"The Final Ride"
I took this picture on February 19, 2001 as we made our way home from Daytona. This was the day after the tragic death of Dale Earnhardt. We listened to a traffic report from the traffic helicopter and he said that Dale’s hauler was going north on Interstate 85 in North Carolina and that nobody would pass him. As his hauler made its way up Interstate 85, we stopped to take this picture and I was amazed at what I saw! I looked back down the interstate and not a single vehicle would pass him! The traffic behind him was backed up over two miles! Everyone had their headlights on for as far as you could see. As he drove by us, there was a peace and quiet that I had never felt before. It sent chills up and down my spine. This picture was taken at about 4:30 PM as the sun was setting and I thought the sunlight reflecting off of the hauler made the time of day fit with the feeling of the moment. Yes, this was a tragedy but to see this show of respect, is something that I will never forget!
Steve James 2-19-01
The whole story behind the picture can be found at the below link
http://www.thefinalridephoto.com/
This is one of those things that most people dont understand. Dont understand why people would be moved by this picture of this story. I undertand it, and am very moved by it. Had I been on the road that day I would not have passed that hauler either. I dont care where I had to be or what I had to do. I would have fallen in line, with my lights on, and waited. I have to say, I dont think a day has gone by in the past11 years that I dont think of Dale. In fact right now, the desktop on my computer is this
and I didnt even know him.
We were at the first Busch race Jr ever won, We were at the first Cup race Jr ever won, and we were at the last race Dale won.
We miss you Dale!
DD
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