, is to give me a great car and put me out there. But really beyond that and beyond what Greg has taught me, Biff, I just, it's all on me at that point. And I don't train or do anything. I mean, when I was in that truck, right, that was my second race ever at Daytona. The first time I crashed in 17 laps. So that was like close to my 20th lap every there and you know, so I didn't have. I'm just such a rookie. And I think I've created an expectation to my followers too that like, I'm gonna go do this and it's gonna be amazing and sometimes it just isn't, you know. And like I, it was a tough day for me, man. I mean, I got literally chewed up and spit out by those guys, which was a humbling experience. But I'm so excited, man. Going through RCR yesterday, the amount of tools and equipment they have to help me versus just the car is significantly different. Like the ARCA guys, that's great. They help the car, they make the car as good at it as it can be. They help me a little bit rcr, I feel like there's a lot more opportunity for me to grow as a driver too. And when they called me, you know, they, they kind of said, we want to help you become the driver we think you can be. And that, I don't know, that just is really exciting to me to get that. It feels crazy that they would want to do that.
[10:54]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah, for sure. I, you know, I.
[10:57]
Cletus McFarland
Here we are.
[10:57]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I know. I think about the things that you do that are applicable. So in, in the, in the years that I've been around this sport, we've had, you know, motorcycle racers come into nascar. We've had, we've had people from different disciplines that are driving vehicles of different kinds. Two wheel, four wheel stadium trucks, whatever, Baja, they, they come from all types of disciplines. In each one of those disciplines, they're controlling something that's trying to go out of control, right? And there is a way to sort of. There is a way to sort of port the understanding of driving a vehicle at its limit into this, into nascar, into driving a stock car. It's, it's. You're taking a vehicle and trying to push it to its limit. Entire slip and all of those things. And if you understand that in motorcycles or whatever it may be, you can apply the same logic, right? And you, you've spent a lot of your life taking things to the limit, crashing them. Right? Yeah. And so, you know, and I think the more of that you do, especially behind the wheel of a four wheeled stock car, the more it's going to start to make sense. Right. The more it's going to start to click. So like, I'm encouraged by, I would encourage you, like if you truly really want this, like, absolutely, go for it. Right? Absolutely. You know, and so these are the things that you can't turn down, right?
[12:34]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[12:35]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
These are the opportunities that are, that, you know, to your point, you're. How, how do you.
[12:40]
Cletus McFarland
30.
[12:41]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
30, right. So you're trying to become a race car driver at 30 when a lot of guys, you know, have been driving cars since they were 5, 10 years old. Right. Young.
[12:50]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[12:50]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
They've driven thousands of laps by the time they actually get a truck ride or something like they've raced for, for years, you know, and you're trying to, you're trying to do all this in a very short period of time. And so that's why I think this is a great opportunity.
[13:05]
Cletus McFarland
I. Yeah, I mean, like I said, it's unbelievable. They even called me and the hard thing that I've talked to, I've talked to, I mean primarily Ty Dillon got a hold of me and then I've been working with Mike Verlander, Mike Dillon, Richard and that, you know, and then it trickled down. We had the first meeting, you know, and I just couldn't believe that like they wanted to do it long term. Well, two years is kind of short term, I guess, but like that to me is long term. It's more than just one year. And you know, wonder couldn't believe it. The, the thing that's so hard about the sport too is to get seat time. It's very expensive and there's not really a good chance to practice. So now I'm looking at buying a late model for myself because I think that's the most comparable thing. Right. Is to go drive late model.
[13:56]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yes. You have, you own a racetrack.
[13:59]
Cletus McFarland
I know, right? What an idiot to not have late model.
[14:01]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You should have a car and you should be running laps.
[14:04]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. So I just sat in a late model this morning.
[14:06]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[14:07]
Cletus McFarland
Over at Port City Race Cars.
[14:09]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[14:10]
Cletus McFarland
Felt good. I said, guys, give me some final price and I'm gonna buy one. I don't know what I'm gonna do because we only have two late model races at my track. I might have to host some more. I'm gonna start doing that. I'm still doing arca, if they call me to run the truck again, I'm absolutely gonna do it. You know, and then I'm just gonna try and do my absolute best in the O'Reilly's car. Obviously, it's crazy that I'm going up this fast. I don't want to be one of those guys that you mentioned that comes into the sport and just forces their way. I mean, you didn't mention anyone forcing their way up, but a lot of people have joined and immediately tried to speed their way through, climbed a cup. Sure, I don't want to drive a cup car right now, but, brother, if someone calls me and says, we got a spot in a cup car, the Daytona 500, I mean, what am I supposed to do? Say no.
[15:00]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Right? Yeah. If you're cleared to race, you'd have to consider.
[15:04]
Cletus McFarland
I mean, I'm thinking 99 times out of 100, I'm saying yes to that, so. And I think that's another perspective I've had on all the hate I've been getting. You know, this sport is so critical. The driver. Oh, yeah, it's. It's pretty.
[15:19]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Well, yeah, I think that's how it is in all sports.
[15:22]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. Yeah. But, Yeah, I don't know, the way it's. I guess I got a bigger taste of it, maybe.
[15:27]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[15:28]
Cletus McFarland
The other week.
[15:28]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Well, you know, it.
[15:29]
Cletus McFarland
Which I deserve.
[15:30]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
It's unprecedented what you're doing, and not that that means it's wrong or bad, but, you know, if you're gonna. You have to realize that you're coming in without any experience, and how you're coming in is very unorthodox. You don't have that sort of. You know, and so people are. You're. You're opening yourself up to.
[15:48]
Cletus McFarland
Oh, I get it. I mean, I would totally understand from the outside if someone's raced for forever and then Cletus is all of a sudden jumping past them, that would annoy me, too.
[15:59]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
And that part, I don't think is the problem. I think it's the. I think what people want to probably see, I think once they start seeing you, like, hey, man, I'm gonna. I'm gonna. I'm gonna climb in my late model and I'm gonna just run some laps all day. People need to see you that. See that. Right. And see you actually. Hey, man, I'm. I'm taking.
[16:21]
Cletus McFarland
I'm acknowledging that I need experience, that
[16:24]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I need to do this and that and, And. And that I'm. I do want to do better. I do want to understand.
[16:31]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[16:32]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You know, how to not Put myself in the situation I was in in the truck right off turn four, and,
[16:36]
Cletus McFarland
I mean, have the car control to save it, you know?
[16:39]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
But, I mean, that happened to me. Like, I wrecked. I wrecked a cup car ball by myself off turn four. Like, that is a. That is a common problem to get off that corner and get loose, especially on the inside. You just didn't know it was coming. Right. And so I didn't. Yeah, right.
[16:59]
Cletus McFarland
I was settled in. I mean, we. As short as whatever six laps is. I was settled in. Like, all of a sudden, we're running the bottom. I know they're three wide. I'm feeling great. Truck's awesome. I'm hanging on for dear life. Having the greatest time ever. Honestly, I was so excited, but I couldn't even talk in my radio because I was just so. Death gripped on the wheel, and then it stepped out.
[17:21]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[17:21]
Cletus McFarland
And when I went up, I literally was like, oh, like, I'm about to wreck all of these guys. And I just put too much wheel in it.
[17:29]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[17:29]
Cletus McFarland
And there I went. Yeah.
[17:31]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I mean, it's. It's. It's a. It's. It's easy to do there, but it's kind of that thing when it happened, I'm like, man, he had no idea that was going to happen. And it's like, how do you prep somebody for that?
[17:41]
Cletus McFarland
They warned me.
[17:41]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I know. I warned my Xfinity guys the very next day. I'm like, y'.
[17:45]
Cletus McFarland
All.
[17:45]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Y'.
[17:45]
Cletus McFarland
All.
[17:45]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Y' all see that right there? That could happen to you. You could easily find yourself in that same situation. And a couple times, they almost did. Right?
[17:54]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[17:54]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
It's just. But if you don't do it and you don't. You aren't. You had.
[17:57]
Cletus McFarland
If you hit in the ARCA car. I was waiting for it right now, the next day. Yeah.
[18:01]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
And in the. And it probably never in our car with a different tire, different arrow.
[18:06]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. Just one time, it stepped out a little bit, but I just had it, you know, like.
[18:10]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[18:11]
Cletus McFarland
But, you know, when I circle back on all of that, I think to myself, even after, you know, everyone's like, cletus, why. You know, why would you go in a. In a truck without any more experience than you had still after how bad I did, if. If Pastrana called me, you know, and said, hey, I got a truck ride for you. Do you want it? I'm saying, yeah.
