So you come up with ... "Happy"?
Yep. For now, that's the handle that Kevin Harvick -- the reigning NASCAR Winston Cup Rookie of the Year -- is sticking with. "Hey, I'm always happy, for the most part," says Harvick, 26. "I'm poking guys in the side and picking up people when they're down. I'll order my friends a birthday dessert at a restaurant and have the waiter sing 'Happy Birthday,' especially when it's not their birthday, just for a laugh. I'm a hip-hopping kind of guy. But once I'm in the car, I pull a switch and turn 'Happy' off."

At the start of the Winston Cup season, expectations are high for Harvick. He has not only won big but also has dealt gracefully with the pressures of racing in the Goodwrench Chevy that was driven by the late Dale Earnhardt. The only things that have changed are the car's number and color: Harvick uses No. 29 instead of Earnhardt's revered No. 3, with silver and black colors instead of the Intimidator's famous all-black.

Fortunately, Harvick has proved he's up to the challenge. Last season, he finished in the top 10 among all drivers -- while racing full time in both the Winston Cup and the Busch series. How unusual is that? It's akin to a baseball player playing a full season in both AAA ball and the majors. He drove 21,411 miles in 70 races, more than any other NASCAR driver in decades. In addition to being named top Winston Cup rookie, he won the Busch series.

Here's how the double-duty year unfolded: Harvick was supposed to compete mainly in the Busch series for owner Richard Childress. But the death of Earnhardt, who also drove for Childress, resulted in Harvick's hurried promotion to the Winston Cup full time. Harvick honored his commitment to the Busch series as well. He would practice in the Pennsylvania Poconos for the cup on a Friday, for example, then fly to Colorado Springs the next day for the Busch series, then fly back to Pennsylvania in the wee hours of Sunday to race later that afternoon. "The thing that killed me most was to hear people saying that my teams and I weren't going to make it to July, much less the whole year," he says. "When someone tells me I can't do something, that just makes me want to do it more."

The year was not without controversy. There was public grumbling last season among competitors and fans for various bumpings by Harvick as he went on to win two races and finish ninth in the Winston Cup standings. "I know some of the drivers, especially the older ones, don't like the way I drive," Harvick says. "But they were the same way as rookies. That's the reason I have this job. If I didn't drive hard, I wouldn't have it."

At least a few legends side with Harvick. Retired Cup veteran Darryl Waltrip says Harvick brings needed old-school style to the sport. "It was hard, aggressive but fair driving," says Waltrip, now a Fox commentator who'll cover this weekend's race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. "He'd lay the bumper on a guy, but he wouldn't wreck anyone. That's just racin'. "

Says one-time Winston Cup champ Dale Jarrett, the sport's statesman: "What Kevin did in 2001 was remarkable. He faced one of the most difficult situations anyone could be put into with a lot of class. He also won over fans with his style of driving, which is good for our sport. Everybody doesn't have to be the same kind of driver."

So what's Harvick's secret to conditioning when it comes to pulling double duty? He stays in shape with steady weight lifting, focusing on endurance sets instead of building bulk. "You want to be lean and fast," he says, "like a race car."