LETTER: NASCAR column questioned

Dear Editor,

I am writing in response to Friday’s column headlined “NASCAR should wake up and smell the death of racing.” It seems the column is a little off course. Yes, it is true that Dale Earnhardt is a legend of NASCAR. He is as great or greater than Richard Petty. But the information on the case as stated in the column is quite different than the real facts! Dale Earnhardt was a seven-time Winston Cup winner and not a six-time as was stated. The column mentioned he was uncharacteristically helping his son Dale Jr. However, there is more to this than was stated. Dale was protecting the lead for his son, Dale Jr., and Michael Waltrip, who both drove cars owned by DEI (Dale Earnhardt Inc.). Dale was protecting the lead so his cars would win. Helping teammates is a normal thing to do in NASCAR. The column stated how safety is No. 1 on NASCAR’s list (which is true), then wondered how come people die in high-speed races. Do you think that maybe these racers and fans don’t understand that when you have 43 racecars competing in a race at more than 180 mph that death might be around the next turn? I am sure that the drivers are well aware of the high risk associated with this line of work. Just why are they driving at high speeds? In racing it is he who crosses the finish line first wins, not he who comes in last wins. But of all the comments in the column, this one made me laugh more than any. It mentioned as related to sports: “When people die, the game should stop.” This does happen in sports. If your comment were true, then we wouldn’t have football, hockey, soccer, boxing, autoracing, etc. The job of sports columnist would be utterly boring. All the columns would be about badminton games on ESPN. Just one last thing. Thanks for all the wonderful memories and good times at the track, Dale Earnhardt. May your legacy live on for everyone to remember!

Darin Noorda