[18:32]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[18:32]
Cletus McFarland
And I think so would everybody else.
[18:33]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
So would everybody else. Yeah.
[18:35]
Cletus McFarland
So.
[18:36]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Although there are.
[18:37]
Cletus McFarland
I need seat time.
[18:38]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You do?
[18:38]
Cletus McFarland
There's. I'm going to take those opportunities.
[18:41]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
There are thousands of examples of drivers that have driven cars with very little experience, little to none in our industry, in truck and Cup. You know, there's thousands. If I go back, I'm a very traditional, big, nostalgic fan of the history of the sport. And if I go back to the 70s, 80s, 90s, there were guys showing up to the. The sportsman race, the bush race, the Xfinity O'Reilly race, you know, the cup race. Even with very little experience, the ARCA race was. Was the ARCA series up until. I mean, even today, still, part of its core identity is there'll be guys out there that have never been on a big track, a track bigger than, you know, half mile. You know, that was the. That was kind of like the. The draw really was like, oh, man, I'm gonna watch, like, 15 of these dudes that have never raced on anything bigger than a half mile go out here and run Daytona.
[19:37]
Cletus McFarland
They are cracking down a little bit.
[19:38]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah, well, they have to have some sort of, like, balance.
[19:42]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. Because George tried to enter ARCA at Daytona, and they said, George, my. Oh, yeah, they. They turned him down. Yeah, well, they said, we need to see you run some short tracks.
[19:53]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
They drew the line.
[19:53]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. Yeah, they drew the line.
[19:55]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
So.
[19:55]
Cletus McFarland
And that was before I crashed. So, yeah, I mean, I understand there's a balance to it, and it's. It's probably really hard for NASCAR to navigate.
[20:03]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
It is, you know. Well, it is. I mean, I think they go back and forth depending upon, you know, what happens on the racetrack. They kind of seem to ebb and flow with where the line is. All right, before we get to our next topic, want to tell you guys about a new show here at Dirty Mo Media. It's called Sons and Daughters, hosted by Shannon Spake. Shannon is going to be interviewing notable athletes, singers, celebrities, anyone else that is at the top of whatever they do.
[20:31]
Cletus McFarland
Everyone has an origin. Before I was a broadcaster, I was a daughter, and that part of my story never changed. So in this series, I'm gonna talk with people whose achievements you know, but whose beginnings you don't. The family, the identity, the moments that shaped them. Because every extraordinary person starts as someone's child. I'm Shannon Spake. This is Sons and Daughters, and new episodes drop every Wednesday. You can watch on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcasts.
[21:01]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
All right, we can't wait for that to come out. The first episode drops March 4th. It's Marty Smith, and after that, it's Coach K. Going to be a lot of great guests coming down the line. Please check it out. Subscribe so you don't miss anything.
[21:16]
Commercial/Announcer
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[23:15]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Currently you're at 4.65 million subscribers. Yeah, you wake up every day feeling the pressure of having to deliver content. Go bigger and bigger every time.
[23:27]
Cletus McFarland
I don't feel any pressure of that.
[23:29]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You don't? Well, what's so I tune in. You gave a tune into one clip and you'd given all of your people that work over at the Freedom Factory or.
[23:39]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[23:39]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You gave them all those super fast Jeeps. This is ridiculous.
[23:44]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[23:45]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
So y' all start running around the yard wide ass open, and I'm thinking to myself, the liability alone would. I would have so much anxiety over somebody, like, rolling one of the things over. You don't even think about that. I mean, what are you doing?
[24:02]
Cletus McFarland
Like, they're all wearing helmets.
[24:03]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I know, dudes. Does everybody sign liability waiver? Do they? So, like, when I would have parties.
[24:09]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[24:10]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
At my house back in the day, like, in the bud days, we'd have big ass freaking parties.
[24:14]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[24:14]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I would have everybody sign a waiver before they came in.
[24:17]
Cletus McFarland
Like, you know, well, what you don't see, what you don't see on video and I do have is I. This may or may not hold up in court. You know, I'm a law school dropout. So I say on video during these group things, I say with all the engines off and everyone's standing there, I say, you do not have to ride right now with this group. You can sit and watch.
[24:42]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I'm not sure that's enough.
[24:44]
Cletus McFarland
If you would like to join, we're going to ride. But understand you are off the clock and what we are doing is at your own risk. And I say that. And then everyone doesn't even think for a second. They stick their heads on and we go have fun.
[24:57]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I guess if.
[24:59]
Cletus McFarland
So I do have that clip.
[25:00]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I guess if that. You know, the splash palette is the little splash page that would come on before every Jackass episode that would say, don't try this. If that was enough to clear them from any liability, then that's probably enough for you.
[25:14]
Cletus McFarland
I think I do expose myself to some liability here and there.
[25:17]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Dude, they were. They. Y', all.
[25:20]
Cletus McFarland
You probably haven't even seen the Honda video. I'm thinking of.
[25:22]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Oh, I know. I knew when I was watching that video, y' all in the Jeeps. I'm like, I'm probably not even seeing the worst of it, but this is making me nervous.
[25:29]
Cletus McFarland
Oh, no. Yeah, you have not.
[25:31]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Those Jeeps are fast.
[25:33]
Commercial/Announcer
What?
[25:34]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Where'd everybody. Did everybody take their Jeeps home? What happened?
[25:36]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah, yeah, they take them home. They're theirs. Their property. So they're riding their stuff on my property. Yeah, there's. There's some liability there. It's a solid point.
[25:43]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[25:45]
Cletus McFarland
Got you thinking later. Now you got me thinking.
[25:48]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You don't even do this I can tell.
[25:50]
Cletus McFarland
I mean, you don't sit at home,
[25:52]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
you know, when the day is done and you've, like, ate your dinner and you're getting ready to go to bed, it's 9pm and you're like, shoo, man, that was dangerous.
[26:00]
Cletus McFarland
I'm gonna be honest. I had one of those moments in December. My. One of my employees, Zach, was in a pretty bad crash.
[26:07]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Own your property. Involved in something y' all were doing.
[26:10]
Cletus McFarland
Oh, I'm gonna have to.
[26:12]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Can you talk about it?
[26:13]
Cletus McFarland
I'm gonna. Oh, yeah, it's on the Internet. I'm gonna have to pull the clip.
[26:16]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Okay.
[26:18]
Cletus McFarland
I mean, we're talking rush to the hospital situation here. But you know when you're saying you feel the pressure, though, the videos. My best performing videos are when I'm just having fun with crappy cars. Like the RV content. That was, like, our best performing stuff of the year.
[26:35]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Junk RVs.
[26:35]
Cletus McFarland
So, yeah, I don't have. I don't feel that. So funny pressure. Too bad. And honestly, I just love doing this stuff. All right. Three million views.
[26:43]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
By the way, how do you come up with, like, what you're gonna do every day? Like, I would that, I guess, like the. That you don't.
[26:48]
Cletus McFarland
The brother. There's unlimited content at my facility.
[26:52]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Wow.
[26:53]
Cletus McFarland
The Freedom Factory.
[26:54]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I know, but, like, you're just.
[26:56]
Cletus McFarland
You just haven't been there.
[26:57]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Is it your. I know. Is it all your folks to Coming up to you every day going, we ought to do this. We ought to do that. You just kind of keep a little mental note.
[27:04]
Cletus McFarland
I think it just so naturally happens. I don't know. It's just the people I surrounded myself with. We.
[27:09]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Have you ever came up with something and. And you did it, and you were like, yeah, that wasn't as. Yeah, good.
[27:14]
Cletus McFarland
But we still post it anyway because people are like, so this. This challenge I bought, I gave each of the guys in the shop 1200 bucks. The video is the $10,000 Honda Civic Challenge. So there was enough for us to all have twelve hundred dollars. I think I. Honda Civic.
[27:32]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I've read about this. I don't think I've seen this clip.
[27:36]
Cletus McFarland
And then I set up, like, the OG Fast and furious race where they jump the bridge. That was the theory.
[27:43]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[27:43]
Cletus McFarland
So we take off in a great race, and you have to go under a semi truck that's moving, and then run this crazy race. Well, we're getting to the finish line here, and I'm chasing down George. My buddy Zach is chasing down both of us. His Honda's Got a back half on. It's ripping. Well, the bridge jumps coming up, and he doesn't lift because he's just trying to inch out. George, he hits his baby hard. So I'll just let it play from this point. So this is me chasing George right here.
