Harvick puts the "Happy" in Happy Hours

Harvick and Yocum, who have enjoyed a close friendship outside of the racetrack as the two have rose together through the racing ranks, entertained listeners for two hours from the driver’s pool house and offered a variety of topics from breaking news to behind-the-scenes stories. 

Harvick, the 2014 NASCAR champion who drives for Stewart-Haas Racing, picks up where Tony Stewart Live left off —sans the on-air body waxing. 

In the opening moments of the show, Harvick tells listeners that his crew chief, Rodney Childers, who oversees No. 4 SHR Ford, is “going to get a one-week vacation.”

Childers was busted following Las Vegas for having an unapproved part on Harvick’s car. The team initially asked to appeal the fine in order to have Childers for last week’s activities at Auto Club Speedway. The veteran crew chief will not participate in this weekend’s Monster Energy Cup Series activities at Martinsville Speedway.

Opinion of Larson

When the pair reviewed last weekend’s activities at Auto Club Speedway, Harvick said emphatically, “Kyle Larson is the best driver to come into the sport since Jeff Gordon, in my opinion. I think Kyle Larson is just that good. He’s just a kid that not enough people know about, but he wins —and has won — in everything he’s ever driven. He’s just a racer. He’s a young kid. He’s got “Baby Owen” (Larson’s son) as Keelan (Harvick’s son) likes to call him. He loves to race but he’s kind of got his stuff together more because he’s got to have everything in line.

“He’s laser-focussed on what he does as a race car driver and I think he’s the best talent to come along in this sport in a long, long time. He's going to win a lot of races because he’s just that good. I hope Ganassi has a good contract with him because every team in the garage wants a Kyle Larson. He’s a guy you can put in your race cars and win races even on a day when they/re not the best race cars, he’s going to make them look good.”

Show guests

Happy Hours, which is supported by Harvick’s sponsor Busch Beer, provides fans with the opportunity to sit down, crack open an adult beverage and listen to racing stories as well as tales from the driver’s private life with wife DeLana, son Keelan and the Harvick Posse. 

For the opening show, Happy Hours’ guest list included fellow SHR teammate Clint Bowyer, Actress/SiriusXM hostess Jenny McCarthy and celebrity chef Guy Fieri. Bowyer and Fieri shared a segment and recounted the drivers’ adventures in St. Barts on P. Diddy’s yacht with Jeff Gordon on New Year’s Eve. The encounter came just months after Bowyer’s run-in with Gordon at Phoenix. Although Harvick forgot his flip-flops on Diddy’s yacht, he does remember coming home with a bloody forehead.

Previewing Martinsville

Yocum and Harvick previewed this weekend’s race at Martinsville. Harvick described the venue as “frustrating” — which stems from his 2002 suspension at the track for driving his truck up to the NASCAR hauler. He added, “Hopefully I won’t get mad and make an ass out of myself.”

Harvick won this race in 2011. Yocum, a frequent visitor at Chez Harvick, asked whether DeLana had allowed the driver to put his Martinsville trophy — a grandfather clock — inside of their home yet. 

Harvick replied, “No, but she did let me build a replica of No. 12 from Augusta in the backyard.” He then offered his friend a little relationship advise, “You have to learn to pick your battles.” 

Happy Hours is definitely worth a listen.

Harvick, a known prankster in the garage, used social media to post video to accompany a story he told regarding his sidekick, #Agent51, who put on a bear suit to scare young Keelan. Of course, the stunt backfired but mixing media provided a nice bonus for the fanbase.