The gait was barely slower. The words that flowed from his mouth were clear and concise.

And his sense of humor was intact, which made it all the more inspiring to see Jerry Nadeau as he returned to visit with his extended Winston Cup family at New Hampshire International Speedway.

Nearly 2½ months after a near-fatal crash while practicing at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway, the 32-year-old Nadeau showed reporters, friends, fellow Winston Cup competitors and fans alike just how far he's come back when he appeared for a news conference Friday morning.

That he's ready to face the world so soon after such a near-tragedy, that he's ready to show the Winston Cup community he shouldn't be considered a forgotten commodity, and that he's ready to prove he'll likely one day drive a Cup car again takes something that has been a hallmark of Nadeau's driving career: he's got guts, and a lot of it.

"I'm ecstatic to get behind the wheel of a car,'' Nadeau told reporters, explaining he's already been driving go-karts in his attempt to get back behind the wheel of his Cup car. "This is all I've ever done in life. I've been given a second chance and I'm excited and I'm willing to go through the hard road to get back.''

Nadeau's accident/recovery timeline*

May 2 (Friday): Crashes driver's-side first into outside wall between turns 1 and 2 during practice at Richmond International Raceway. Airlifted to Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center in Richmond where he is listed in critical condition with a moderate to severe head injury, partially collapsed left lung, fractured left scapula (shoulder blade) and left-side rib cage injuries. May 5 (Monday): Condition upgraded from critical to serious but stable. May 8 (Thursday): Condition upgraded from serious but stable to fair. Moves out of the intensive care unit to private room. Doctors say vital signs are normal and continues to show improvement. May 13 (Tuesday): Team general manager Jay Frye is guest on NASCAR/Winston teleconference and says Nadeau continues to be in a semiconscious state and is in the transitional stage of regaining full consciousness. May 22 (Thursday): Regains full consciousness and starts to speak. Makes surprise telephone calls to Frye and crew chief Ryan Pemberton. May 26 (Monday): Discharged from Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center and transferred via MedCenter Air to Charlotte Institute of Rehabilitation where he continues physical, occupational and speech therapy. June 6 (Friday): Discharged as inpatient at Charlotte Institute of Rehabilitation. Will continue therapy as an outpatient five days a week. Present: Undergoing therapy three days a week at Charlotte Institute of Rehabilitation. *Courtesy: MB2 Motorsports/Dave Ferroni

Nadeau inspires admiration. If many of us were put in his shoes, the last thing we'd want would be to go back to a racetrack, let alone even think about getting back into a race car. But this is a young man who has personified determination throughout his racing career. Each time he's faced a setback, he's come back stronger and more determined than ever to be a success.

He lost his first Winston Cup ride with a team owned by Bill Elliott and NFL great Dan Marino. But instead of wallowing in self-pity, he knocked on door after door, eventually convincing Rick Hendrick to hire him to drive the No. 25 Chevrolet, putting him on the same team as former Winston Cup champs Jeff Gordon and Terry Labonte.

When the Hendrick situation went south last May, Nadeau bounced around a bit, driving a three-race relief stint for the injured Johnny Benson, then moving to Kyle Petty's team for 13 races in place of Buckshot Jones. But the main thing is he continued racing, keeping his name in the public eye.

He missed the final five races last season due to injury, but bounced back once again when MB2 Motorsports hired him to drive the U.S. Army-backed Pontiac in 2003. It would be a new start with one of the most underrated teams on the Cup circuit that also happens to treat its employees as family, not just as business pawns.

And when he crashed at Richmond, Nadeau's adopted family took it as hard as Nadeau's blood family. They came together to rally and support not only Jerry, but also his wife Jada and the rest of the Nadeau clan. Granted, the team had to continue racing due to sponsorship commitments -- bringing in veteran driver Mike Wallace to keep the seat warm for Nadeau -- but their thoughts were never far away from Nadeau.

It's understandable why Nadeau wanted to make his comeback at NHIS. In a sense, it's practically the home track for the native of nearby Danbury, Conn. If you're going to make such a dramatic return to something that has been your life, you want to make it in front of as many friends and family members as possible. You want to have that comforting feeling of familiarity.

The Bahre family that owns NHIS is not only good friends with Nadeau and his family, they've also gone through considerable tragedy and heartbreak. Three years ago, two of Winston Cup's most promising young stars, Adam Petty and Kenny Irwin Jr., were both killed in wrecks at NHIS. They died 60 days apart and in nearly the same spot in the turn 3 corner at the one-mile racetrack.

In fact, the third anniversary of Irwin's death was just last Monday, July 7. The Bahre family has since gone on to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars -- some reports have put the figure in the million-dollar range -- to make their racetrack safer for drivers and fans. When track surface problems crept up in the two races at NHIS last year, the Bahres once again dipped deep into their wallet to resurface the racetrack, all with the mindset of providing the safest venue possible for everyone who passes through the gates of the Loudon motorplex.

That's why Nadeau's appearance Friday at NHIS was a verification not only of his own comeback, but his faith in the racetrack and the family that owns it: If he was capable of driving there this weekend, he'd do it.

	Jerry Nadeau's determination helped him climb from go-karts to a career in Winston Cup.

In medical terms, Nadeau has made a huge comeback in a very short period of time. When he crashed on May 2, he was airlifted out of RIR fighting for his life. When he landed at the nearby Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center, he was in critical condition with a moderate to severe head injury, partially collapsed left lung, fractured left shoulder blade and left-side rib cage injuries.

Nearly three weeks later, he finally regained full consciousness and began to speak. He even surprised team general manager Jay Frye and crew chief Robin Pemberton by calling both of them from the hospital. He wanted to tell two of his closest friends that he was going to be OK, that they should stop worrying about him and do what he'd do in the same situation -- worry more about improving the race car and get the team back on track.

He was discharged from the hospital 24 days after his crash, beginning a lengthy outpatient rehabilitation program that continues, with therapy three times a week at the Charlotte (N.C.) Institute of Rehabilitation.

And now, as the Winston Cup community prepares to begin the second-half of the grueling 36-race season with this weekend's New England 300, Nadeau is showing the world that he's going to be OK, he's going to pull through all this and that he'll once again race some day.

"We're all proud of Jerry," Pemberton said. "He has worked so hard in therapy to get to the level where he can attend a race. His presence will definitely give us a big lift."

That could be the most significant aspect of Nadeau's visit. His team has struggled of late, being knocked out of the last two races at Daytona and Chicago due to untimely multi-car wrecks. In fact, since Wallace took over for Nadeau under the most trying of circumstances, his best finish in six starts has been 19th (Dover, Del.). The only thing the team has really had to cheer about -- other than pulling for Nadeau's continued recovery -- was when hired-gun driver Boris Said put the team on the pole and then finished sixth in the road course race at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif., last month.

"First of all it shows that Jerry's recovery is getting better," Wallace said. "His presence will not only be good for the team, but it will be good for him. People want to see him and wish him the best and I am sure he has missed seeing everyone. Hopefully, Jerry's visit will turn our luck around. It's bound to turn in our favor."

Jerry Bonkowski covers NASCAR for ESPN.com. He can be reached at Motorsportwriter@Yahoo.com.