[28:20]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
This is on your property, correct? Right. Where's the bridge?
[28:24]
Cletus McFarland
Oh, we built it.
[28:25]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Oh, you built a bridge.
[28:26]
Cletus McFarland
It's jump.
[28:27]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I got you.
[28:28]
Cletus McFarland
So one more turn here back into the drag strip.
[28:34]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Little contact.
[28:35]
Cletus McFarland
So Zach's behind us. You can't see him.
[28:38]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Just a regular ass seat belt.
[28:40]
Cletus McFarland
And by the way, you guys can overlay the video on top. Oh, Zach's gonna come flying by me here.
[28:51]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Is this him?
[28:52]
Cletus McFarland
I did not put his in car footage in the video because it's so violent.
[28:55]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Scary.
[28:56]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah, there it is.
[29:02]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Damn. Yeah. Yeah. I would have been panicked.
[29:06]
Cletus McFarland
So. Yeah, we had to back her down a little bit after this one.
[29:09]
Commercial/Announcer
Right.
[29:11]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
What was. What was his. Where. How is Zach?
[29:14]
Cletus McFarland
Zach is good. He had what's called an AC separation. What is that Is like. I hate to ask.
[29:21]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
It's.
[29:23]
Cletus McFarland
It's like, I guess in your shoulder you have three ligaments that kind of hold your scapula.
[29:30]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[29:31]
Cletus McFarland
In position. And they tore. All right. It's very common in football, I guess, because they're head down and they. Well, his entire Honda Civic landed on his shoulder because the. A pillar crushed and no head injury
[29:45]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
or no neck injury.
[29:46]
Cletus McFarland
So in the in car footage, he goes like this. I have that. I'll show you after. In the in car footage, when the front end hits, there's some other funny parts of the footage I'll show you later. But the car turns a little bit, and so he goes like this and
[30:03]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
lays back just naturally.
[30:05]
Cletus McFarland
And so the entire Honda Civic then lands on him because the roof comes in. And by some miracle.
[30:14]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Damn it, dude. You're such a crazy man.
[30:16]
Cletus McFarland
So, yeah, I do feel what you're talking about a little bit. After that one, I was like, all right, we're gonna back her down a little bit.
[30:23]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah. I was watching when you had Josevar over to Short track, and he. He, like, sent it over the jump in the. In the minivan and. No, said it wasn't that him who was on the nose.
[30:36]
Cletus McFarland
That was one of Travis Pastrana.
[30:38]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Okay. He about. Damn. Ended up on the roof.
[30:41]
Cletus McFarland
Believe it or not, he's done that. That's the same jump.
[30:44]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[30:45]
Cletus McFarland
Same jump that caused the Honda to go over.
[30:47]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Maybe. Let's cut. Take that jump and throw.
[30:48]
Cletus McFarland
We're working on a redesign okay. Right now, the design is a triangle. We're gonna. We're gonna work on a different shape a little longer.
[30:58]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah. Something.
[30:59]
Cletus McFarland
I don't know most. You can't tell, but none of the cars actually touch the end of the ramp. They just ricochet off the front.
[31:04]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah. Interesting.
[31:05]
Cletus McFarland
So we're working on that.
[31:06]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah. Yeah. I think there's. That's probably necessary.
[31:09]
Cletus McFarland
I mean, there's got. I just worry about you. Yeah, I know.
[31:13]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Like, your. Your ass is. You know, you're kicking ass and.
[31:16]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. Yeah. And I don't want anyone to get
[31:18]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
here on the line. I know you don't.
[31:20]
Cletus McFarland
So we just get carried away. Some days. We really.
[31:23]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
The other thing, too, is. Is like the thing that I enjoy that I hope maybe you. You're unaware of is the evil. Evil Knievel aspect or the. The risk to you that you put yourself into. You know, your ability to, like. I've always marveled at stuntmen and people that are above and beyond right. The, you know, doing things that have never been done before, jumps. And. And, you know, you've talked about, like, last time you're here, you're talking about some kind of a stunt you were going to pull off land in a plane, and I'm like, damn it. You know, that's like. You're the one solely at risk in those moments.
[32:07]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[32:08]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You've been in some moments where thing, you know, one little. One little thing goes this way or that way, but, you know, you're. I mean, do you idolize, you know, the Evil Knievels of the world or those kind of guys, they don't even enter?
[32:20]
Cletus McFarland
I mean, I think those. Because you're so much higher risk.
[32:22]
Commercial/Announcer
Yeah.
[32:23]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
But I mean, it's very similar. That's like the version of, you know,
[32:27]
Cletus McFarland
but they probably think maybe the same thing.
[32:29]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[32:30]
Cletus McFarland
I mean, I don't know. I watched those stunts, and I'm like, wow, that's unbelievable. I mean, jumping a motorcycle. Yeah. 500.
[32:35]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
But they're very planned. You know, even though some. Most. Most times they can go wrong, there's still some planning engineer.
[32:42]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[32:43]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You know, your stuff is like, seriously by the seat of your fricking pants.
[32:47]
Cletus McFarland
I mean, the good news about my stuff, and by the way, I appreciate you bringing this stuff up. It's sometimes good for me to hear it, you know, but most of the time, I'm protected by a race car, you know, so that does help, I think. But I do worry about it sometimes, like the big car eagle, you know, that I have. I don't like going 260. I don't. You know, I have the fat. I'm the fastest guy to ever drive on a radial tire in the quarter mile, you know, and, like, that record is cool, but I really don't love letting go of the button in that car. That thing is so fast. So, I mean, that's one that I've been thinking about marking off, just being done.
[33:29]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Sure.
[33:30]
Cletus McFarland
You know, you do other stuff with,
[33:32]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
you know, outside of driving race cars, you do other things that are very risky, and I feel like that it's in the same vein as a. As a Evel Knievel style.
[33:43]
Cletus McFarland
Which one are you thinking of besides the airplane on the barge?
[33:46]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
That. Right. That alone. That's very dangerous.
[33:49]
Cletus McFarland
Well, the airplane on the barge, to put your mind at ease. I mean, I'm touching down at under 30 miles an hour. You know, that's pretty slow. Okay. And then, worst case, I end up in the water and it's like the plane floats.
[34:03]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Okay.
[34:04]
Cletus McFarland
You know, it's not going to just sink, like.
[34:05]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[34:06]
Cletus McFarland
So. Yeah. I mean, that one, I think, is probably one of the least risky.
[34:10]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Maybe. Yeah.
[34:11]
Cletus McFarland
I don't know.
[34:12]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
All right.
[34:12]
Cletus McFarland
What do you think about nascar? Are they. Are the cars risky?
[34:17]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Very safe. Yeah.
[34:18]
Cletus McFarland
I mean, I think very safe. Outside of concussions.
[34:20]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah. Concussions are the main concern.
[34:22]
Cletus McFarland
That's my main concern. And a back injury.
[34:24]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
100%. Back injuries are pretty rare, but it's the head injuries that are probably.
[34:31]
Cletus McFarland
That's what I don't want.
[34:32]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
They're more common than I think we realize.
[34:34]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[34:35]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You know what I mean? And it. Years ago, I could walk up to that race car. There's a car sitting here in the shop that's from 1980 that my dad race. We could walk up and look at that car and go, it's missing 80% of the safety that we got today. No headrest, everything. Seats bad. Everything's bad. You know, and they walk. They walked up to that car in 1980 and thought, this is way safer than.
[34:59]
Cletus McFarland
This is very.
[35:00]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
This is very safe. We've been working for years to make it safe. Look at how safe this is.
[35:03]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[35:04]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You know, and I started driving race cars that didn't have head. We didn't have headrest. Then we started to use one, then we had two, then we had nets, then we had, you know, now we got this massive cocoon. So, like, I've seen this crazy evolution of safety.
[35:16]
Cletus McFarland
Same thing with the drag cars.
[35:18]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah. Tons of safety poured into the interior of the car over the last 20. 25 years. But I thought they were pretty damn good 25 years ago.
[35:26]
Cletus McFarland
I know.
[35:26]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
That's a good point, but we're massively forward, and.
[35:29]
Cletus McFarland
And we always are like, oh, why do we got to do this? You know, when they make us add a certain safety equipment, asset, like, this is crazy. And then two years later, I'm like, oh, I'm glad that's there. Yeah, I wouldn't race a car without that.
[35:40]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Exactly.
[35:40]
Cletus McFarland
I don't know why that's like that.
