| Dale Earnhardt Sr. was born in Kannapolis, NC to | | | | track. Privately, he did enjoy family time, fishing, |
| Martha Coleman and Ralph Earnhardt. His dad Ralph | | | | hunting and working on his farm in Mooresville. He |
| was a natural born racer and one of the best | | | | was known by those close to him to be charitable |
| short-track drivers at the time. Although Ralph didn't | | | | and generous. Dale's NASCAR racing career spanned |
| want Dale to follow in his footsteps, his son had a | | | | from 1975 to 2001. Over the years, his skills and |
| dream and that was to race cars. The more he | | | | aggressive driving style earned him the nickname |
| watched his dad race, the more he wanted that for | | | | "The Intimidator". He was also known as "The Man in |
| himself. He even dropped out of high school to race. | | | | Black" referring to the black paint scheme in which his |
| When he was a teenager, Dale worked at a local | | | | #3 car was painted. Some fans even called him |
| auto mechanic shop doing welding and mounting tires. | | | | "Darth Vader" because of the black uniform and car, |
| When he left work every day, he would rush to his | | | | adding to his notoriety as a driver who would wreck |
| garage to work on his racecars. Dale grew up fast | | | | you if he couldn't pass you. Dale was either loved or |
| and at the early age of 17, he married his first wife | | | | hated by race fans; nevertheless he was one of the |
| and had a son on the way. Financial issues soon arose | | | | sports most popular drivers. |
| and he parted ways with his wife and son. In 1973, | | | | Earnhardt suffered a tragic accident on the last lap of |
| Dale lost his father, Ralph to heart failure. He died in | | | | the Daytona 500 on February 18th, 2001. He did not |
| his own garage, doing what he loved working on his | | | | survive the crash and was the fourth NASCAR driver |
| racecar. | | | | to die in the nine months prior, the first being Adam |
| The passing of Dale's father devastated him but he | | | | Petty in May 2000. These fatal crashes led to |
| pressed on with his dream of racing and with his life. | | | | increased safety precautions instituted by NASCAR. |
| Dale's second wife was Brenda Gee (the daughter of | | | | At a press conference, Mike Helton, the president of |
| NASCAR car builder Robert Gee). Together they had | | | | NASCAR made the formal announcement of |
| two children, Kelley and Dale Jr. Shortly after Dale Jr. | | | | Earnhardt's death: "Undoubtedly this is one of the |
| was born, Dale and Brenda divorced. His third wife | | | | toughest announcements I've personally had to |
| was Teresa. They were married for 20 years and | | | | make. We've lost Dale Earnhardt. The #3 car, driven |
| had a daughter, Taylor. | | | | by Earnhardt since 1988, was immediately retired by |
| Together in 1980, they founded Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | | | | Richard Childress, the team owner. Certainly Dale |
| Dale usually kept his personal life to himself. Most only | | | | Earnhardt's life and death touched many fans all over |
| saw the no-nonsense, intimidating side of him at the | | | | the United States. |