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March 2001 This is The Racers Network ™ Monthly Newsletter. We hope that you enjoy the following articles. Contents: We hope that you find this issue to be informative. If you have any suggestions for Future issues, or have an article or story you would like to contribute Please send e-Mail To the following address fwallace@racer-net.com ********************************************************************** I can never fully express my immense gratitude for the overwhelming support we have received. It would be easy at this time to get lost in the sadness of losing a loving husband, father and grandfather. However, I and our family, as well as everyone at Dale Earnhardt Inc., have chosen to take this time to reflect not on the sadness we feel today, but on the joy Dale Earnhardt the man brought to us and Dale Earnhardt the driver brought to so many fans for so many years. It is a joy that will carry us through the sadness and grief of this day and many days to come. For our children, Kerry, Kelley, Dale Jr. and Taylor, he was a father whose pride in his children was greater than even his strongest desire as a competitor. For his mother, Martha, he was a son who always wanted to make sure she had what she needed. For his brothers and sisters, he was always an influential part of their lives. For his employees, he could be both demanding and praising and had the ability to create the same desire to win in the crews and drivers that he had in himself. He was very proud of what the teams at Dale Earnhardt Inc. had been able to do in a very short period of time and the people who helped it happen and supported its acceleration. For his fans, there simply was no one more sensational and with that I agree. There were two sides to Dale Earnhardt, and I am so blessed to have known both for the qualities they carried. The public Dale Earnhardt wanted to be the best. The competitive drive that burned inside of him gave him the passion to win. If he was racing, he wanted to win the most races and championships. If he was fishing, he wanted to catch the most fish. The private Dale Earnhardt, the husband and father and son and brother, wanted to be the best as well. He struggled with that at times. Emotions didn't come as easy to this man who stirred so much emotion in other people. But as his children grew and began making decisions of their own, he saw that most of the time, they made the decision by asking themselves "What would Dale do?" I think what Dale would do, and what Dale would want us to do, is remember the joy that his life brought. Remember the things about him that made you happy that you were his fan. Remember the man who loved life. He was the happiest person I know, and that can comfort us all. Gratefully, Teresa Earnhardt ********************************************************************** Here are some readers responses to our article in last months Newsletter, telling us where they were when they heard about the tragic death of Dale Earnhardt. --------------------------------------------------------------------- I've heard people say they'll always remember where they were when they heard that Elvis died. I can't say that I remember where I was, but I know I'll never forget the day that Dale died. Ironically enough, my husband and I were in our garage working on a race car we've been building. The finishing touches after months and months - we're hoping to make our first run in it this weekend at a local 1/8 mile dragstrip in Kennedale, TX. We had a TV in the garage so we could watch the race while we worked. We saw the 'big wreck' and watched as Tony Stewart tumbled across the track. It looked bad, but knowing how well the Winston Cup cars are built and how the energy is dissipated in that type of wreck, I felt that he would be okay. Thankfully, he will. Then there was the other wreck. For some reason, as soon as I saw that one, I had a really bad feeling. Dale always got out of his car after a wreck - even if he was hurt. No way would he let them cut his car apart! I tried to tell myself he'd be okay and I prayed and prayed to God. But I couldn't convince myself. I tried to get information from the internet, but most of the racing websites must have been bombarded. Finally, my mom called and talked to my husband. I was glued to the TV waiting for an update. Then I saw Dale being wheeled into the hospital while CPR was being done. Dale Jr. was right beside him. My husband hung up the phone and just looked at me and shook his head. Mom had heard the news on TV - Dale had gone to join so many others that we used to watch each Sunday - Davey and Clifford, Alan, J.D., Adam, Kenny, Rodney, John, Tony, and Dale's best friend, Neil. Each of their deaths hit me hard - especially Alan, Davey and Neil - they weren't rookies and we were familiar with each of them. But Dale? That's just not possible - it has to be a mistake. He's the Intimidator, the Man in Black, a 7-time Winston Cup Champion. My first NASCAR souvenir was a Dale Earnhardt coffee mug - followed by numerous t-shirts, a couple jackets, stickers, collectors' spoon and even a hair bow. He can't really be gone, can he? Dale, we love you and we miss you. Leslie James Fort