[35:42]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
So talking about the concussions, just a little funny thing about that. I was out of the car in 16 getting. Trying to heal from some. Some concussions I had, and I was going to come back. And in the off season, I had a meeting with nascar, and we're all sitting up in this office here. Two of the top guys in the. In the. In the safety car. You know, competition side of things were there, and I was like, I wanted y' all to come here. I wanted to meet with y'. All. I'm gonna race next year, but I don't want to use a headrest. I want to go back to my old. It was a. We used to run these headrests that when you. They were just 8th inch aluminum, and when you would hit anything, they would just bend out of the way.
[36:26]
Cletus McFarland
Okay.
[36:26]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You know, and your head would go this way or that. And I was like, I don't want to be boxed in on that hard foam, because I think, you know, when I hit, I just hit the foam in my. And my brain bounces around in my head. I mean, I want my head to go this way and not my brain just taking all of that abuse. And they were like, yeah, no, we're not gonna let you do that. You're not gonna be the only guy out there with, like, 1995 headrest, you know? And I'm like, well, that's. That's what I think is better for me, because we got the Hans now, and that's gonna keep my head from being ripped off my shoulders. And so that should do all the.
[36:58]
Cletus McFarland
And they just immediately were like, no, not doing that.
[37:00]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Like, darn it.
[37:01]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. I mean, I will say NASCAR's safety.
[37:05]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[37:06]
Cletus McFarland
Stuff is like leaps and bounds ahead of other stuff I've done. I mean, I've already. I got fined a couple times for not wearing the right stuff.
[37:15]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[37:16]
Cletus McFarland
And I'm like, damn, they are on me. And then after the ARCA race, they came and checked all my underwear.
[37:22]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yes, they will.
[37:23]
Cletus McFarland
I'm like, they. I mean, they do not play.
[37:27]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
That's the way.
[37:28]
Cletus McFarland
So. Which is good.
[37:28]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
We got rules.
[37:29]
Cletus McFarland
It's good. It's just. It was a little bit of a shock.
[37:31]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Well, I think that we realize. I remember you. You were somewhere and you didn't have something. Was it your. What did you not have?
[37:39]
Cletus McFarland
I wore. I wore a Simpson hybrid sport, not the Simpson hybrid.
[37:45]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Gotcha. You have the right thing. And I remember that. And you were like. You were kind of taken aback. They were like, so particular.
[37:51]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[37:52]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
And I think that. Well, I know. And your reaction to that made them go, we might better watch this guy. And now you're getting a little more of attention.
[38:00]
Cletus McFarland
You know, until I just wear it by the book.
[38:02]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I think until they feel like you've got it covered, they'll keep checking you.
[38:06]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[38:06]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Right. And it's not out of. They're not picking on you. They just want to make sure you're safe.
[38:11]
Cletus McFarland
I mean, honestly, though, circling around on the whole safety thing, it's. It's good for me to have people that hold me to that standard. And it kind of helps me in all my other stuff I learned. I used to not wear underwear in my drag car. I just put on my suit.
[38:24]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[38:25]
Cletus McFarland
And after I went to the R D center and they showed me burns on people. I just wear my underwear now. Even though it's a pain to get out. Yes.
[38:33]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
And it's uncomfortable.
[38:34]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. So if I'm in my fast car, like, I'm putting that stuff on. So, you know, I. Oh, we got a quick. We got a quick surprise for you. Got you guys.
[38:43]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I see sun drop. What is he doing?
[38:46]
Cletus McFarland
We got you some liver mush.
[38:47]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Hell, yes.
[38:49]
Cletus McFarland
Okay. With some toast with mustard on it.
[38:51]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
What?
[38:52]
Cletus McFarland
So we wanted to get you locked in.
[38:53]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah. What is the deal with liver mush?
[38:56]
Cletus McFarland
Like you told us in the last
[38:58]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
podcast, you, like, have you ever ate any?
[39:00]
Cletus McFarland
I had it one time and I did not like it. So I'm going to try it again today.
[39:04]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You're going to try with you. All right.
[39:06]
Cletus McFarland
And we got it. How you want it? Thin.
[39:08]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[39:08]
Cletus McFarland
Crispy.
[39:09]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
That's right.
[39:10]
Cletus McFarland
So what are we doing here, by the way, people at home? This is liver mush.
[39:14]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Liver mush. I wish they didn't call it that. It's kind of like ground up sausage.
[39:22]
Cletus McFarland
You know what I heard? Apparently they take the head of a pig.
[39:26]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I hope not.
[39:27]
Cletus McFarland
And they boil it until everything is out of it, and then they pull the bone out.
[39:32]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
No, no, no.
[39:33]
Cletus McFarland
It's only what I heard.
[39:35]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I don't know who told you that, George.
[39:37]
Cletus McFarland
Is this accurate?
[39:38]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I'm 51 years old and I've never heard that.
[39:41]
Cletus McFarland
I'm not really sure what I'm eating right now.
[39:44]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I'm not either.
[39:44]
Cletus McFarland
I can't even describe what it tastes like. It's just liver mush. I'm gonna go ahead and fold her up. Yeah, you know, keep it over here. I don't want to. I don't want to waste it.
[39:56]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
It comes in a. It comes in a square and they have this stuff up north, but it's called like scrapple or something. But that's a much better. Yeah, a little different.
[40:07]
Cletus McFarland
Scrapple sounds appetizing.
[40:08]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah, man. Thank you.
[40:10]
Cletus McFarland
I'll give it a 5.5 out of 10. I would say it'd be my personal. I mean, I can tell by you you're thinking nine.
[40:19]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I like it. Yeah, I like it. I do. I do. I've went this long in my life and I just think I just go ahead and ride this out.
[40:26]
Cletus McFarland
Okay. I won't say thank you, George.
[40:30]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah, thank you, George. That's very nice.
[40:34]
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[43:37]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah, Travis. Hiring Indeed is all you need. Join the 3.3 million employers worldwide that use Indeed to connect with quality talent that fits their needs. Sponsored Jobs Boost your posts for quality candidates so you can reach the exact people you want for faster.
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[44:17]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Indeed.comdalejr Terms and conditions apply. Hiring. Do it the right way with Indeed. Let's talk about arca. What, how many ARC races you run in this year?
[44:31]
Cletus McFarland
Well, first of all, I love arca.
[44:34]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
What do you love?
[44:34]
Cletus McFarland
I absolutely love arca.
[44:35]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
What is it?
[44:36]
Cletus McFarland
I don't know, man. Ripping in arca. I love, love the, the cautions where you're. You just have all the time in the world. I love everything about it.
[44:49]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah, no, no, there's no competition. There's no, there's no live stops.
[44:53]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah, it's. Yeah, it's like. I don't know what they call them. They're.
[44:57]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[44:58]
Cletus McFarland
Semi live pit stops or, you know. Yeah, it's badass. You, you're out there with a bunch of people learning, you know, for the most part, you're too wide that you get. So you got a lot of room. And it's not the most competitive thing. Like Biff told me this. In arca, there's going to be about 10 cars that are competitive. Competitive in truck. There's going to be 20 trucks and O'Reilly's, there's going to be about 25 cars that are competitive. And then cup, it's going to be like everyone's competitive. So, you know, an arca, I can do well. I don't have as much pressure on the pit stops. Oh, they call it a modified live pit stop. That's what it is. And the way that they slow everything down for us drivers is great. And also the laps are not ridiculous. Yeah. I mean, how many laughs they do at Daytona? 200.
[45:51]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I love the long way. I like long.
[45:54]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah, you do like the long.
[45:55]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I feel like that. I feel like that I'm a good game manager, so, like, the longer the race, the better shot I have. I'm not a hot lapper. I'm not going to do well in the short ones.
[46:05]
Cletus McFarland
I can tell you, though, that at most of my ARCA races, I Wish There was 20 more laps. So I'm, I do feel that a little bit, but, like, I just love it, man. Like, I'm really enjoying it. I'm doing. I did Daytona and then I'm doing Rockingham. I'm doing Kansas and then Michigan.
[46:24]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You ran Bristol at the back end of last year in the ARCA race. And you were.
[46:29]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. I gotta ask you something about that.
[46:31]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You Were live. You know, everybody was able to ride along and watch your in car. I watched your in car the entire race. You could see you. You could see this massive, like, change in how you drove the car. You just like, it was like, it was really. I mean, not, not. Not many times do we really have an opportunity to ride on board with a. With a person mid pack or an ARCA race. Right. To your point, most of the people out there are learning and trying to figure it out.
