SHR eager to put 2014 in the rearview

— -- "I just want to get to Daytona and get the page turned ..."

When Tony Stewart said it, officially, he was referring only to himself. The reality was that he was speaking for a whole building full of people. Not just those with whom he'd just shared the stage during their Tuesday afternoon stop on the NASCAR media tour -- team co-owner Gene Haas, teammate/employees Kevin Harvick, Kurt Busch, Danica Patrick and the wrench-turners charged with making their machines go.

No, he was speaking for every single one of Stewart-Haas Racing's 250-plus employees and the sponsors that pay their bills. They all likely ripped their 2013, 2014 and January 2015 calendars down off their office walls and doused them with lighter fluid.

"Yes," Harvick admitted, "it will be a good feeling to start going over my schedule for the next month and see 'Daytona 500' pop up. I'm tired of talking. It's time to get on with racing." This from a man who won his first NASCAR Sprint Cup title just nine weeks ago, a silver cup that hasn't been in the cabinet long enough to collect even a granule of dust.

So, what's the hurry to put it all in the rearview mirror? Let's recap.

In August 2013, in the midst of the media circus that was Patrick's rookie season, Stewart suffered devastating injuries to his left leg in a sprint car crash, sidelining the three-time champion for the final 15 races of that season. While he was out, Haas hired then-exiled Kurt Busch and expanded SHR from three to four cars, just as driver Ryan Newman was pushed out to make room for Harvick. Harvick and Busch both won, but all four teams struggled mightily through spring and summer, sparking chatter they had taken on too much too soon.

On Aug. 9, 2014, Stewart was involved in a horrific dirt track accident that killed 20-year-old Kevin Ward Jr., sparking a criminal investigation that once again sent Stewart to the sideline and quickly became the tragedy du jour for the Internet, tabloids and cable news channels.

Even the celebration of Harvick's dramatic championship performance was cut short. On Dec. 18, less than two weeks removed from NASCAR Champions Week, Busch was in court fighting claims of domestic violence by former longtime girlfriend Patricia Driscoll. In January, their showdown became national news and late-night punchlines, him declaring that she was a trained assassin.

So, yeah, shifting the focus to racing would be nice.

"Stability isn't something we've perfected yet," Haas said Tuesday, laughing. He's also in the process of starting a United States-based Formula One team, housed in a massive shop being constructed across the parking lot from SHR's Kannapolis, North Carolina, headquarters. "Because we are racers, total stability is something that we'll never achieve. Sitting still isn't really a big part of this business. But, as you know, a lot of what we've been dealing with has nothing to do with normal racing chaos. So, yes, stability is a goal. I think we're making strides there."

Those strides begin with Stewart's actual stride. When he took the stage Tuesday, the difference between his limp now versus even just a few months ago was striking, the result of a Dec. 1 procedure that was merely the latest of a seemingly endless line of surgeries on his right leg.

"This is easily the best I've felt physically in two years," the 43-year-old admitted, explaining that he spent a low-key holiday season away from the racetrack before returning to the Chili Bowl earlier this month to see his old sprint car friends. He also added, "I'm not happy about the last two years of my life, by any means" and repeatedly stated how much he'd enjoyed diving into the details of not just his team, but those of his teammates.

There's a lot to examine.

For all of Harvick's success, the remainder of their collective performance was a disappointment. Busch won a race and made the Chase, but he was eliminated quickly. Stewart went winless for the first time in his 16-year career. Patrick once again failed to crack the top 25 in the points standings. That's led to yet another winter of crew chief swapping, which took place in the middle of trying to adjust to a stack of technical rules changes for 2015. The boss is quick to remind that while everything else might be in the middle of constant change, the driver lineup is not.

"If there's one part of all this that has been rock-solid, it's been us four [drivers] and the relationship between us," Stewart said. "That's pretty funny, isn't it? Because one year ago, all the questions we were getting were how in the world was this group going to work? We were supposed to be a time bomb, but instead we've actually been a pretty great combination. We talk. A lot."

Some of that talk is, naturally, about chassis setups and lines run around the racetrack. But Tuesday, all four drivers acknowledged that the majority of those conversations have become more and more about how to handle their lives off the track.

"We're all around the same age and we all have similar goals in life and in racing," Harvick explained. "When we talk I think it's more about, 'How do you handle this?'"

"I have found myself leaning on them a lot," confessed Busch, who deftly sidestepped questions about the still-undecided case with Driscoll. "All of those things about our experiences, successes and mistakes, that people maybe thought would mean this wouldn't work, it's really been the opposite. Our experiences can help each other. I know they have helped me."

There is no doubt more chaos around the corner. Should Busch come out on the losing end of his court battle and NASCAR serve a suspension, someone will need to drive his race car. Haas said there is no contingency plan in place because they are "not worrying about what-ifs."

Regardless of whatever inevitable craziness waits, Stewart-Haas Racing's collective mindset appears to be clear.

"Just show us that green flag at Daytona, man," Patrick said, nodding. "We can't fix what we need to fix just sitting here talking about it."