February 2024 update: Back when we recorded this video I had no idea the channel would take this direction and have learned so much since then. This is the first video in the “racing history nerd zone” playlist that now has over 100 videos on it!
So good things did come from the Talladega tire war. The driver's tried a organized walk out due to tire safety issues. Bill France had just sunk everything he had into building that track over the old Air base.
My wife and I were lucky enough to have Danny "Chocolate" Myers show us around the shop and give us a verbal history of each car. The stories that he had were amazing and I left there with a different outlook on Dale Sr. . I wasn't a fan of him during his racing days, he wasn't my cup of tea as it were, but after watching a biography piece about him and what he did away from the track it changed how I felt about him. The one thing that effected me the most was the "Lucky Penny" car. Chocolate Myers told us the story we both had tears in our eyes then looking at him he had tears as well. Dale is missed RIP Dale.
Tm racing "dale wasn't my cup of tea as it were" 😆 Sound like the kind of soft weenie head Dale Sr. Loved to run off the race track. RIP DALE Nascar isn't worth watching now, now we have Bubbah Wallace seeing nooses when he ties his shoes. Damn shame what the sports become. Need more We Earnhardt's and Petty's .
From what I understand that lucky penny is still on the dash at the Daytona museum. Or do they just keep the car for a year? I've heard stories from many people who knew Dale and interacted with him, he was in my opinion the greatest driver in history but an even better man.
that must've been incredible to meet Danny Chocolate Myers! The Lucky Pennycar, is that the 1998 Daytona 500 winner? I remember going RCR in 2001, and the first thing when you walked through the door then was that 1998 Daytona 500 car and I remember the Lucky Penny being taped on the dashboard from Dale senior meeting the sick child & Stevie Waltrip's Bible verse.😢It startled everyone and me seeing it RIGHT AS YOU WALK IN, I noticed a few other people walking in also were emotional, I was already in tears and more when I saw how startled they were. We were Instinctively touching the car like we were at a wake (no problems with that from RCR) that car.😭 moment now like seeing Danny Chocolate Myers after Harvick's 1st win in Atlanta.
Went there in 2003. Met Chocolate Myers (longtime 3 car gas man, retired in 2002) in the parking lot and talked to him for 10 or 15 minutes. Such a cool guy.
From 1989 thru 1993 I ran the Ford training center in Winston Salem. I had to drive past RCR everyday. I would stop at the garage and look around. Richard was always very friendly. There was a giant bear in the lobby that must have been 12-13 feet tall.
Love your videos. It would be so cool to get as many drivers and team members in a room with them telling their stories. I love to hear them talk about their careers. Keep up the great work.
Just to back you up and "clear the air" about the interior and stripe colors on the Earnhardt cars, it is in fact, called Poppy Red, it also goes by the name Calypso Coral, Competition Orange, and Competition Red, the paint code is from the1965 Ford Mustang, color code.M1730. That same color/paint code was also used on 1966-67 Ford Trucks, 1968 Mercury Comet, and several other Ford cars up until 1979. In 1983, Chrysler used it as a Fleet color and called it "Red." Look it up and compare Red to Poppy Red. Side by side one does look red and the other one does look orange. Its even been compared to Chevrolet engine orange. Keep bringing us these interesting vlogs.
Not as big as an RCR or Dale Sr as you are, but this was enjoyable. When I moved to Jackson, MI in 2000, I felt I couldn't live in a NASCAR town and not have a driver, so when 2002 rolled around, and my son was about to be born, I picked this rookie named Jimmie Johnson. Maybe you've heard of him.
That is interesting considering this was the first one we ever did and had no tour guide. It was completely impromptu and we did not even ask if we could film beforehand lol. I did not know near as much back then as I do now.
Man this video makes me emotional. Many of us fans never met Dale but we were connected to him like he was our best friend or family member. Dale came from the same humble beginnings as many of his fans and his shyness and intimidating smirk made us fall in love with the man in black. Great video and thank you for keeping Dale's memory alive.
Dale was my icon my hero I looked up too. I cried 3 days after he hit that wall and even did a memorial poster for him. I was 9 years old I could not believe my hero was gone just like that in a blink of an eye. Thank you man for doing a video like this. Brought a tear to my eye.
I cried until the following Sunday (I was in first grade and everyone was concerned about me). And this is coming from a Jeff Gordon fan. It shows how much it shook the sport.
Same. I still cry just thinking about it. I was born an Earnhardt fan. Nascar, unfortunately, died along with him. I haven't watched a full race since. His passion g just destroyed it for me.
I didn't know the rainbow color car existed until now but I'm not surprised that he hated it and wouldn't wear the matching race suit!! The gesture of a true legend and hero!!