[47:00]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. Specifically someone who really doesn't know what they're doing.
[47:03]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
And we. You've been around the track before, so you kind of knew where you were at. But watching you and how you use the throttle and all that stuff was so fascinating.
[47:11]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. Because I actually saw your clip, you know, last week when I was under criticism.
[47:16]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Dude, the difference between the first 10 laps in the last laps of the race was insane.
[47:20]
Cletus McFarland
What was I doing so wrong? Just. Just off top of your head?
[47:24]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Well, a lot of times there's two ways to sort of do it when you get out there. You're gonna either overdrive it, you're gonna drive off in the corner way too far, have to stop, and have. Have a really slow minimum speed in the middle of the corner. But the most common thing is to not get in there far enough and deep enough. And you're picking the throttle up way too soon, and you're coming up off the corner, losing the nose, getting tight because you're carrying way too much speed on exit. And so, like, you were kind of. You were probably under driving the entry and, you know, and you get down in the corner and you're back in the gas way too soon. But, like, you started to shift that as you got more and more comfortable.
[48:02]
Cletus McFarland
It's still a little scary, I'm not gonna lie. I mean, I think everyone watches from TV and they know the cars are fast, but when you're in there, it's super fast. Super fast.
[48:12]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[48:12]
Cletus McFarland
So I was a little cautious at first, but then Biff was kind of talking. He's like, further, further. And then I started hearing the chip and I'm like, oh, that must be going way further now. But.
[48:25]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
But you can feel, though, once you start to get the car down in the corner deeper and you're moving your throttle around, that kind of puts the corner together better. Yeah, because there's some times when you come off the corner and you're like, plowing in the turtle, you know, because you got the gas way back there.
[48:40]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. Literally yesterday in the simulator, they pull me Out. They overlay Jesse's data.
[48:46]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[48:47]
Cletus McFarland
They're like, you're just off too soon. And I was doing the same thing. And, I mean, looking back at the footage, I think that's what I was doing at Rockingham, too. I think that's why I hit the wall at your test.
[48:56]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yes, you were.
[48:57]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[48:58]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
So that is. That's it. If you are. If you don't take the RCR deal, you're not sitting there overlaying your data to Jesse, a guy who knows how to drive the car, and you're not able to look at it and go, there's what I need to do different. That is, I need to do this exact thing differently. You can't see that. I can't any other way.
[49:21]
Cletus McFarland
I could run ARCA for three more years and. And not see.
[49:24]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
That is why taking the RCR deal is going to make you a better race car driver. And not only are they passionate people that actually want to do the right thing and help you and give you those tools. Right. And have you in the sim, and they seriously want to take on this challenge, which will be fun for them and you. Yeah, but that's exactly why you should do it. That's why I told you to do it, because you're getting data, you're getting real information that you truly can understand. And go, all right, I see. I need to go from. And instead of lifting at the 300 mark, I need to lift it to 200.
[49:55]
Cletus McFarland
When they show me the. The data, I'm like, okay, so what is that, like a tenth of a second? He's like, clicks a button, clicks another button. He's like, it's 240ft. I'm like, what he go? He's full throttle. 200ft longer.
[50:09]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[50:10]
Cletus McFarland
I just couldn't. I'm like, how does it make the turn? Yeah. And then he's like, oh, well, he's 150 pounds more brake pressure. I'm like, damn. Yeah, I'm a wussy. You know? So then I just sat down the simulator, did the same thing, and, like, knocked you tenths off my. My time.
[50:28]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[50:29]
Cletus McFarland
So now, I mean, I think realistically, the problem that I am facing is consistency, you know, Like, I was trying to do what he was doing, but I just couldn't do it more than, you know, two, three laps in a row. And then I'd tap the wall or get loose or go high in the turn because I didn't get down to the line. So I think my outlook on now going to Rockingham in the O'Reilly's car is just finish the race is priority number one. And get. Get as many laughs as I can.
[51:00]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah. Yeah. That's a tough thing. When you're in the car, your competitive nature gets the best of you. And if you don't feel like that, you're measuring up to your own personal expectations, much less what you think everybody else wants you to achieve. That's when you can overdo it or start pushing yourself too hard.
[51:18]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[51:18]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You have to figure out a way to understand what the game, what the game day goal is and adhere to it at all times. So, like, my Xfinity guys are going to Coda last weekend, and I told one of them, he's like, you know, I've been. I've been working hard on the sim. I've been trying my ass off, try to get faster at road course racing. I'm not very good at it, but I'm working hard and I'm like, you're going to start the race, you're going to be really slow. You're going to qualify bad. He did. I said, when the race starts, you're going to get faster. Every lap, you're going to get smarter, faster, smarter, faster. I said, by the end of the race, you're going to be really proud of yourself. But you still need to remember what the ultimate original goal was at the start and not to try too hard. Start getting too confident, start making mistakes. That's what happens. Like, you'll get out there and you'll be cautious, just like you were in that arc car, and you'll be out there driving, and that's what you need to do. Right. And then at the end of the race, you're gonna think you got more the opportunity to push. That's when you're gonna have that thing step out like the truck did it. Rockingham. Right. And that's what you gotta be careful of. Right. It's like, all right, I'm in the final stretch. Let's get it home.
[52:28]
Cletus McFarland
I was having too much fun. Yeah. Yeah. And even the truck at Daytona, you know, I remember in my brain just my entire goal was to stay on the dude in front of me's bumper. And if I just let that go a little bit, I wouldn't erect.
[52:43]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
No.
[52:44]
Cletus McFarland
Because I was so hard in the throttle to keep up with the guys. Yeah. And going back, I wish I would have just stayed, you know, a little bit more distance, given the truck a little more room. I wouldn't have been so hard on the throttle. Getting out of four to chase the guy down, and then I wouldn't have
[53:02]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
blew it, but, yeah, these races are longer than you think, you know, and in your mind, like that very. That thing you're discussing about being on that truck, you know, being on the bumper, the guy in front of you, that seems to be, like, so critical in that moment.
[53:16]
Cletus McFarland
But it's not.
[53:16]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
But, I mean, what, 10, 20, 30 minutes later? It's not that important. You did that, right?
[53:21]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah, it's not. And in the ARC car, too, you know, last year, I really, as everyone thinks that person wrecked me, that spun out in front of me. I don't know if you recall, I wrecked myself by not just slowing down, but I was so scared of losing the pack that I kept driving too long. I saw the smoke. I should have bailed. When I saw the smoke this year, I saw the smoke, I bailed. And missed the accident.
[53:51]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
That's right.
[53:52]
Cletus McFarland
And lived to see another day. But I was also. I was. When I got in that arc car this year in Daytona, I was like, I cannot do anything stupid today after yet, you know, last night, I mean, I was literally on my best behavior as far as the best I could do. And then it worked out great. So, like, I just got to remind myself that, like, those little moments don't matter as much as I think they do.
[54:15]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
That's right.
[54:16]
Cletus McFarland
And then at the end of the race, you know, I'm like, drafting Bobby Earnhardt. Word for that. It was so sick. And, you know, we're passing people, having a blast, and those last 10 laps are what I really look forward to again, is like, getting back out there in ARCA and doing that again.
[54:35]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah, I think that, you know, that'll be the challenge for you. We talked about just literally just having seat time and understanding throttle and how deep to get in a corner and all of those little, you know, nuances. But the patience, you know, and patience isn't something that you've had to really have in your line of work. Right. Y' all are by the seat of the pants, just going all the time, bigger, bigger, bigger. And just the bigger and the wilder it can be. Right? So. But in. In. In racing, it's a. It's measured. Everything's measured. Everything's finite. Everything's perfect. Everything's. You know, and there's moments now when you got to hang it out. There's moments when you're like, all right, down in this corner. Here it is.
[55:16]
Cletus McFarland
I know. Yeah.
[55:17]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You know, who's going to be who's Going to be the one.
[55:20]
Cletus McFarland
You got to be able to make something great happen when it comes, those moments.
[55:23]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
When it comes. Yeah.
[55:25]
Cletus McFarland
If there's a guy smoking in front of you, I definitely know now I'm. I'm waiting for the caution.
[55:31]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[55:32]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[55:32]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Live to live this. I like to say the phrase of living for the next corner. Living. Living to race the next corner.
[55:38]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. Um, that's a good one for me.
