died as he lived. Always known as a competitor who brought the best out in everyone around him, he died trying to bring the best out in one of his drivers, Michael Waltrip. Dale knew that several cars had the ability to win the Daytona 500, and he was determined to make sure that those cars had to get by him in order to reach Waltrip, the eventual winner. His final lap crash occurred as he was running interference for Waltrip and his son, Dale Junior, who finished second.Known as the Intimidator, Earnhardt wasn't afraid to bump and bang his way to the front, but off the track, he was a shy man who appeared not to enjoy the glare of the spotlight. Dale Earnhardt was a throwback to the days when his father, Ralph was the NASCAR Sportsman champion. Driving with an open faced helmet, he didn't like full-face helmets, you expected to see a red bandanna over his nose and mouth to keep the dirt of the southern short-tracks where he began out of his mouth. In fact, he often drove as if he were at one of those tracks. He never forgot those days and even on a superspeedway like Daytona, you could see glimpses of the North Carolina dirt tracks as you watched his black #3 fight its way through the field and into the lead.Born April 29, 1951 in Kannapolis, North Carolina, Earnhardt entered racing in the late 1970's. He was given his first chance by Rod Osterlund where he picked up his first championship, before moving on to Richard Childress Racing, picking up the remaining six championships. In his career, Earnhardt won a total of 76 Winston Cup races and a record tying 7 NASCAR Winston Cup Championships. While he only won the Daytona 500 once, he actually was the winningest driver in the history of the Daytona International Speedway, winning 34 times in other events.Owner, with his wife Teresa, of Dale Earnhardt Enterprises, they own several cars, most famous amongst them being Dale Earnhardt, Jr.'s car and the car which was the winner of this y...
