Harvick institutes substance-abuse policy for team he owns

TALLADEGA, Ala. – Kevin Harvick’s voice was perhaps the loudest of anyone’s during the recent discussion about NASCAR drug testing.

Harvick called for a series-wide random drug testing policy two weeks ago but admitted at the time that his own Kevin Harvick Inc. race team had no testing policy of its own.

Upon returning home to North Carolina, Harvick fixed that. KHI’s Nationwide and Truck Series drivers and crew chiefs have all since been tested, and an independent testing company has been retained to test the entire company.

“I’m proud that we went home and made ours right,” he said Friday at Talladega Superspeedway. “We’re considered a drug-free environment at KHI. … Hopefully everyone will follow suit, and I think it would be good for our garage.”

NASCAR has indicated it does not plan to change its testing policy, which calls for tests conducted on reasonable suspicion.

The vast majority of drivers said they have never been tested and would be in favor of a more comprehensive drug policy.

Harvick said every team in NASCAR could follow KHI’s example, or NASCAR itself could require a drug test for every “hard card” – the term for an annual garage pass – that it issues.

“That’s probably something we could fix here by just putting some kind of policy in place,” he said. “Have an outside source come in and randomly drug test the teams as they submit their approvals for a hard card. You send your drug test [paperwork] with it, and that would make it a lot easier on NASCAR.”

Harvick also suggested that every driver who made the required trip to the infield care center after a crash should then be tested again.

“It should be standard procedure to take a drug test if you go through there,” he said.

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