Ralph Earnhardt biography
Ralph Lee Earnhardt was born on February 23, 1928, in Kannapolis, Cabarrus County, North Carolina, the youngest of four children, the son of John Henderson and Effie Mae Earnhardt. The family was part of the farming community, and upon leaving school Ralph worked in one of the cotton mills for several years. Wages and conditions were bad and one of the ways out of the situation was to run.
During his teens, he began building cars in the family garage with the intention of racing one at the local dirt tracks beginning in 1949. In 1953, at the age of twenty-five, Ralph turned pro and began his career by excellence, making great success. impression on the racing world very quickly.
His first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race took place on November 11, 1956 when he finished second behind Speedy Thompson in the Grand National (now Sprint Cup Series) at Hickory Speedway, North Carolina. Also in 1956, he won his first NASCAR Athlete title, a year in which he earned 32 victories.
Throughout his career, he held track championships at seven different venues. 1961 saw Ralph have his best result in the Grand National points standings, in 17th place, and also saw him replace Cotton Owens as a relay driver in the Daytona 500, covering more than 300 miles and finishing fifth. place. His awards include: – Ralph was inducted into the National Motorsports Press Association Hall of Fame in 1989, the same weekend that Dale Sr. won the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway, he was inducted into the Hall of Fame. International Motorsports fame in Talladega, Alabama, in 1997 and, along with his son Dale Sr., was named one of NASCAR’s “50 Greatest Drivers”. During the 1998 celebration of NASCAR’s 50th anniversary, in 2004 Ralph was inducted into the Stock Car Racing Hall of Fame at the Oceanside Rotary Club of Daytona Beach and was inducted into the National Dirt Late Model Hall of Fame in 2007.
His son Dale Sr. later said of the award he shared with his father: “This has been a very special moment for me and our family. I wish I had been here to see all of this.” During an interview with Buck Knight of Free Lance Star, Fredericksburg, Virginia, on Friday, August 25, 1967, Ralph was asked if he would like to drive on the Grand National circuit, he replied, “It would be a lot of fun to drive on the super tracks. racing, but the National Grand League is a bit rich in my blood, that is, in my pocket. It’s quite different from driving a sports car on short tracks, but not so good that a man can’t make the switch. The main difference I found is that in survival a man has to be very calm and very awake. There is no time to relax, to rest. “
In the old days, Ralph competed with veterans like Joe Weatherly, Buck Baker and Curtis Turner and many others. “The sport is very different from what it was in those days, when I was just starting out, a colleague heard about the races that were coming from the vine, or from a phone call from a friend or the promoter. The wallets were very small and now and then, a promoter ran away before the bounty. No one will ever know what NASCAR has meant to racing, turned a fortuitous affair into a business, and brought safety to a game where there was little or nothing. “
When asked if he had any ideas about retiring from NASCAR racing, he replied: “I feel good and I think I’m driving better than ever, I should be, a man learns something in every race he drives and I drive three times a day. “. Ralph had an interest in promising young men and it was he who started Bobbie Isaacs in the racing business. Ralph provided the guidance that started his son’s racing career growing up in southern North Carolina and Dale Sr. From an early age he wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps. Sadly, Ralph Earnhardt died of a heart attack at his home on September 26, 1973 at the age of 45. His wife, Martha, found him on the kitchen floor, not as people. he likes to believe, working on a car in the garage and found by his son, Dale Sr. He left behind his wife, Martha, his sons Dale as Dale Sr. and Danny and two daughters, Martha Kay and Kathy Lee. He was the grandfather of Dale Jr and Kerry Earnhardt.