Worth, TX --------------------------------------------------------------------- I was on my way back from alb, just pick up my new dirt late model, I was almost home when a friend told me, then on the news there it was. My son is in the air force in mississippi and we wanted to watch the race, I decided to come back to texas and just listen to it on the radio but as luck would have it, I couldnt find a station to pick it up. Chris, my son, is a die hard Earnhart fan from day one, I had to paint all the race cars that we had had in the past and have the #3 on them. I have meet Dale a few times myself and he is a great guy. I just wish that my son could have meet him too. Now I wish that NASCAR would retire the 3 or give it to Dale JR. but let no one else run the number. Thanks, Donny Snow La Grange, TX --------------------------------------------------------------------- I was watching race. It was very hard to believe. Thank You, Richard D. McComic --------------------------------------------------------------------- I was on my way back from Daytona Feb 18 when I heard the news. I had drove down from TN. to watch the man in black intimidate, and he was well on his way, 1/2 mile away. My heart goes out to Teresa and all the family. I will greatly miss the man named Dale Earnhardt. I have been blessed to follow his career for 20 years, and cheering him all the way. It will never be the same. Thanks, Keith Cole --------------------------------------------------------------------- We have been going to Daytona for several years and we really enjoy getting away from the cold and snow. When I say we I mean my wife and I, and two other couples. But due to some problems my wife could not attend. So I took my seventeen year son who hopes to attend U.T.I., (which if you don't know has joined forces with NASCAR to open a school in Charlotte to train people to work in NASCAR). Seeing as how this would be his first Winston Cup race and it was to be the Daytona 500, he was pretty excited. We attended the twin 125 on Thurs. and although it was exciting we both agreed that we were afraid that the 500 would be follow the leader. Well, I will be the first to say that the 500 was the most exciting race that I have seen in a long time. Although the guy we rooted for didn't win we were sure happy to see Michael Waltrip win his first race, and I think that everybody was happy for him. As we sit in the first turn we can't see much of what happened in turn four, but we knew that there was a wreck and we did not see Dale or Kenny come by, so we knew that they were involved. But they said over the radio and loud speaker that there was a crash and it did involve those two, and that as soon as they had any information on them they would let everyone know. It seemed that everyone was enjoying Mike's victory and no one was leaving. Where we sit you cannot see the big screen very good, but what we saw of the wreck we didn't think that it was that bad. After waiting for a while to let the crowd thin we decided it was time to go, as we were leaving we did notice that nobody was leaving the turn four area. But we just figured that they were celebrating Mike's victory, and that if anything was wrong that there would be an announcement. As we were leaving we noticed that their was a rather large crowd around the Winston Tower which we had never seen before, but there was no announcement. On our bus trip back to the car the radio was on but nothing to give us any indication that there was anything wrong. After we got to the car we headed to supper. All through the day one of guys had been giving my son a hard time about his driver who happened to Kenny Scharder, (the other's are all Earnhardt fans) and my son had been taking it pretty good. Better than I would had it been me. My son had been giving some of it back so it was not all one sided. As we were eating my son got up and when he came back he ran into the guy who had been riding him and told him that he just heard two guys in the restroom that Earnhardt was in bad shape. When he came back to the table he told me that he hoped that my son was just playing a joke on him, and not knowing what was going on I asked him what joke. So he told me what he had said and I told him that I didn't think he would kid about something like that. At about that time the waitress walked up and wanted to know if we had heard about Dale and of course we all said no. And that is when we found out that he had died. The whole place went silent. I can't speak for the other people in there but at our table we lost our appetite. We just sat there stunned and talked for a few minutes. Then we got up and left. We still cannot believe that he is gone. He will be forever missed. What a great loss for the racing community. I don't think my son will ever forget his first Daytona 500. Thanks, Rod ********************************************************************** ONE QUARTER MILE FROM HEAVEN Like a guardian angel from four cars back, Watching Michael & Dale Jr. as they circled the track. No intention of winning, just holding his place, So proud of his "boys" now winning the race. We though it was over, the end was so near. No time for pain; no time for fear. We did not know, as there was no sign, Dale