[55:40]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah, it is. I mean, you're learning so much so fast, and, you know, I, I don't envy the. I don't envy the position you're in. I. I'm lucky and fortunate that I grew up around it and was a witness to it. And, like, before I ever drove a race car, I sort of had some idea of what I was getting myself into. Right. And I don't envy you coming in here trying to tackle all this at the rate you're trying to tackle it.
[56:06]
Cletus McFarland
But, you know, hey, I actually am, like, excited. I'm just so excited about stock car racing, which I didn't think would ever be possible.
[56:14]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[56:14]
Cletus McFarland
Because when I left Daytona, all I was thinking about was like, nascar.
[56:18]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I mean, five years ago, you weren't.
[56:20]
Cletus McFarland
Oh, it wasn't even, I mean, two years ago. My radar. But I'm just really excited about it. And I think the most exciting thing is seeing all of my followers getting into it. Like, we're actually having a great time with it, and the videos are doing well, so I don't think I'm annoying them with it yet.
[56:37]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Right. That's, that's, that's the next thing that brings up a great topic of conversation. So you've been making a living as a content creator, and you're. You're doing a badass job.
[56:49]
Commercial/Announcer
Right.
[56:49]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You've. You're very successful and you know exactly what kind of content your fans want.
[56:53]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[56:54]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
But you have this other thing that you're now interested in and want to do. Right. And you want. You. You know, that you. You have to dedicate some time to this. How do you. Have you. Do you think about, like, the balance and.
[57:06]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. So, I mean, I feel as though the drag racing program, we have to stay committed to that through all this. You know, my goal, like, and last year we had a great drag racing year. You know, we won a very big race. We won a grudge race. We. We took the cars out and did awesome things. We broke the radial mile per hour record. We did a bunch of great stuff. So, like, my goal is to, you know, if all these. These people came and followed me because of what I was doing at that moment. Drag racing, I don't want to let it go and go chase this new dream. But also just based on the views and comments, there is indication that they, they like it too. So, you know, I'm announcing this big deal, but at the same time, it's only three races. So it's, you know, I think I'm maintaining a decent balance of it. They'll let me know if I'm not. Because my fans are not afraid to speak up and be like, please, this ain't it. We've, we've done some stuff where they said, this ain't it.
[58:07]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Really? Yeah.
[58:07]
Cletus McFarland
So right now I'm just kind of getting more and more into it. I don't know that I could do more than what I am. But I have a question for you at the end that, that'll. I could ask it now.
[58:17]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[58:20]
Cletus McFarland
I was going to say, like just without thinking too deep into it, if someone called, if you were me and someone called you and said we want to give you a full time cup ride, you know, what would it take to accept that deal and would it be worth the experience to go do the 38 race season right now? I'm just saying if someone did at
[58:45]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
this moment, yeah, man. I'd have to say no.
[58:50]
Cletus McFarland
That's kind of what we think too.
[58:51]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[58:52]
Cletus McFarland
I mean, George and I have talked about it a lot and if someone said we got a full ride for you, like, part of me would be like, oh my God, I gotta do it. But I just don't think it'd be worth it.
[59:07]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I would tell. I mean, I don't, I think for me, I don't either. I think it would go horribly. I think you would, I think you would be miserable.
[59:16]
Cletus McFarland
Oh, and that.
[59:17]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
No, I think, I think, I don't know that the car would be good enough for you to even know what a good car feels like. I don't.
[59:24]
Cletus McFarland
Oh. And I'm saying also think of it in not just cup, even in O'Reilly series. Oh. Like run a full season. I was, I think of it less about the race car side, more about the being gone.
[59:38]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I thought it was cup specifically.
[59:39]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[59:39]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[59:39]
Cletus McFarland
I guess I.
[59:40]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You kind of teed it up as cup only.
[59:43]
Cletus McFarland
Let's, let's teed up. Up his cup only. That would go horribly. I totally agree with that. But think of it more in like giving up my time home. Every weekend away from the YouTube channel, all that.
[59:55]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
No, I think there's a. I mean, personally If I think that finding a Something limited is. Fits. You do have a lot of things to lose, you know, and you've great. You've created an empire that's very lucrative and very important. You got a lot of employees that depend on you. Their livelihood depends on you. You got a lot of things to consider right. Outside of your own enjoyment and whatever you might get out of racing in the darker Trucker, Xfinity or O'Reilly level. So, you know, I would. I think that there's a decision to make for you personally, man, right here and now. I can enjoy this. I can do these, you know, 15 races a year, Samarca, some truck, O'Reilly. And we'll just kind of see how it goes. And I'll just. I'm gonna study hard, I'm gonna work hard, but we'll just see where this, See where it goes or. Which is probably what I would. I would suggest. Or you dive in with everything you got. Right. And you would. You would probably give up your drag racing. You would probably give up a lot of things to really eat, sleep, live. How do I become a race car driver? And, And I don't know, that's.
[61:12]
Cletus McFarland
You suggest the first.
[61:13]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I don't suggest the all in option.
[61:15]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. And kind of what we think, you
[61:17]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
know, and you can, you're gonna have. Listen, with the, with the limited option, the. There's still the potential that it becomes more, you know, what if. What if you do develop and what if you do start to show some real promise and somebody says, hey, there's the glimpses that we need to see. It's there and things start to click. Then, you know, you can sort of pivot a little bit, but I would just stay. Stay the course. Yeah. Because you, you have too much at stake on the other end. Right. With all of the other things you've created and developed.
[61:49]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. And I've thought about, you know, what I could do in those situations, but it just seems like no matter what, if I were. No matter what I do, the balance, the greater balance is going to be thrown off of being with my family. Most importantly, you got a new.
[62:05]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah. Your family's growing.
[62:06]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. So I think you're right. And I'm just a couple races a year, the fun big ones. And, and then just.
[62:14]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
And you might enjoy this late model, you know, and you'll get in your late model and run a couple races at your track.
[62:20]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[62:20]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
That could grow into something. And that's, that's, that's affordable in the grand scheme of things.
[62:26]
Cletus McFarland
Like five minutes from my house and
[62:29]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
there's racing in Alabama, Georgia, you know, you can go and travel and pick you a damn dozen races to run a year.
[62:37]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. I think that the late model, like it's just going to help me get that car control. You know, the, the wedge in the cars is what's throwing me off. Like I can save a car from getting loose.
[62:50]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Right.
[62:51]
Cletus McFarland
No problem.
[62:51]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[62:52]
Cletus McFarland
A normal car, you know, like I sent you a video. That Cadillac drifting like that stuff. I love doing that. But the wedge and the trucks and the cars is just, that's what's. Once you go back the wrong way. Back the other way.
[63:05]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[63:05]
Cletus McFarland
It opens up. Yeah. So weird.
[63:08]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[63:08]
Cletus McFarland
And I don't have enough experiences. Yeah.
[63:10]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
It's got all the weight on the right front and left rear and when it turns right, it dumps on the left front.
[63:16]
Cletus McFarland
When I was in the truck, I didn't even hit the wall. I just over corrected and hit the wall. Yeah. So got to figure that out.
[63:23]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah. Well, the truck, you were out there by yourself and that's a newly repaved track. And repaves are sketchy.
[63:31]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[63:31]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You know, you're. There's a lot of throttle, there's a lot of speed and you're. You know, when it does, it doesn't have a big moment. It's like it's. It's a quick snap.
[63:41]
Commercial/Announcer
Right.
[63:42]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
When you race at your track.
[63:43]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[63:44]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Right. With that worn out asphalt, that car steps out real slow. Right. It's like. Yeah. Yeah. You know, drifting and all those things. It's very similar at a very high gripped racetrack with the radial tire. And driving that truck and. Or the rally or the cup car at a high grip, newly repaved like Rockingham, the moment's going to be like. Yeah. And there's no room. Like you're in the wall.
[64:08]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[64:08]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[64:08]
Cletus McFarland
When you're three wide, you're just.
[64:10]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah. You're in big trouble. Yeah.
[64:12]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. So I just got to work on learning that car control.
[64:15]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah. I'm curious about your late model stuff because. So that's what I'm racing now is like late model stock stuff.
[64:20]
Cletus McFarland
I was going to talk to you about the late model because there's pro and super, but the supers race at my track.
[64:25]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
That's right.
[64:26]
Cletus McFarland
But the pro is the cars tour, right?
[64:28]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Well, we have. Yeah. We run the pro car and pros run.
[64:31]
Cletus McFarland
It's just the engine.
[64:32]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yep. Just an engine. Same car, crate engine. Probably a couple hundred less horsepower.
