*** Official thread *** Dale Earnhardt dead.....

[MGallik]

RIP...

 

[Jalapeno]

This is truly a tragedy. My condolences go out to his family.

I have been watching NASCAR for a while now, and Dale Earnhardt was never one of my favorites, but I always respected him for what he did on and off the track.

The black #3 car was always a force out there and I will miss it forever.

Rest in peace Dale! You will always be in our memories.

 

[Jalapeno]

"Thanks "NFS4", for NOTHING! "

What else is new?

 

[BigSmooth]

Wow... unbelievable. He will always be remembered as a racing legend.

 

[BDawg]

As a racer, I loved to hate him. Still, I almost cried when I heard he died. He's such a legend, and he meant so much to NASCAR. He will be missed

His crash wasn't as spectacular as the Tony Stewart crash, but you have to rememer, throwing a car in the air and spinning it takes a lot of energy out of the crash.

Ramming a car at the wall at 180 mph means that every bit of energy is focused on the front of the car.

Regardless, NASCAR rides are still very safe. Much more than any other sort of race car, and much more than a street car.

After the big reck, Gordon warned that this is the kind of things that happen in restrictor plate races. DE was the biggest opponent of them. Tragically ironic that it's what cost him his life.

RIP, Earnhart.

 

[Pastore]

It is confirmed that Earnhardt hit the wall going approzimately 200 MPH head on... His death was confirmed at the hospital 90 minutes after the race ended...

It is a very sad happening...

my info is from SpeedFX and in my book they are the best site out their for auto racing news...

 

[Mayhem1869]

I have been a Dale Earnhardt fan my whole life. I wore Earnhardt baby clothes. I am devestated, I literal did cry when I heard. I don't know if I will ever have the same love for Nascar that I did up until today.

 

[SuperSix]

All the critics.. "NASCAR isn't safe!" Blah, blah. blah..

An AMAZING amount of safety engineering goes into those cars, you simply cannot expect no one to ever die when they are moving over 180 MPH.

I have friends in Loudon NH, where Adam Petty and Kenny Irwin died last year, and it was due to a problem with the track, not with the cars. Agreed, the HANS device should be mandatory, but don't blame "lame engineering" for these deaths.

I cannot believe how affected I am by his death.

I am truly saddened..

 

[GreenBeret]

Damn.

 

[nEoTeChMaN]

WTF!! :Q

 

[Viperoni]

My eyes are getting kinda watery
You will be missed by many Dale Sr.

 

[gtb55447]

It is very sad, he will be missed by us all. =\

 

[Fiddy]

I was at the Texas Motor Speedway last October and witnessed the crash that killed Tony Roper. When I saw Dale crash today it was a repeat of the exact same thing. Same type of accident, same type of quiet that came after it. Hitting the wall at that angle slammed Tonys head forward and broke his neck, I imagine Dale had the same misfortune. They said that Dale didn't have any facial injuries and that a full-face helmet would not have made a difference. NASCAR really needs to start looking into the soft wall technology or design the cars to dissapate energy better like the Indy cars. Truly a sad day today and a big loss to the sport of racing. I hope I don't ever have to see something like this again. Condolences to the Earnhardt Familiy.

 

[beamrider]

Jesus, I'm sitting here bawling my eyes out......WTF do we do now? I've rooted for him my whole life, and I don't think I'll watch another race again. Dale was the only reason I even turned the races on. It was just amazing to watch him do what he did better than anyone.

The day he won Daytona, I wept with joy. Today, I weep with utter sadness.

 

[A5]

He was the only one I ever liked...

 

[SexEPid]

I can't believe this.
A true great legend and hero..a sad sad day in NASCAR, and a sad day overall


RIP.

 

[Nessoldaccount]

Drive with lights on all this week everyone

 

[MiniThug]

This is truly sad. May God be with his family.

 

[Slap]

Everyone talks about more safety, more safety. When you hit a wall head on at around 190mph, what more is there that you can do. All doctors interviewed so far have stated that the HANS device would not have done him any good.

I just can't believe this. They keep showing his wife and son all hugging right before they got in the cars. He then kissed his wife for the last time as he was putting one foot in the car. he was so calm and collective with not a worry in the world.

 

[PalmettoTiger]

This is so terrible! It's the first race of the season and there was so much hype and excitement surrounding the new rules and the new TV deal with FOX that even I watched the race. Dale Sr. was such a great man. The only way this could have been worse is if he hadn't won in '98, and was leading at the time of the crash!!

I usually make fun of NASCAR, but I do understand the skill and teamwork that goes into the events. Earnhardt was the only driver I ever paid attention to, and I think it's fitting that his last moments were spent on the track helping his teammate and his son. Rest in peace.

 

[PrelateBishop]

I think that it is amazing that so many people have posted such kind words. All of you should be commended for taking the time to make your kind thoughts known.

That being said, let me add my 2 cents:

May God be with the family, friends and fans of the deceased. I'm truly sorry for their loss.

 

[crab]

I cannot imagine the whiplash force hitting the wall at 180+mph causes..I broky my neck diving into a pool, but 180mph sounds like it'll shatter anything.

Dale was my favorite, I just saw him at Dover, i'm devastated. I feel so bad for his family. I cried when I heard Dale Jr.'s words when his car stopped were "is my daddy okay" or something close..

Goodbye Dale

 

[StageLeft]

He didn't ram the wall at 180 - even if the car was going at 180, which it was, much of his velocity was still aimed parallel to the wall - straight on wall speed wasn't even near 180.

 

[warlord]

I'm a huge fan of Dale and NASCAR, but I don't know what to say besides that so many people will never get to see this great man race again.

 

[andrey]

Very sad and Im sorry to hear news like that =(