It’s hard to believe that it’s only about one more month before the 2023 NASCAR season begins. While I am always excited for a new season, I pulled this book off of my shelves to get back in the swing of the sport. What better way to do than reading an excellent book on one of the most famous racing families?
Title: “Earnhardt Nation: The Full-Throttle Saga of NASCAR’s First Family” by Jay Busbe
Rating: 5 of 5 stars (excellent)
Review: Say the name “Dale Earnhardt” and people will immediately think of the crash that killed the popular NASCAR driver at the 2001 Daytona 500. This book by Jay Busbee is more than just a good biography of him - it portrays a racing family in both good times and not so good ones.
While the entire family is included in the book and there is good, detailed information on Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s driving career as well as the split he had from the family’s racing business before joining Hendrick Motorsports, the book is primarily about Dale, Sr. Not only his life, but the impact that he had on the sport even 15 years after his death (the book was published in 2017).
The writing on Dale Sr. is very balanced and that is the primary reason that I felt that this was an excellent book. Busbee give the proper respect and praise for Earnhardt for his accomplishments, but this is not a hero-worshipping type of portrayal. The flaws in his personality and life choices are mentioned, but there is also the side of him that shows how he was truly nice to many people.
One great example of this portrayal is the story of an 8 year old girl who got to meet Earnhardt through the Make-A-Wish foundation. It was on the day of the 1998 Daytona 500 and the girl was told Dale may not have much time for her or that he may be not very nice. Not the case at all - he spent a lot of time with her and the girl gave him a penny for good luck. Earnhardt took that penny, taped it to his car’s dashboard- and then won that race, the only Daytona 500 win in his legendary career.
NASCAR fans, no matter their level of interest or their knowledge of the sport during this time, will enjoy this book. One will learn a lot about Dale Sr, even if they thought they knew much about him. Add in the material on Dale Jr, Teresa Earnhardt and her ways of keeping the family business running and even the other two Earnhardt children Kelley and Kerry and you have a great look at this legendary racing family.
Link: https://www.amazon.com/Earnhardt-Nation-Full-Throttle-NASCARs-Family/dp/0062367722/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=
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