[64:38]
Cletus McFarland
So I'll probably just. I have to Have a tall man car built. That's the problem. Because I would love to just rent a late model. Yeah. But I have to have the tall man car built, so that's why I gotta buy the damn thing.
[64:49]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[64:49]
Cletus McFarland
So I'm buying it.
[64:50]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
You know, about the car, you're gonna have to have somebody, you know, kind of run it, maintain it for you.
[64:55]
Cletus McFarland
And then I'm hoping I can just plug it into fun races. Like, I, I, that's exactly what you. I want you or Kevin to hit me up and say, this is the one you got to come to. And I'm going to go, yeah.
[65:03]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Okay. So I think you can absolutely plug it into races. Like, that's short track, grassroots, local racing. You're aware of that. You've got them. They run races at your track. And you kind of see what those outfits look like.
[65:15]
Cletus McFarland
It looks like fun.
[65:16]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
It is fun. That tire is a gumball. That old Hoosier is a gumball. Sort of. Not a radial. Right. It's got a lot of. It wallers around like a street tire. Like a regular. Yeah. You'll love that. But I think you're gonna enjoy that.
[65:32]
Cletus McFarland
I hope I do.
[65:33]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[65:34]
Cletus McFarland
Because it's kind of a little project I'm committing to.
[65:36]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Well, I would buy the car. I mean, you can if you want to get a pro. Because it's a little bit better, more of an entry car than the super. The super is going to be more expensive because of the engine.
[65:48]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[65:49]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
And to maintain it, you could just have the pros come to your track. You just get one of the locals, you know, get a pro series, call up some of these guys and say, hey, man, let's have a pro race. Our super supers are coming. Let's have a pro race the day before.
[66:01]
Cletus McFarland
That's true.
[66:01]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I could just tell them who's your sanctioning body that comes to your track.
[66:07]
Cletus McFarland
Well, we have Ricky Brooks. Right.
[66:09]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Tell Ricky Brooks to bring a pro class, have a pro race. You'll run it.
[66:12]
Cletus McFarland
Didn't even think of that.
[66:13]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
He'll say, hell yes. If you're gonna race it, I'll definitely do that. I'll have a pro race.
[66:18]
Cletus McFarland
Say no more, brother.
[66:19]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
And you could do that the night before or the day before the super. And now you're at night.
[66:23]
Cletus McFarland
I was already thinking, like, the super sounds like a lot.
[66:26]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
It is probably for the first.
[66:29]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. I was like, I want to start out and if you like your pro,
[66:31]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
you still got the car. You just change the motor.
[66:33]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah. So if you know the biggly which is our big one. I could just change the motor if I'm feeling good. If I'm feeling spunky, you could definitely run it. Okay.
[66:40]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
All right.
[66:40]
Cletus McFarland
I like that.
[66:41]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[66:41]
Cletus McFarland
I appreciate all the advice you've been giving me, too.
[66:44]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I'm always open to helping you, man. I mean, you're a good guy. I want you. I want you to have a great experience. I think you're genuine at heart, and I think you really do, you know, want some. Want feedback and helpful information. Anytime I've been critical, you text me and said, hey, man, I saw your thing, and I appreciate this. You know, I saw what you said, and I appreciate what you said. You know, sometimes people don't take that stuff very well. You know, some drivers don't know how to. Some drivers don't know how to hear criticism or.
[67:13]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah, it's one of those things. You know, I think being a YouTuber for so long, like, I've just. I've had everything in the world said about me, you know, and I. I expect way more. When I went into drag racing, I was the class clown.
[67:28]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
They.
[67:28]
Cletus McFarland
They all thought I was a joke because of the Mike. The way I had my car set up and the way we ran it, it was a joke, you know? And I think right now I'm. I'm the rookie, and people can say whatever they want, but when. When I keep coming back every time and they realize that their words don't affect me time and time again, they're going to run out of breath. Because as long as I'm having fun, I'm going to keep showing up at these NASCAR races. And whether I'm an arca truck or O'Reilly's, their words on Facebook will not change the fact that I'm going to come back and try again. As long as I'm having fun, I love that. The.
[68:06]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I feel like. I feel like that everybody can get behind the idea of partnering up with RCR because of the tools and the help that they'll give you to get better. I think everybody can get behind the idea of you getting a late model. And even if you're just racing laps at your own track on a Tuesday afternoon, just getting laps, right? Buy four sets of tires, go out there and spend four hours by yourself, it don't matter. I think when people see that and then you run an arcamore, work into it. Just a little bit of work. That's all I think they need to see.
[68:37]
Cletus McFarland
And I think to your point, too, it's like, for me, the Getting a sponsor is ever. A lot of guys have to rely on their driving skills to get sponsorships. And for me, I'm relying on something else. So to have this ticket in with, you know, no driver skills, show up, and just do stupid stuff like. I absolutely understand the criticism, and that's why I'm hoping to do exactly what you said I should do and then understand that wedge a little more. I didn't realize, you know, in stock car racing, the Crown. The Crown Vic stuff is great, but it's symmetrical load, and it just doesn't teach you what you need to know. The. The wedge is. That's what. That's what I got humbled by.
[69:23]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Well, I look forward to seeing what you do this year, man, and talking to you over the course of the process. And I appreciate you coming today. So do you know the races you're running? Can you tell us what race you're running?
[69:36]
Cletus McFarland
Okay, so this is actually something that I meant to talk about. So I had.
[69:40]
Commercial/Announcer
We.
[69:41]
Cletus McFarland
We intended to run the super speedways because I told them that's what I want to do. I love the super speedways, but NASCAR said I cannot run Talladega unless I go to Rockingham first and do well. So the plan is I run Rockingham, don't do anything stupid.
[69:58]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
That's soon.
[70:00]
Cletus McFarland
That soon? Yeah. And I. I get a rookie test. Yeah. And then I'm gonna go to Rockingham, do the actual race.
[70:06]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Is the rookie test at Rockingham.
[70:08]
Cletus McFarland
Yep.
[70:08]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yep.
[70:09]
Cletus McFarland
So do you know when that is? I do.
[70:11]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Can't tell me.
[70:12]
Cletus McFarland
Do you want to go? I don't want to say it on here, but.
[70:14]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Okay, let's not. Yeah, you can tell me later.
[70:16]
Cletus McFarland
Okay. Just so it's, you know. Yeah. We're not being filmed.
[70:20]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Don't want to be. I don't want everybody.
[70:21]
Cletus McFarland
I just don't want any pressure that I know. But if you want to go.
[70:24]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I love that, dude. You're like. That's what people want to see, is that you're, like, self aware about, you know, Man. Hey, I want to go there. I don't want any pressure. I just want to focus on this. I want to do this.
[70:34]
Cletus McFarland
That's all I want to do is I, like. I have to almost take off my YouTuber hat when I get in these cars, which is not the usual case.
[70:42]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah.
[70:42]
Cletus McFarland
In the drag cars, I can stay youtuber. I can stay Cletus. But when I get in these damn NASCARs, I got to start taking that hat off. Yeah.
[70:52]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
But. All right, so run to Rockingham.
[70:53]
Cletus McFarland
Do Rockingham, everything goes well. Yeah. Then it's, it's in NASCAR's hands to.
[71:00]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Oh, one. Oh, just Rockingham. And if you do well, that might clear you for Talladega.
[71:05]
Cletus McFarland
Talladega. That, that's the goal. I would love to run this Talladega. I love Talladega. It's so wide. I mean.
[71:12]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Yeah. Let me tell you something. They'll be judging you about how like to know this, there is a chance that you will be passed by the leaders.
[71:24]
Cletus McFarland
Correct.
[71:24]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Right. At Rockingham, you will be, you will be judged by how well you get out of their way. That will be a thing that people will pay attention to. And so I would have conversations with, with RCR about what the etiquette is, what they would expect in certain situations, you know, and do your best. Like in those moments again, it's like, damn, I don't want to give up a ton of lap time here. But, but, dude, just do what you need to do to make it easy for those guys when they're trying to go by in that moment. Just, just, just.
[72:01]
Cletus McFarland
And that's a stay bottom.
[72:03]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
To have conversations with rcr. I'm not going to tell you that.
[72:07]
Cletus McFarland
That's, that's a good point.
[72:08]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
That's for the team to tell you.
[72:10]
Cletus McFarland
Probably going to be their cars and your cars. Yeah. Coming around.
