Shaun Peet says being a jackman is nothing compared to his hockey experience. Credit: Autostock

Jackman: Shaun Peet

It is three hours before the green flag of the Sony 500 at California Speedway. The mercury has long since reached three digits, and Shaun Peet has already completed the task of setting up Reed Sorenson's pit box.

A mountain looms in the distance, and Peet has hiked it. He'll do anything to avoid sitting down.

Shaun Peet credits Reed Sorenson getting into his pit box qucker for the team's better stops. Credit: Autostock

Ironically, sitting down is how Peet, 31, got into NASCAR. He was in his mid-20s and playing in the American Hockey League. One night, an open-ended brawl broke out, and Peet rushed to defend a teammate.

"I was trying to stick up for a teammate of mine and it escalated out of control," Peet said.

Good idea/bad idea. Peet's role in the fight earned him an 18-game suspension, which he happily terms as the "longest in the East Coast League."

While serving his suspension, Peet met an engine tuner, and that chance meeting later resulted in Peet taking a tour for Bill Davis Racing.

"They were doing pit practice and it wasn't going great and [they] asked if I wanted to give it a shot," Peet said. "I hopped in there and things went well."

Peet worked a couple of seasons for BDR and joined Chip Ganassi Racing when Casey Mears was hired to drive the No. 41 Dodge in 2003.

"They needed a jackman, so I tried out and have been doing it ever since for Jimmy [crew chief Jimmy Elledge]," Peet said.

Peet's venture into NASCAR effectively ended his hockey career. Hockey was all Peet had wanted to do while growing up in Nanaimo, British Columbia, where his father owned a garage.

Peet never knew he'd need his father's mechanical skills down the road. After he started jacking the car on weekends, he was also hired to be a general mechanic during the week, where his main job is tearing down the cars once they return to the shop.

"I didn't come from a whole lot of anything," Peet said. "Growing up, I was on the ice practicing, but I was also in the garage turning wrenches so it has come pretty easy for me."

Because of Peet's hockey background, his transition to a Nextel Cup jackman wasn't very difficult.

"I didn't think the pressure is as much as everyone builds it up to be," said Peet, who played college hockey at Dartmouth. "This -- compared to hockey -- is a cakewalk. Sometimes we could play four games in a row. I would hit a ton, and I'd fight."

Peet has worked with rookie Reed Sorenson this season after jacking for Mears for three seasons. The transition took a few races.

"Reed, at the start of the year, was real slow getting into the box but he has done a great job," Peet said. "He really gets in hot now, and that helps us.

"At the start of the year he was coming in slow and we'd have good pit stops but we'd look like chumps because we were losing all these spots. He has done a real good job getting better at that."

Unlike some jackmen, Peet hasn't been hit on pit road yet, but he has had a few close calls.

"I have not been flat run over yet," Peet said. "I am a pretty easygoing guy and I haven't had my temper get away from me, which is good."

Favorite track: Dover
Why: "I love Dover. It gets tight on pit road but, people really underestimate it. It is good show."

Least favorite track: Martinsville
Why: "We have never qualified well there, so we have to [pit the car] on the corners and the hills. It is a nightmare to pit the racecar there."