Shiny, Happy Badass 

If you saw him on the street you'd never guess that Kahne races stock cars for a living. He looks like someone you'd see in the pages of a J. Crew catalogue, not behind the wheel of a NASCAR Nextel Cup series race car. He looks younger than his 24 years and at just 5'9 and 145 pounds, he's not a big guy. But beneath the boy-band exterior there must be a bad ass. You just can't drive like that and not be a bad ass.

As the new driver of the #9 Dodge, Kahne is under the tutelage of two racing legends -- car owner Evernham and the driver who retired and put him behind the wheel, Bill Elliott.

The Enumclaw, Washington, native rose meteorically through the ranks from racing micro-midgets on dirt at age 14 to his Nextel Cup debut this year. Evernham knows talent when he sees it. He was Jeff Gordon's crew chief from 1995 to 1998 before leaving the team in 1999 to spearhead Dodge's return to the championship series. Though Elliott retired from full-time racing, he has very much remained involved with the team, which for Kahne translates into having one hell of a coach.

Not surprisingly, Kahne got off to one of the most impressive rookie starts in cup series history with two dramatic second place finishes in the first three races of the season and three Bud Poles thus far. Currently 11th in points, he is, for now, within the range required to be in the season-ending 10-race "Chase for the Championship." All this and he competes in the Busch series full-time, too, driving the Great Clips #38 Dodge for Akins Motorsports.

"I was surprised at first that Bill picked him. I won't lie," says Beverly Morton, a longtime Bill Elliott fan, speaking near the #9 Dodge merchandise trailer at the Golden Corral 500 in Atlanta in March. "I thought he looked awfully young and I hadn't heard much about him, but damn that boy can drive!"

"Once he gets a couple of wins which is only a matter of time, he's really going to take off," says Marty Smith, a commentator with nascar.com. "He's going to be a bona fide superstar."

So it's Thursday, April 22, and I'm in Talladega, Alabama, about to interview a future superstar. Better enjoy it while I can.

Kahne just ran his qualifying laps for the Aaron's 312 Busch race and I'm waiting outside his transporter for my interview op. It's hot as hell and I'm buggy from breathing melting asphalt. The garage area is crawling with crew guys who no doubt think I'm a groupie. The mirrored doors of the transporter finally slide open and Kasey's publicist, Becky (like her client, more J. Crew than Pit Crew), invites me in.

I find Kasey and his younger brother Cale watching a big screen TV in a dimly lit and (thank God!) air-conditioned lounge area in the back. Complete with overstuffed sofa and swank fixtures, it's plusher than most bands' tour buses.

I immediately noticed just how gorgeous he is. He has the kind of face destined for Junior High lockers -- refined features, golden skin, bright blue eyes. He's polite, listens attentively and thinks before he answers. Very composed for a young bad ass.

I start with the dumbest possible question, but one that comes up every time my friends rag me for loving NASCAR.

"Is stock car racing a sport?'

He doesn't flinch. "I think it is. I used to play a lot of sports and I can say that it's a different type of sport but it definitely takes a lot out of you. Some tracks are a lot more exhausting than others because the concentration level is different, depending on where you are compared to the wall and whether you're battling with other cars all day. And with the heat for three hours. It's brutal."

Still, few drivers claim to work out every day like Kahne does.

"The only reason I do it is just to try to make sure that I'm not ever the problem, late in the race I'm not the guy making mistakes. If there's ever any blame put anywhere I don't want it to be because I wasn't physically ready for the race."

With racing both series and having a lot more media and sponsor obligations this season, he doesn't have much time to take advantage of his newfound stardom. Though he says he hangs out with other drivers once in a while, he mostly spends time with his family. The whole clan relocated with him to Mooresville to support his career. Cale is his spotter and drives the motor home, so he's with him all the time.

"I'm always up on the roof," says Cale, a fact vividly underscored by the lobster-red patches of sunburn on his face. He's got perfect pale skin and I just want to shake him.

When Kahne talks about stepping into the shoes of a racing legend, he's more appreciative than intimidated.

"There were other opportunities for me but that was the only direction I wanted to go once we started talking about it. That it worked out is just awesome.

"At first a lot of Bill's fans were pretty mad, saying "Why this guy? He can't do it. Bill should have chosen somebody else.' And now a lot of those fans are still #9 fans. They know that Bill's still a part of it and that we're running good. It's pretty cool for me to get some of Bill's fans. I try to respect them. They're a big part of why we get to race every weekend."

And what about the ladies? He's got to have a growing pool of groupies. Cosmo Girl should be calling for a cover shot any day.

"I get some crazy letters," he says grinning shyly. "It's good to have some ladies after you, though. One time a mom brought a picture of her daughter and asked me to put my phone number on it." He won't say if he gave up the digits.

Cale chimes in that one offer he hears yelled at his brother a lot is "You can have my kid."

Kahne shot his first commercial recently for his Busch series sponsor Great Clips. Would he be interested in doing music videos like Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Tony Stewart?

"I thought those videos were pretty cool. I'd definitely be down with doing something that my type of friends and younger than us would look at and like. Not just be on TV for something lame, but something cool that people would enjoy watching."

With musical taste that ranges from Blink 182 to Kenny Chesney, he has plenty of options.

At the rate he's growing and succeeding, he'll win the Nextel Cup before he's 30. What then?

"Win another championship."

"He's just getting started," says Tim Schwandt, a fan from Mississippi sporting a well-worn #9 hat. He's standing in line at a bright red merchandise trailer in the parking lot at Talladega Superspeedway. "I've been a fan of Bill's for a long time and now I'm coming around to Kasey. He's doing real well, starting to earn the #9."

While Tim scans the array of Kahne T-shirts, hats, die-cast cars and other propaganda pieces, his pretty young wife points up to a picture of Kasey and coos: "And he's sooooo cute!"