[72:13]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
They need to tell you and you need to hear from them on like, what the etiquette is and what they would expect. And I would, you know, that will be a moment where it could go really good or really bad. Right. If you impede, even if you were just to impede somebody and cost them a position or something. Right. I mean, that's going to, People are going to latch on to that. Right. So, like, you know, I, I will give you some advice on, on. I won't tell you what RCR is going to tell you to do, but like, if, if a guy's trying, if you, if it's very bottom dominant, which Rockingham typically is pretty bottom dominant, right. There's not a, there's not a high groove. So the guys, as they're driving around the track, elite guys, they're trying to get into the corner and get right into the bottom groove. And if one of them is coming by you on the outside, don't drive into the corner with them and not allow them to get that bottom. Like just lift that car length earlier to let them clear in, in front of you. Right. If you go in the corner and make them work the corner on outside the groove, they're a little annoyed by that. So just silly little nuances like that. Don't worry about it today. But have a conversation with RCR and they'll give you the tools and information to be like, all right, man. When leaders come, there's a couple things they like. This is a couple things that I probably would be paying attention to. And it's less like, the more you can make it a non issue, the better. Right. In that moment, be the non story. Right as the lapper, as those guys are coming by and they're racing side by side and stuff. You want to be. You want nothing to do with it.
[73:48]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah, right. Be a blur on the screen.
[73:49]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
That's right.
[73:50]
Cletus McFarland
Okay.
[73:50]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
And that could happen in parts of the race, and that's fine. You know, I got lapped in all my first races. I don't, you know, I went to Daytona, I wrecked. I went to Daytona and Talladega and wrecked out of the first five times I ran there before it actually started, like, clicking. I wrecked. I wrecked it. Daytona, Talladega, Daytona, Talladega, Daytona, Talladega. Over and over and over before it finally started, like, making sense. So, I mean, it's. It's that kind of thing where like, when you're running that race and you're sitting there going, I'm 25th or whatever and it's. And I'm not fast, I'm. Here comes the leaders. Man, this is hurt. It's hurting my pride. You know, you just got to kind of stay the course. It's a humbling. It's going to be humbling. And just don't, don't worry too much about that. People are going, you're gonna, you're going to make yourself and a lot of people happy if you bring that car to pit road in one piece when the checker flag is over, all you got to worry about.
[74:49]
Cletus McFarland
I do feel really, really good about the, the pressure side of things. Like, I'm not going to feel bad if I'm 30th.
[74:56]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Nobody's gonna.
[74:57]
Cletus McFarland
And RCR, nobody's on that same page. Tommy's Express, we told them this is gonna be, you know, a total learning thing. And like, they, they were on board with the fact that I'm getting this opportunity to learn and they know, you know, winners.
[75:12]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
No one is going to care where you finish. It ain't about a performance thing. Can he get out there, have. Understand the etiquette and the racing and get it home, Bring it home.
[75:25]
Cletus McFarland
Yep, yep. I like that.
[75:26]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Amen. Well, RCR is A great group of people that can help you do that, man. And I'm glad you're getting this opportunity. Please. Thanks for coming through today. Appreciate you, man.
[75:34]
Cletus McFarland
Hey, man, thanks for the living mush, brother. That's right.
[75:37]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Cletus McFarlane on the Dell Junior download.
[75:43]
Cletus McFarland
All right.
[75:43]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
That's a great conversation with Cletus McFarland. Just appreciate him get getting in here and, and he text me a while back and it's like, man, I got this opportunity to do this deal with rcr. I was like, I was like, well, I don't know if you're ready for the rally series, but you're damn sure ready for some, you know, an opportunity to get schooled and, and look, he can, he can run all the ARCA races in the world, but the knowledge that he'll gain from being in an organization like rcr, that is exactly. If he's really going to do this and really going to try to get better, that's how it's going to happen. And so they'll give him the, you know, the information and they'll know. They'll also be smart enough to know how to rein it in. Right. He needs people around him that are going to go, that's. Don't, you're getting too far out of the box. Let's get back in here or you're not ready for this, let's do this instead. And so that's what I think is great about the RCR deal. So I'm pumped for that. And I think they speak the same language. Cletus and rcr, you know, they're kind of very similar. I just think it'd be a good fit. So hoping that's exactly what happens. And you know, I, I've. There's this debate about his inexperience and what happened at Daytona. Look, a lot of people spin off, turn for it, Daytona. I've done it. And it just. It can happen to anybody. I wish he'd had more experience, so maybe he could have called it because I wanted to see how he was going to do in the race. I hate we didn't get to see him race. The race is really the only thing. But I go back and forth on the eligibility and, and what people need to do to be cleared to race. I go back and forth with that. There's times when. There's times when I'm on the side of man. There needs to be a system. There needs to be checks and balances and you've got to have done this to get to this. And then I think back and I know this won't be a popular opinion, it won't. But is the truth. I'm. I am very nostalgic and I can't help it. I really can't. And so I don't try to ignore it. But when I look back at NASCAR at all levels back in the 70s, 80s, 90s, all the way up through, there's a lot of examples of people that went to race Daytona and Talladega and had no real experience at any big racetrack. And now we've learned a lot from those scenarios. And there's been some, you know, some things that probably shouldn't have happened, but I don't know that we. I don't know how we could draw like a finite perfect line of, you know, that here's what you have to accomplish and do in every single scenario to get to that next opportunity. I battle back and forth with that one. So I really, I mean, I'll be honest. I think the only truly way, I think the only truly great way to have a sort of a governing over leveling up is through a committee of drivers.
[79:14]
Cletus McFarland
Yeah.
[79:15]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
And so, you know, there's this fun story about how they used to have a rookie test at Darlington. You could go race at other racetracks on the NASCAR circuit without needing to do a test, but at Darlington, you were going to have to do a Ricky test. They did this every Darlington race through the 60s, 70s, 80s, and AJ Foyt signed up to race at Darlington for the first time, I believe in 81, 82, maybe 83. And he was forced to go through the rookie test. And he would, he would go out on the racetrack and run laps in front of a Cup driver. And that one of those cup drivers that day was Ricky Rudd. Half the man's age, had not ran in 8500 or hadn't really ran but about six or so years of NASCAR. But Ricky Rudd was going to be one of the people that approved A.J. foyt. And of course, A.J. passes the rookie test with flying colors. But the fact that he was put through that same process that everyone else had to go through, I really love. And I also loved that the drivers were the judge and jury for the rookies. And I think that in the only scenario that I like where you would govern something like that is through a driver committee. And so if you were trying to be cleared to race a Cup race, it would be a group of cup drivers that would make that decision. If you're trying to be approved to race in the O'Reilly it would be O'Reilly drivers that would share the racetrack with you that would make that decision and on down the line. That would be the perfect way in my opinion to do it. But I'm excited for, for Cletus and looking forward to everything he's going to be doing this year. It'll be interesting to see if he can actually start to make it click, you know, and start to understand what all this is about and Pretty remarkable. Hopefully. Yeah, hopefully everything goes well and I know we'll be watching. Be interesting to see. I think it's, it's a massive undertaking to go to Rockingham. Rockingham is a brand new racetrack in terms of surface, just treacherous. So I'm that he's got it. He went there and truck tested, got a little out of shape, got in the wall and I think the Arc or the Xfinity O'Reilly car is going to be even more difficult to drive there. So he's taking on quite a bit. So he'll have to be very reserved, very conservative and maintain that conservative nature all the way to the finish line so that nothing goes to. Nothing goes too wrong to, to be a roadblock to his racing more in the O'Reilly series. But all right. So I'm excited about the opportunity that Cletus has this year with rcr. I think it's a great decision and but we'll be looking forward to seeing all the races that he's going to run and when he might get in that late model. Fun to have him here in the Arby's studio. Remember Arby's new meat and three box. You get more meal for your money at Arby's we have the meats and we also have Cletus McFarland on the Dale Jr. Download. Check out Dirty Mo Media on Instagram, Facebook X and TikTok. At our house, family feuds are settled at 200 miles per hour. Visit the NASCAR hall of Fame and relive the iconic racing moments that made Petty, Earnhardt and Allison household names. Make new memories in our realistic racing simulators and interactive pit crew challenge. Or get up close with the cars along glory road that span generations. Plan a trip to the NASCAR hall of Fame in Charlotte. Tickets at NASCAR home NASCAR hall of Fame. This is our sport. This is our house. To be a team USA skier, it takes dedication, determination and lots of hard work. But it doesn't take all that. To score unlimited 2% cash rewards on purchases, just use the active cash Visa
[83:26]
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[83:28]
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
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