If Dale Jr wants an idea to sell t-shirts, I have an idea. Make a t-shirt on the front that says 88 and on the back, "104 and Counting." This is getting aggravating as a Dale Jr fan. I have stuck it out with him and hope to see him win again. Theres some traits I like about him. Now heres some things I have learned from being a Dale Jr fan and some of the reasons why he cannot seem to win.
First lets make one thing clear. He will never be as good as his Father. No one will ever be for that matter. I have met some Dale Jr fans who think he could eclipse what his Father accomplished. I got news for you, there will only be one "Intimidator"
Some Dale Jr fans have the most insane excuses and reasons for why he cannot win.
Most Dale Jr apologetics come up with excuses like, "its the crew chief." Common. He has been through several of them. I don't think Dale Jr has really had a good driver/crew relationship like say Stewart/Zippy, Gordon/Evernham or Johnson/Knaus. With Earnhardt Jr its been musical chairs. So far it has been Eury Sr, Rondeau, Hmiel, Eury Jr, McGrew and now Letarte. I think he does not have a strong enough relationship with his crew chiefs. This hurts because it seems like every week he struggles with set ups and handling. He needs to do a better job so he can get his car the best it can be. The resources are there. What he does with it is up to him. Hes got the right equipment Which brings me to the next excuse.
The other is "its the equipment." Yes I can believe that because at the time DEI was not as dominant when Dale Jr left. The team was falling apart. Now the excuse is "Hendrick is giving him bad equipment" are you nuts? Why would Rick Hendrick give him bad equipment? I cannot picture Rick Hendrick plotting and going, "HA HA HA HA, I got it, hes going to use that engine Bodine had in 1987 that blew once." Or, "Yeah, Gordon, Martin and Johnson get new Chassis. Dale Jr gets the old Ken Schrader one from 1989" Ok, then why on earth would Hendrick build a team with good sponsors and put it on a crappy car? I don't buy it one bit.
The other one is that he "Is not good with the COT." You mean to tell me after all the testing, happy hours and practice he still does not get it? I find that one hard to swallow. In fact the COT now resembles the old cars.
Ultimately I think this all rests on Dale Jr. Hes been through enough equipment, teams, crew chiefs and races. Those aren't to blame for his problems. He has been through enough of them. Ultimately I can think of other factors to weigh in as to why he has not won. It could be personal matters. Living in his Father's shadow has got to be rough. Before he raced cars, he worked changing oil at Dale Earnhardt Chevrolet. I don't think he ever thought he would get this far not to mention witness his Father tragically die. That happened right when he was coming onto the scene. At this point I think he feels as though its his responsibility to carry on the Earnhardt name. Then to have his Father's fans now become a fan of him. That's alot of pressure. Not to mention he has other business interests that he has to tend to with Jr Motorsports and such. I am sure everytime he straps into that race car he knows the dangers. The constant reminders will never go away. When he raced a Corvette and almost burned alive, he said he felt his Father carry him out of burning car. I am sure that one incident has made him realize he has to move on and never give up. Like he was given another reason to carry on.
Thats one of the reasons I like him. We have all had struggles in our lives. Dale Earnhardt Jr presses on no matter what. He may at times have issues with his crew chief or just flat out not even try to win, but he has not once pulled the car in the garage and given up. Heck after he crashed at Texas we saw him make his Hendrick debut. When Kyle Busch crashed and left the track, he climbed in the 5 car and kept going! He did not quit like Busch. I will never forget that. I like that quality. Its not just because he wins races that I like him. Its because he races on no matter what happens. 104 may be a streak, but its just a number and he races on.
Good post, Christopher!
Christopher, that is so beautifully written, so sincerely expressed, so well thought out, and very well on point. I often think what Jr. goes through trying to be the third generation Earnhardt to be a force in stock car racing. I would not want that pressure, or even a thought of that pressure in my life. I admire him for the way he holds up to all that. He can drive a race car but, as you state, he will never equal what his father did or, for that matter, what his grandfather accomplished for the sport. I have often said, with no malice at all intended towards Jr., that if his last name was not Earnhardt, he wouldn't even be in a first class ride if, in fact, any ride at all. I sometimes wonder now if the only reason he continues is to maintain the Earnhardt name. It would be easy to say he is capitalizing on the name for material reasons, but considering all he has been through and continues to go through, it would be most unjust to say that. I like Jr., I like his style, I like his humility, and I like his unique honest expression of his feelings which not many of the drivers have. I don't even drink beer, but if he invited me over to watch the All-Star race and have a beer with him, I may have to take him up on that.Thanks for the post. It was an excellent read.Tim