It’s been fourteen long years since the loss of Dale Earnhardt , “The Intimidator,” from the world of NASCAR racing, for his fans certainly, but also for his son, who has followed in his father’s incredible footsteps despite his father’s devastating and untimely death at the Daytona 500 in February, 2001.
While it’s apparent that Dale Sr. and Dale Jr. have different personalities and racing styles, something else that is apparent is that father passed on to his son a winning mentality and a love for racing. Perhaps that’s why fans gave rousing applause and a standing ovation as Dale Jr. gave his victory lap and fist-pumped at the Speedway in Talladega, Alabama, today, a place that has always been good to the Earnhardts, where both Dale Sr. and Jr. have brought home multiple wins. For Dale Jr., however, this was his first Talladega win since 2004, and his jubilant but emotional reaction was obvious as he spoke to reporters.
“It’s just real emotional. I haven’t won here in a long time. It was my daddy’s birthday a couple of days ago, and I’m just real emotional, man.”
Dale Earnhardt Sr. would have turned 64-years-old on April 29. The late Dale Earnhardt, a first ballot Hall of Fame inductee, won ten times at the Alabama track, a track that he was known to “intimidate” with his aggressive driving, helping to give him the name of “Intimidator.”
Dale Earnhardt Jr. has won on the Alabama Superspeedway previously, but not in eleven years. In fact, immediately following his father’s death, Earnhardt Jr. won four consecutive races at Talladega beginning in 2001, just after his father’s death in the season-opening Daytona 500, through 2003. He then grabbed his fifth victory in 2004.
The years that followed were not easy for Earnhardt Jr., where fans sometimes accused him of being in a slump and laying back on the track. Years of frustration followed, although he did claim a victory last year at the Daytona 500, the same raceway that took the life of his father, but he lost the Talladega last year, a race very important to NASCAR fans. True to his quiet and somewhat humble nature, Earnhardt Jr. spoke about the win as though he was still in awe.
“Everything is just so good for me right now, my personal life, my racing, the team I’m with, I don’t know why. I don’t feel like I deserve it. I just feel overcome, you know, with a lot of emotion.”
Congratulations to Dale Earnhardt Jr. on his continuance of a family tradition that many NASCAR fans will never forget.
[Photo Courtesy of ESPN]
