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“One day that could lead to DEI's return to Cup. "Everybody's hopes right now are to get DEI back going and to have an actual race team back out of this shop," Jeffrey said. "That's what we're all working for. It's sad [the way it is now], but that also makes me want to work that much harder to get it back going, to be a big part of this place. "Hopefully, we can keep the Earnhardt name in racing. That's what we're all working toward." Not that the merger with Ganassi isn't working. It is, even though it has shrunk from four cars to two because of a lack of sponsorship. Juan Pablo Montoya is only 16 points out of the top 12 spots that make the Chase. Truex has had top-10 finishes in two of the past four races after a horrendous start. "It's going great," Teresa said. "[But] there's always room for improvement." Jeff Steiner, the new general manager at DEI, agreed. "The venture is going well for us," he said. "Performance is good. We're starting to hit our stride. As long as the entity is performing well and delivering on what we set out to do, we'll keep it together." But the goal for Ganassi and Teresa when they agreed to the merger was one day to split back into separate race teams. A provision was written into the agreement that will allow them to do that. The misconception among many, however, is that DEI disappeared when the merger occurred. Because they no longer build and race cars out of the Mooresville shop off Highway 3, a perception developed that the Garage Mahal had been turned into a museum. Steiner was hired April 1 to help change that, to show that the organization remains very viable in the racing community through the Dale Earnhardt Foundation, its engine program with Richard Childress Racing, its parts program for Late Models and other series outside of Cup and Nationwide, its air service for race teams to travel to races, and the auto dealership. "We're still very much alive and working on a lot of different programs," Steiner said, reminding us that DEI has 250 employees through all of its ventures. "We've maybe been a little silent on a lot of stuff that is going on here." Silence isn't easy to overcome when cars aren't running out of the shop, and when employees don't have the thrill of seeing the checkered flag raised on the poles in front of the building the Monday following a victory. In a way this place is a throwback to the way it was before Dale and Teresa opened the doors in 1999. The only reminders of what it was are the cars and trophies inside the museum. There's Dale Jr.'s No. 8 Budweiser car that he drove to victory in the 2000 All-Star Race and the 2004 car in which he won the Daytona 500. There's the No. 8 car Truex drove to the 2005 Nationwide title. "It's still a race shop," Teresa said. "It'll always be a race shop. That's what people don't know, what we've got going on here." That may be true. But people won't really think of this place as a race shop until it is putting cars on the track again. Seeing Teresa, Kerry and Jeffrey standing united during Friday's festivities offers hope that that may one day happen. It offers hope that DEI may once again enjoy the festivities of the All-Star Race, which Earnhardt won three times. "That's our goal," Kerry said. "This is what this place was built on: racing. Without that, this place is not the same. Jeffrey being really involved behind the wheel and myself for a few races, maybe it'll bring the Earnhardt family back together." The goal is to build around the legacy Earnhardt earned winning seven titles, tying him with Richard Petty for the most all time. That legacy was somewhat forgotten during the Dale Jr. days. It became all about him and making the No. 8 as marketable as the No. 3, which still does quite well in sales. "There is a fan base that certainly is loyal to him, and we respect that and wish him very good success in what he does," Steiner said of Dale Jr. "There's also a fan that still follows the Earnhardt way. "I'm not saying that Dale Jr. is not the Earnhardt way. But he's his own person. If you talk to him directly, he'll probably say the same thing." Steiner said there's always a welcome sign for Dale Jr. at DEI, but added that isn't what the company is about anymore. "We want to try new things, be more progressive than we've been in the past, focus with Dale as the centerpiece," he said. That would make fans such as 47-year-old Frank Rios, who convinced his friend to skip work to join him at DEI, happy. "I'd hate to see this converted into a museum," he said. So would Teresa, who has been vilified for failing to keep her famous stepson in the fold. "Everybody likes to bash her, but there's really no bashing her," Jeffrey said. "Teresa is working real hard. That's what a lot of people don't see. She's working hard to get this place back the way it was." She even took a few minutes to talk with reporters, something as rare as an Earnhardt win these days. "We're always going to be in motorsports in some capacity," she vowed. "We're always going to be viable. People just need to come out and get back on board." It's not Elvis' dream. It's Dale Earnhardt's dream. David Newton covers NASCAR for ESPN.com. He can be reached at dnewtonespn@aol.com.Everybody's hopes right now are to get DEI back going and to have an actual race team back out of this shop. That's what we're all working for.
” -- Jeffrey Earnhardt