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Sunday, February 25
Sunday was surreal at the Rock
By Jerry Bonkowski
ESPN.com
NASCAR, thy true name is Sheer Irony.
How else can you explain what was meant to be a tribute race to the late Dale Earnhardt evolving into nothing but a jumble of twists of fate. Yet, that's what we saw Sunday from Rockingham, N.C. What was to be a fitting send-off memorial to one of NASCAR's greatest drivers turned from tears to rain to a first-lap crash that involved Earnhardt's son, Dale Jr., to the eventual red flag that ended racing activities for the day.
|  | | Teammates Dale Earnhardt Jr., left, and Michael Waltrip enjoy a light moment before the start of the Dura Lube 400. |
End result: Let's try it all over again on Monday morning. Was this a cruel joke being played? Was it the fun-loving Dale Sr. pulling a practical joke on us? Or, after seeing what happened to his namesake in Turn 3 of the opening lap, did The Intimidator pull some strings with both God and Mother Nature to make sure no one else would get hurt in the on-again, off-again rainy conditions?
All during the last week, when critics expressed thoughts that perhaps Sunday's Dura Lube 400 should be postponed in Earnhardt's memory, the response from the NASCAR community was universal: No way, Dale would have wanted the race to go on.
Sunday morning, the colorful world of Winston Cup came together in a fashion that arguably has never been seen before, dedicating the day and the race to the late, great No. 3. It was an inspiring show of humanity and brotherhood, the type of unselfish togetherness usually only seen during Opening Ceremonies of the Olympic Games.
The heads of all drivers, crew members and virtually anyone else in the pits were covered before the race with baseball caps emblazoned with Earnhardt's name and No. 3 car number. Meanwhile, every one of the roughly 100,000 fans who came through the turnstiles of North Carolina Speedway on Sunday morning was given a complimentary pennant, also featuring Earnhardt's name, car number and a memorial likeness of his face.
The sun shined for a while, only to give way to intermittent showers. Still, NASCAR officials, drivers, team owners, crew members and fans were all optimistic that the weather would break long enough to get the race in.
As often as eyes were turned toward the skies, wondering what the clouds and the next few hours held, those same eyes also searched feverishly until they came upon the visage of Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the pits. Not only did the 26-year-old Earnhardt have the weight of familial responsibility upon his shoulders – having to carry on the Earnhardt name, tradition and legacy – he had his own burden of grief over his now-departed father that had to be filed away once he climbed into his No. 8 Budweiser Chevrolet.
Then there was the senior Earnhardt's "replacement," Kevin Harvick. The pressure of trying to fill the shoes of a legend was cushioned somewhat by Harvick driving a car with a different number (No. 29) and a different paint scheme (white, rather than Earnhardt's traditional black) in the race. Still, a horse of a different color is still the same horse underneath, and there was no mistaking that Harvick was driving the very same car Earnhardt would have piloted Sunday if he had not been tragically killed a week ago at Daytona.
During pre-race ceremonies, recently retired driver-turned-broadcaster Darrell Waltrip gave a stirring invocation, asking all those in the pits and stands to join hands while remembering Earnhardt in their own individual ways. As hard as everyone in attendance tried to stand tall and tough in Earnhardt's likeness, dry eyes gave way to trickles of tears here and there. Even pole-sitter Jeff Gordon was seen wiping tears from his face.
Moments later during the parade laps, Gordon would show why he is considered one of the classiest guys in all sports, dropping back from his No. 1 pole position into the second row, ceremonially letting Dale Sr. have the pole one last time.
Just as quickly as the green flag dropped and the race began, it was suddenly slowed less than 20 seconds later when a quickly slowing Dale Jr. was tapped from behind entering Turn 3 by Ron Hornaday, who was slow to react to the younger Earnhardt's quick braking.
In a frighteningly similar circumstance as what happened to his father last Sunday, Earnhardt Jr. lost control of his Chevy, turned left, tried to correct it only to oversteer and slam virtually head-on into the wall at The Rock, collecting Mike and Kenny Wallace and Jimmy Spencer in the process. The big difference to Little E's crash: He tagged the wall at 120 mph, rather than the 180-mph force with which his father crashed into Daytona International Speedway's fourth turn.
The damage and location of the hit to Dale Jr.'s car was eerily similar to that of his father's. Yet, Dale Jr. was able to emerge from the wreck a bit shaken up and with a noticeable limp as he hobbled to a waiting ambulance. One has to wonder if God hadn't decided last Sunday was Dale Sr.'s time, that he, too, might have climbed out of his car at Daytona and limped away as well.
Everything else afterward Sunday afternoon was anticlimactic. The younger Earnhardt's crew tried to repair the damage, only to come to the conclusion that it was a losing battle. And while radar showed one thing, that the rain was near an end, the clouds had a different mindset. They wound up being just as stubborn as The Intimidator. You didn't mess with Dale Sr. and the clouds proved you don't mess with Mother Nature.
Ultimately, it seemed like every time things were ready to go, something happened to turn a race that everyone looked forward to into a race that just could never get going.
Yes, Sunday was a day filled with memories, lingering grief and hurt in the hearts of millions of fans around the world, both those in attendance and others watching and listening to the event on TV and radio, wondering how NASCAR could go on without Dale Earnhardt ... and enough overwhelming irony to make me wonder about something:
If he had still been around and could have voiced his opinion, maybe Dale Sr. would have wanted them to cancel Sunday's race after all.
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