was only one-quarter mile from his final finish line. Within an instant, NASCAR fans would be facing, An eternal change in their world of racing. He was one of the greatest; beloved in his sport, With a grand career now sadly cut short. All the crowd noticed was excitement and debris, But a miracle was happening we could not see. Dale said goodbye through shining metal and chrome, As God gave "NUMBER 3" the checkered flag "home". But forever in our hearts, and in the scheme of things, We'll picture him circling heaven with black and red wings. Grinning; telling angels..and even the Creator, "Look out over there...here comes the "INTIMIDATOR". Author: Unknown ********************************************************************** C O N C O U R S E U R O P A * BRITISH & EUROPEAN CAR MEET * SUNDAY, MAY 6th 2001 WOODLEY PARK * VAN NUYS Be part of the largest British & European automotive lawn event in California. Over 500 classic, quirky and thoroughly lovable imports from Europe and the UK are expected to fill the field at Woodley Park in Van Nuys for the First Annual Los Angeles Concours Europa. Don't have a true show car? That's OK! VWs, Fiats, Minis, and Citroen 2CVs are as welcome as true exotics and the big classics. Show cars, daily drivers, vintage racers, street rods and works-in-progress will be placed on the field by country and compete for "People's Choice" awards in ten classes. Great food, live jazz, vendors and more fun than you'll be able to stand! There's no preregistration. Cars will be placed on the field starting at 9:00AM and the fun goes on all day long. The registration fee is $20 per car at the gate. Spectators can park and attend free. Woodley Park is located in Van Nuys, just north of the Ventura Freeway (101), on Woodley Avenue between Burbank and Victory Blvds. From the San Diego Freeway (405), take the Burbank Blvd. exit west, drive to Woodley Avenue and turn right. Look for the entrance to the right. For information call: 310-392-6605 or email us at: rfeibusch@loop.com ********************************************************************** The Racers Network has been using a Message Board company to provide our users this service since 1998. We offer 5 message boards: - Stock Car Racing - Drag Racing - Sports Car Racing - Sprint Car Racing - Vintage Car Racing These can be accessed by going to http://www.racer-net.com/forum.htm The company that we used for this service went out-of-business on March 5, 2001. We were given a 2 week heads-up on this, which gave us enough time to locate another company, reach an agreement, configure the new boards, and bring them up on-line effective march 4. The new service company will provide us better service and an improved product. The new Boards are easier to use, and provide faster response time to the users. Let us know what you think of the new Message Boards. ********************************************************************** In the year of 2000 The Racers Network was visited by over 1,370,000 "unique" visitors, and produced in excess of 13,401,000 hits. Not only are these statistics outstanding, but more importantly we produce results. Below is the response from a current The Racers Network user, who recently sold his car. Dear Sir: I wanted to advise you of the success of your web site in selling my Pace Shadow. I never thought it would sell so quickly. Thank you again for your help in selling my trailer. Sincerely, Richard P. Carter Jr. ********************************************************************** How about Three Quarter Midget Sprint Racing. Imagine sliding around a dirt track corner. Sound good? The Racers Network has it. It's classified advertisement is as follows: Coil over T.Q. car out of Tennesee. Halibrand full midget rear. Aluminum rear axle, JFZ inbound brake, vented rotor. Fuel cell, Rack-N-Pinion steering. Brand new Kenny Miller Honda 750. Nice car, lots of spare parts. With or Without Driver. $8,500.00 or Best Offer The Advertisement can be seen at: http://www.racer-net.com/fmra001.htm ********************************************************************** We are striving to make The Racers Network the best place on the internet to buy or sell race cars, trailers, transporters, parts, and tickets. We believe that we are presenting the classified advertisements the way that you want to see them. But, we also realize that there is always room for improvement. We value your input and ask that you let us know about ways in which we can improve. Send e-Mail to fwallace@racer-net.com ********************************************************************** The Racers Network is the #1 ranked InterNet site for MotorSports classified advertisements. We offer affordable advertising opportunities. With over 13,401,000 hits in 2000, we are the perfect place to have your company seen by racers worldwide. We are trying hard to be the best source on the Internet for racing related classified advertisements, and we are succeeding. We need your support. For information about advertising your company on The Racers Network go to: http://www.racer-net.com/adinfo.htm ********************************************************************** See You Next Month !!! |
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