5:00 I have the die cast that my mom got me literally days after his crash. If I remember right, those front scuff marks were probably from pushing Tony Stewart. usually Dale Earnhardt Sr. was known to be kinda grumpy come speed weeks the last few years because of how bad the cars were because of rule changes that would be implemented before speed weeks. But he was very happy running with Tony Stewart I remember, the big signature grin and him saying he loves running with Tony Stewart during a post race interview obviously because of similar driving styles of hustling to the front, as my dad would say. Glad that me and my dad were too busy helping students doing CDL testing and practicing to go to the Daytona 500 2001 because that was our part time job when we weren't truckin'. I love your stock car history videos, me and dad started going to Nascar events in 1985 when Greg Sacks won in an R&D car over Bill Elliott all over his back bumper (Smiff has that vid) at the Firecracker 400. We live in central Florida and saw Daytona races from 1985 up to 2000s and I still have all the programs.
I remember there was a race in 89 or 90. Maybe even early 90s I was watching a race and Dale spun or wrecked and Rusty Wallace came along and slammed Earnhardt’s rear end off and you could clearly see it was orange inside. It totally shocked me. Does anyone remember what race this is?
Dale was my guy even back in the day when he wasn’t the most beloved driver in NASCAR. The Man was larger than life. Great tour, glad you got to be there.
That's a fabulous RCR Racing Museum video. You did a great job on that one. I was just at the museum last week and learned so much from your commentary, even after reading most of the plaques and written documentation there. Still learned so much from you. Way to go. Thank you so much.
Back in 2007 or 2008 my dad and I were given a tour of DEI. We went into the 8 shop and it was like Cooters Garage. I couldn't believe they were winning races with the 8 car from a crappy little shop that was on the back of DEI. The engine shop, however, was state of the art and looked like an operating room.
You're knowledge regarding Dale and RCR has my respect. As a kid that grew up in the 90s watching this man race, I was a student since I could remember, and still am. Thanks for stating the facts sir, great video.
I sat in that car at 7:30 at a Tech Center event back in the late 90s. They had a Jeff Gordon car and Bobby Labonte Interstate Pontiac as well. Used for photo ops.
Fantastic video! I am an Earnhardt fan and it is great to see that some of his car are frozen in time. It takes me back to when it happened. You and Logan rock.
I was there back in 1994 for open house, and waited 8 hours to get Dale’s autograph. Worth every second. I also got everyone on the pit crew, builders/fabricators, engine builders, and everyone in between. I even have Richard’s wife Judy, and his daughter Tina’s autograph. Richard is such a great , down to earth person. I wished I had lived down there, so I could have tried working there. I also have pictures of Mike Skinners Supertruck, BEFORE anyone knew he was going to drive it. It was built, but painted primer black. People were speculating if Dale was going to drive it. Neil Bonnet’s Mom & Pop’s #31 Lumina was there also. It’s the one he flipped, and wrecked, then went to announcers booth, and help call them he rest of the race. R.I.P. to both Dale, and Neil.
Thanks man! We share the same passion for Dale, Richard and the history of them both. I’ve been to the RCR museum and it was a very emotional experience that not a lot of people would understand but I could see that you totally get it. Thanks for showing the other shops Dale raced out of, I’d never thought of trying to find those.
Living out in Oregon and a race fan makes it tough to visit and know all of the history like this. It is so great that people like you do this for content!!!
I worked at BACE Motorsports in concord (late 9os)We had an old trailer/hauler that moved Randy's cars ..It was completely wrapped on the sides with Fina Randy Lajoie #74 .. but when you climbed on top it still said Goodwrench . It was originally one of Richards for Dale. There was also an old wives tale at RCR .. there was an aluminum air cleaner housing that was always imitated but never duplicated. For some reason when they put the engines on the dyno with this air cleaner the engine would have three more HP. The fabricators were told to make the exact same one numerous times. But that one air cleaner was unexplainable ...they used it on every race engine! The guy used to say" it was like it was some kind of magic aluminum "😂. They were always afraid that it was going to get wrecked. RIP.
In regards to the note that you saw in the GREY #3........Stevie Waltrip (Darrell's wife) used to write a Bible verse or inspirational note for Dale before every race that he would put in the #3, with the exception being the time he glued the penny from the Special Needs child to his dash, that he believes won him his first and ever Daytona 500 on his 20th attempt in '98.
18:10 the original "To the moon!" What a guy Richard Childress is, leaving the place exactly as it was and making it a museum is a treasure to people like us.
These videos are a wonderful way to preserve history and let the rest of us see! Thanks! I have driven by RCR in Mooresville, NC but did not stop because it was late and we were headed home from Charlotte Auto Fair. I think I would have enjoyed this more. This was in 2000 though so I don’t guess it was a museum yet, Dale was still with us at that time. Those Bible verses on the dash turned out to be a great way to show the world their need for a Savior! We can be taken at anytime, certainly Dale wasn’t thinking about that at that instant he was focused on helping Dale Jr. win that day, I remember that like it was yesterday!
