"It's kind of like getting to race two seasons."
Carl Edwards

"If I didn't race, I'd probably be driving a garbage truck or something."
Steve Wallace

"It's tough on him, because I'm harder on him than anybody."
Rusty Wallace

"I was pretty beat up last year."
Kyle Busch

"That's what was so exciting about it."
Stephen Leicht

"If they really want to do it, they can do it."
Peter Shepherd

The Busch Series has evolved over the past 25 years, but the last few have been dramatic. Nextel Cup drivers or "Buschwackers" come and go doing double duty, but the series serves as stock car training ground for open-wheel drivers like Juan Pablo Montoya, Sam Hornish Jr., and Marcus Ambrose.

As the NBS welcomes Hispanic and Australian drivers it is the NASCAR's vanguard for world racing venues in Mexico and ultimately Canada.

The NBS is also a training base to multi-car racing teams of Henricks, Roush, Evernham, Yates as well as developmental turf for icons like Rusty Wallace who is grooming his son Steven. NNCS driver Joe Nemechek operates a Busch team, but gone are the family operated single car teams that once dominated the series owing to the high cost. Economies of scale available to big teams supported by major sponsors now offer more to fans than under funded privateers.

The show is a worthy watch to spectators and viewers because of big name drivers and developing stars. Many NBS and NNCS veterans have gravitated to the Craftsman Truck Series which has its own exciting draw because trucks that aren't as aerodynamic create exciting side by side racing contending veterans against more developing drivers.

The NBS won't soon field the Car of Tomorrow coming to NNCS at select races, but will make changes like a smaller fuel cell after next season. So the series may be moving toward a more distinct identity as it maintains its role as proving ground for the top series.

The first view of the mix of Busch Series drivers is one of youth. The youngest drivers are Steve Wallace 19, Stephen Leicht,20. Kyle Busch and Peter Shepherd are 21. Carl Edwards is a very fit 27 and the oldest of this group to discuss any age advantage.

Steve Wallace

Could you comment on the advantage of your youth coupled with your considerable experience?
"I think even more experience would help me, but I think being experienced running on short tracks and really worked hard my whole life to get where I'm at right now. I've learned a lot very quickly. I've run about 20 some Busch races. It's all a part of learning. It doesn't come easy with the sport. If you're not racing, you can't expect to win races. It's for sure a lot harder than what a lot of people think."

Did racing come natural for you?
"I really didn't have anything else to do. I never played sports. It's all I ever did was race. I hated school. It was just race, race, race, work, work, work my whole life. My dad backed me, my grandpa, my uncles, everybody. I had a lot of support behind me. I couldn't see myself doing anything else. If I didn't race, I'd probably be driving a garbage truck or something.

Rusty Wallace

Can you comment on a dad watching his son go fast and compete on that track?
"Steve is the youngest Busch driver out there right now. I tell him 'You're 19 but this whole crowd expects you to act 25-years-old. They are going to be focused on you. You can get out there and act stupid like you're supposed to at 19. You can't do that. You've got to be mature. You've got to talk. You've got to be interviewed. You've got to keep your face out there. If the world doesn't see you we won't get sponsors. You going to have to do everything right.'

"That's what I keep beating in his head. It's tough on him, because I'm harder on him than anybody. I'm constantly on him every time he screws up. You can't do that. What are you thinking man? You can't do that. Nobody's going to tell him unless it's me. Cause they just want to have fun and hang out with him and have a good time. When I see him getting over the edge, I've got to roll him back in. I'm there to do that."

Stephen Leicht

Is youth an advantage from a physical standpoint when you're competing against veterans?
"Definitely. When you had all of those Cup drivers in the races last year, everybody complained about it, or at least most of the people did. Myself, I like the fact that they're in there. Yeah, it made the races tough to win and it made it tough to even finish in the top 10, but that's what was so exciting about it. We ran at Texas last year and we ran in top five, top 10 all day, but it you just looked at the Busch regulars, we'd probably have been leading the race if none of the Cup guys had been there. But, you want the best out there racing and those guys are the best.

"They get more practice than anybody. They get to go out in a Cup car before the Busch cars practice, and they get to get 50 to 60 laps more than we do before they even get in a Busch car. The Busch car, to me, I've run in a series before in Late Models where one car was faster than the other, and when you jump out of the faster car to get in the slower, like you do from a Cup car to a Busch car, it's just so much easier. That's what makes it so tough for us that are in the Busch cars every week that always feel a little bit fast."

Kyle Busch

You run the Busch and Nextel Cup series. Can you comment on the challenge of that?
"It's not bad. The best thing is to be able to get extra track time and be able to get out there and spend some time on the track, the tires and limited practices and testing schedules now and stuff like that. It's always nice to get on the track a little bit more. Running the Busch Series and most of the companion events is definitely worthwhile than running the Busch Series schedule and traveling around and jumping back and forth between those races through mid-summer."

Do you think as a young person you are better able to do that than a veteran?
"No,not really. I was pretty beat up last year. I was tired. I went through the offseason and had some relaxing time. Now for a while I couldn't even fall asleep because I was well rested. I didn't need any more, so throughout the season all I ever want to do is sleep. I'm sure I'll get back to that state of form."

Carl Edwards

Does your age give you an advantage when racing in the Busch Series and NEXTEL Cup Series?
"I don't know if my age is really a factor. I know that I have a lot of enthusiasm for racing. I really like to race, and everybody knows that. Last season, for instance, in the Cup Series, our Office Deport team, we had a year - it wasn't terrible or anything - but we didn't win a race and we didn't make the Chase. That was kind of a downer for me. It wasn't what we expected, and I'm so glad that I ran full time in the Busch Series because I got to win races at Charlotte and at Nashville, and Gateway was unbelievable to win that race. To finish second in points, that was a pretty good year.

"I feel like, logistically running the Busch Series is a little bit tougher because you have more things to do, but for me personally, for my personal satisfaction and my enjoyment of my season, I like running the whole season, so I've got an other championship to chase. It's kind of like getting to race two seasons. It's really fun. I don't know how long I'll do it, but right now I'm having fun. There's really no reason for me not to. But on that note, though, I do see guys like Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon and Dale Jr., and guys that don't run really much other than their Nextel Cup cars, and they do really well. I honestly don't think that's the determining factor of how you're going to run your Cup car, whether or not you want to run Busch."

Peter Shepherd

Do you think your popularity is growing in Canada?
"With NASCAR getting as big as it is in Canada, it's growing huge, and it has been everywhere. You see it everywhere at home now as well, I still call it home. It's getting popular, and it seems like my name is getting out there a lot more. Just thanks to companies like Inside Track magazine, who put my name out there, it's getting big and I just want to get as big as NASCAR it does itself, and hopefully I can keep performing and hopefully be one of the household names, not only in Canada, but North America-wide in this sport.

"I just want to thank everybody who supported me back at home for having faith in me and giving me the opportunities. I've had a lot of teams give me a lot of opportunities back at home, and I want to thank them and just thank everybody for sticking with me. I'm going to do my best, not only for myself to get to the top, but hopefully get to the top for everybody else at home and give everybody else faith that if they really want to do it, they can do it."