JUNIOR'S DAYTONA WIN: 20 years ago, Dale Earnhardt Jr. From 2001-19, the Kannapolis minor-league franchise in the Carolina League was known as the Kannapolis Intimidators, in honor of the hometown hero, who’d purchased a share of the team after the 2000 season. Dale was in the lead down the frontstretch, got nudged by Elliott while blocking, darted down onto the grass but saved the car and returned to the asphalt while maintaining his lead.ġ3. The “Pass in the Grass” wasn’t really a pass, however. That was the race featuring Earnhardt’s famed “Pass in the Grass” for the victory.ġ2. Dale’s “Intimidator” nickname was born in 1987 as a result of his bruising battle with Bill Elliott during The Winston all-star race at Charlotte. A miscalculation in mixing colors caused that, and a lack of funds caused him to stick with the color instead of spending for a do-over.ġ1. One of the great ironies in the career of a man who’d become known worldwide as The Intimidator: That ’56 Ford was pink. Dale was 19 in 1970 when he started racing the local short tracks. Dale had two brothers (Danny and Randy) and two sisters (Cathy and Kaye). INSIDE DALE'S FINAL RACE: An inside look at the Fox broadcast of the 2001 Daytona 500Ĩ. THAT TRAGIC DAY: The unthinkable struck on final lap of the 2001 Daytona 500 He was, without question, "The Man," and today, on the 71st anniversary of his birth, we recount 71 bits of trivia, numbers and randomness.ĭALE'S DESTINY: From Kannapolis to Daytona to Talladega and beyond.
FROM THE ARCHIVE DALE EARNHARDT SR LOOKS AHEAD TO 2001 SERIES
The 76 career Cup Series wins and seven championships are a big part of the story, of course, but if those numbers could be dwarfed, they're dwarfed by the hold Dale Earnhardt had on the sport of stock-car racing. From an early age, he made it his destiny to become a racer, and given the nearby world of his youth, it was only natural.īut no one could've foreseen the racer he would become. He was the son of a racer, and spent his formative years surrounded by racers and race cars. Seventy-one years ago today - on ApDale Earnhardt was born in Kannapolis, N.C. View Gallery: PHOTOS: Dale Earnhardt at Daytona in 2001 before the fatal 500
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