Senate Bill sb2978

    Florida Senate - 2003        (NP)                      SR 2978

    By Senator Smith





    14-2554-03

  1                    Senate Resolution No. ____

  2         A resolution honoring the life and memory of

  3         Dale Earnhardt, legendary stock car racer.

  4  

  5         WHEREAS, Ralph Dale Earnhardt was born on April 29,

  6  1951, on a farm in Kannapolis, North Carolina, and

  7         WHEREAS, the son of a NASCAR driver, Ralph Earnhardt,

  8  Dale Earnhardt developed a passion for stock car racing at an

  9  early age, and

10         WHEREAS, Dale Earnhardt began competing in local stock

11  car races as a teenager, eventually competing in the Winston

12  Cup Circuit, and

13         WHEREAS, in 1975, Dale Earnhardt entered his first

14  Winston Cup race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway, and

15         WHEREAS, in 1979, Dale Earnhardt won his first Winston

16  Cup race at the Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee,

17  and later that year was named Rookie of the Year, and

18         WHEREAS, in 1980, Dale Earnhardt clinched the NASCAR

19  Winston Cup Championship, making him the first driver to win

20  Rookie of the Year and the Winston Cup Championship in

21  successive seasons, and

22         WHEREAS, in 1984, Dale Earnhardt began driving for

23  Richard Childress, and together they formed a formidable team,

24  achieving tremendous success on the racetrack, and

25         WHEREAS, Dale Earnhardt won NASCAR championships in

26  1986, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1993, and 1994, tying Richard Petty's

27  impressive record for the most championships won in a single

28  career of stock car racing, and

29         WHEREAS, during his career, Dale Earnhardt won 34 races

30  at the Daytona track, the most of any driver in history,

31  including the Daytona 500 in 1998, and

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    Florida Senate - 2003        (NP)                      SR 2978
    14-2554-03




 1         WHEREAS, Dale Earnhardt was the first three-time winner

 2  of the Winston Select and won three International Race of

 3  Champions (IROC) Series Championships, and

 4         WHEREAS, in 1998, on the 50th anniversary of NASCAR,

 5  Dale Earnhardt was named one of the sport's 50 greatest

 6  drivers, and

 7         WHEREAS, Dale Earnhardt was nicknamed "The Intimidator"

 8  because of his aggressive and keen driving abilities, and

 9         WHEREAS, Dale Earnhardt also found success as a

10  businessman, including his ownership in other racing teams and

11  as a farmer in Mooresville, North Carolina, and

12         WHEREAS, Dale Earnhardt died on February 18, 2001, and

13         WHEREAS, Dale Earnhardt is survived by his wife, Teresa

14  Earnhardt; his children, Dale, Jr., Kerry, Kelly, and Taylor;

15  his mother, Martha; and several siblings, and

16         WHEREAS, Dale Earnhardt was loved and admired by people

17  from all around the world and is greatly missed both on and

18  off the racetrack, NOW, THEREFORE,

19  

20  Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of Florida:

21  

22         That the Florida Senate recognizes April 29, 2003, as

23  "Dale Earnhardt Day" in honor of the memory of this great

24  American sportsman, gentleman, and friend to all Floridians.

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