Dale Earnhardt Jr., Girlfriend Amy Reimann Announce Engagement

Terry Renna/Associated Press

Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s trip to Germany to understand his family lineage apparently included plans to add another Earnhardt along the way. The NASCAR star proposed to girlfriend Amy Reimann on their vacation, as the couple announced on Twitter early Wednesday morning:

Earnhardt, 40, has never been married, and he and Reimann have been dating since 2009. The engagement comes three months after rumors the couple eloped during a beach vacation, which were subsequently shot down.  

The No. 88 driver instead decided to pop the question in Germany, where he and family went during the Sprint Cup's off week to learn more about their lineage. 

"I've got some specific areas narrowed down I want to go see and some buildings I want to go see that I know my family was somewhat connected to," Earnhardt told USA Today's Jeff Gluck last week. "They left Germany in 1744, so all this stuff we're going to see or get close to is more than 300 years old."

In February, Earnhardt said "the timing's not right" regarding an engagement in an appearance on the Dan Patrick Show (via FoxSports.com). He noted his biggest holdup in getting engaged was a "jewelry phobia."

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Earnhardt is currently in fourth place in the Sprint Cup standings, 68 points behind leader Kevin Harvick. The series gets back underway next week in Sonoma, California, where Earnhardt will try to earn his first win as an engaged man.