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Pete Wright's achieved multiple hopes and dreams in nearly 40 years in Cup garages across the country, but he's especially cherishing every moment spent in the 2007 season, working with Mark Martin on Dale Earnhardt Incorporated's No. 01 Chevrolets.

When Wright celebrates his 54th birthday on Oct. 21, it'll be a time to reflect on a career toiling with some of the biggest names in the sport -- on both sides of the pit wall.

Along with working with Martin, Wright was a member of Terry Labonte's first championship team in 1984 and was a crew chief for Darrell Waltrip. He's also worked with some of the most noted owners, mechanics and engine builders in the sport's history.

Wright was in the midst of a lengthy tenure with Ginn Racing, the former MBV and MB2 Motorsports, when owner Bobby Ginn formed a merger with DEI. Working with Martin has been the highlight of his recent career, Wright says.

Q: Pete, was there ever a time when you didn't see yourself doing this -- working in Cup racing -- as a career?

Wright: Yeah, there was a time, back in the mid-'70s, when I decided I would try something new, during the winter -- the off-season. I wanted to see if [racing] was what I really wanted to do.

I went to work at a Winn-Dixie, where I had to wear a tie, and say "yes, ma'am" and "no, sir." It lasted four months. About the time Daytona came rolling around, I said "that's it, I tried it and I can't do it."

I drove a dump truck a little bit, again, during the off-season -- which I did, so I wouldn't miss anything if I decided I wanted to go back [to racing]. That would have been all right -- but it wasn't too much fun. And some of those cold days, well, I didn't like that.

Q: When you talk about an "off-season" back in the 1970s, or even the 1980s; how much different was it back then, and today?

Wright: In some ways it is, but in other ways it isn't. You mentioned winning the championship in 1984, with Billy Hagan and Terry Labonte.

There were 14 guys on that team -- and that included the motor room, body hangers, the body shop and the guys that went to the racetrack. And we worked hard in the off-season, then.

Now, most of the teams give their road guys more time off in the off-season. Back then, we didn't get that. We were lucky, back then to get Christmas day [off]. Usually you did, but I can remember working Christmas day.

You used to test for Daytona in both December and January -- so you'd work through Christmas getting ready for January. And you didn't test on a designated week -- you just rented the track.

I remember one time, when they downsized the cars, in 1982, going to Daytona to test, like 12 times, because you wanted to run the Daytona 500, because it was the biggest-paying race there was, at that time.

But it's easier now, and I think that's why I'm still hanging around. When you went places, you didn't fly, you drove. We never knew our hours, and now teams have hours [to work].

Teams have breaks and they have lunch. I can remember when I was glad just to get to go home [laughing]. It's a lot easier now than it was then.

That really burns me up, to listen to some of these guys [crewmen]. That's probably my biggest sore spot. I have a son who works with me, now, at DEI -- actually he was working at DEI before the merger -- and he's 22, 23 years old.

He knows what I went through. But when I take and look -- we used to drive back from Michigan, all night, to be back in work by 10 o'clock Monday morning so we could go to Talladega on Tuesday night. These kids now say "I can't believe we're flying on this airplane -- this airplane sucks."

Get in a van and drive it. And used to be at our place, Ginn, at four o'clock if you're in the driveway you were going to get run over. If I'd stay and work over 15 minutes, and you've got a guy helping you, he keeps wanting to go. (Continued)