Dale Earnhardt: We Will Never Forget

Perhaps no other personality in NASCAR polarized fans and elicited emotional responses like Dale Earnhardt.

He quit high school to go racing in spite of his daddy's wishes.  It wasn't until the mid 70's when he garnered attention in Cup racing.

His hair was wild and straggly.  He drove like a man possessed.  If another car was in his way it was simply bumped or spun.  The owners he drove for complained he tore up too much equipment.

This wild young man stirred emotion with his brazen driving habits, his swagger and his attitude.  Everyone knew he was tough.

Men wanted to be like him.  Women wanted to be with him.  He had some kind of untamed sexiness about him.

People related to him easily.  He worked hard, drove hard and played hard.  He was comfortable at 190 mph in a race car or on a tractor.

Dale Sr. drove a race car like no other driver.  Some say he could see the air move around the car.

On the race track he would drive his car in to places where there were no places.  His controversial maneuvers would have caused lesser drivers to spin or crash.

His fan base was mighty when he drove the Wrangler Chevrolet.  In 1988 the man known as the Intimidator along with team owner Richard Childress secured sponsorship from GM Goodwrench.  The beautiful black #3 driven by "The Man In Black" would indeed be an intimidating force to reckon with.

Fans sported "Intimidator" logo in all forms of apparel.  Racing merchandise for Earnhardt outsold that of his competitors.  Thousands would wait in line for hours to secure and autograph at his appearances even at the local Chevy dealer.

He was adored by his fans.  The man could do no wrong in their eyes.  Yes, there were those who bad-mouthed the Intimidator, but to his ardent believers those people were just plain wrong.

NASCAR racing was exciting when the #3 pulled out on the track.  It didn't matter if you were his fan or not, his presence could not be ignored.

Earnhardt nation was perhaps the largest fan base ever for a race car driver.  He won four, five, six and finally seven championships in Cup racing to tie the King, Richard Petty.

Dale had been denied a win at Daytona for twenty years and then he took the win in 1998.  Every team honored him on pit road.

Despite some of his on track moves, he was respected by other drivers.  When he spoke about racing changes or rules, NASCAR listened.

Earnhardt had proven time and time again that he was "one tough customer."  He drove with a broken leg and kept it a secret.  He crawled out of mangled cars when all feared he might be terribly injured.

Dale Earnhardt was invincible.  It would be unimaginable to not see him charge through the field in his black #3.

The 2001 Daytona 500 began with high hopes Sr. would secure a second win.  He was running well and in the final laps it looked as though he could snatch a win from the battling leaders Michael Waltrip and Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Sterling Marlin bumped the rear of Earnhardt's car several times.  The last contact between the two turned Earnhardt into the wall.  It looked to be a hard hit, but one he could easily walk away from.

Dale Earnhardt did not walk away from the mangled car.  An eery silence gripped the Speedway and all who watched knew something was seriously wrong. 

Not long after the incident, Mike Helton made the announcement "we've lost Dale Earnhardt".

The racing world was in shock.  To the fans it was as though a family member had died.  Men cried as easily as women.

To this day at each Cup race I think for just an instant his fans still expect the black #3 and Dale to pull out on to the track.  He can't really be gone even though nearly nine years have passed.

In the movie "Dale", Earnhardt answered a question with a question.  He responded, "are there really any heroes?"  The answer from his fans is an undeniable... yes.

We miss you Dale........Godspeed always.