CONCORD, N.C. - Welcome to Hendrick Motorsports pit crew week!
Each day, we will attempt to shine some light on the brave men that leap over the pit wall every race, putting their bodies on the line to get your favorite drivers in and back out on the race track as quickly as possible.
Never before has the job of a NASCAR Cup Series crewman been more important, with track position more valuable than ever and the razor-thin margin between a good stop and a bad stop often deciding races.
RELATED: Have you seen the artifact of the week?
Through web stories, photo galleries, rosters and social media posts, we will attempt to illustrate the difficulty and pressure that comes with the territory. Of course, it all leads up to the NASCAR Pit Crew Challenge as part of NASCAR All-Star Race qualifying on Friday night at North Wilkesboro Speedway.
So, with that in mind, we present the five guys that service the No. 9 NAPA Chevrolet:
Nick O'Dell, front-tire changer
- Age: 41
- Height: 5-6
- Weight: 170
- Hometown: Springfield, Illinois
- College: NASCAR Technical Institute
Calvin Teague, rear-tire changer
- Age: 38
- Height: 6-2
- Weight: 195
- Hometown: Taylorsville, North Carolina
- College: Appalachian State (Boone, North Carolina)
Jared Erspamer, tire carrier
- Age: 38
- Height: 6-0
- Weight: 240
- Hometown: Omaha, Nebraska
- College: Northwest Missouri State University
- Fun fact: Would give up all athletic ability to be a great singer
TJ Semke, jackman
- Age: 32
- Height: 6-2
- Weight: 240
- Hometown: Lee's Summit, Missouri
- College: University of Kansas
- Fun fact: Used to be a part-time bounty hunter
John Gianninoto, fueler
- Age: 36
- Height: 6-3
- Weight: 230
- Hometown: Tucson, Arizona
- College: UNLV
- Fun fact: Owns Guinness World Record for most cars refueled in an hour