I was in my early 20’s back then. All those cars bring back a ton of memories. All those races and being at some. It was a great time to be alive. Everyone was a race fan back then. I still have all my die cast cars and memorabilia. Thanks for sharing.
My wife and I stopped there 3 years ago on our way home from our honeymoon. I’m not gunna lie, I got the shakes and choked up when I walked into that shop and seen all that history. He was my hero and always will be. For3ver The Man.
I would say I used to be a Dale Earnhardt fan, I can't say that when I will always be a Dale Earnhardt fan, I was devastated when he passed away on the last lap of the '01 Daytona 500, it's been 20 year's and to see this video brings back memories of the greatest driver in NASCAR, people loved him and people hated him, the Man in Black is in heaven racing around with his friend, Neil Bonnet, and as they say "rubbing is racing!"
I think that's when I stopped watching Nascar races. I just felt like there were to many new faces coming in that I kinda fell away from it. I wasn't even a big Dale fan, but I respected the hell out of him.
Got to meet Richard Childress about 6 yrs ago at a opening of a bass pro shop here in Chattanooga I got him to sign one of mine dale eranhardt die cast cars
Mitchell. I’m a bit older than you and I can say I watched NASCAR and Dale is a legend to me forever. Worst day was seeing the wreck on tv. He made a difference that’s forever.
Mitchell, thank you so much for this! It was so cool to see all the history in this shop, and your knowledge of the cars and drivers made it that much better to watch
When I went to Earnhardt Chevrolet back in the mid-1990s, they just drove all the cars out in front of the dealership ! The 2nd small shop was still in use at that time !
Very cool to see you & Logan doing some exploring and checking out the Intimidator's past history! I always enjoyed watching him drive a race car, made it look so easy to do. At least he left this mortal earth doing what he loved so much, racing stock cars. He was a definite BAMF. It's my personal opinion that, had he not been killed in that horrible crash, that he would have won an 8th championship and then hung up his driving gloves and helmet to enjoy some semblance of "retirement" in 2001. I still have a VHS videotape of Dale's memorial service. He still is missed 20 years later. Keep up the quality videos you've been doing, they are great! Thanks man!
I grew up here! My house and high school are both on the Route between the two shops. The original RCR shop is a couple miles from the house I grew up in. The museum/shop is 2 miles from my High School I went to. Everyone in the community loved Dale. Too bad I didn't get to experience it because I was born in 94
YES! I went there years ago. Huge Dale and Harvick fan since I was young. Spot on with the orange. Makes me mad as hell when people try to say it's red!
What an amazing place! First time I was able to see and touch a real Nascar I was blown away at how thick and heavy the body's are! Makes you respect the true power of those engines and how flippin scary i'd be the get into an accident with!
A.K.A hatchet man. Your appreciation and knowledge of history is astounding. This video was just as good as some documentaries I have seen. Thanks for tour. Chances are I will never make it there.
I went to that old shop in 95 when they were finishing up the silver car. I remember they had it blocked off where people couldn't see it. Also, got to meet Richard. He was awesome. Just so generous, down to earth, and kind.
@@fatpatlives1998 I've always heard Gordon could drive a loose car never heard that about Earnhardt look I know I heard the reason he handled I had such a good car at Daytona and Talladega was because he had more spoiler than everybody else which would tighten the car up. And then they all knew how to use the side draft to keep people from getting by him. I know Dale didn't set his own cars up he mostly had Dave Marcus do that for him
You are amazing with all of your knowledge you have about Dale Ernhart history....keep up the amazing Videos.........Btw Thank you so very much for sharing and making these amazing videos....... God bless Dale Earnhardt
I know this video is a couple years old but, a quick little add that a lot of people forget or don’t know. After the 1998 Daytona win, Daytona international keeps the car on display at the track museum for one year and it can’t be touched. (Probably why it has sun fade) The morning of the 1999 Daytona 500, Dale went to the museum and took the penny off the dash of the 1998 car and put it in his 1999 car. It was then glued back into the 1998 car after the 1999 race. This is why you can see a previous glue mark
I remember Osterlund had a shop up in Harrisburg or near Concord off 29 back in the late 70's. His crew chief hooked me up with a 4speed trans that cam out of one of Dales cars. Love the tour of RCR hopefully you took Logan to the Childress Vineyard for a little tasting while you were ib the area, if not when you guys are back this way ill treat you to a meal and wine at Childress. enjoy the trip down memory lane!
We had found that building on one of our Hot Rod Power Tour Trips but we got there like a half an hour after the building. Thank you for the tour. We'll make it back there someday
It's nice that RCR made the building an exhibit in and of itself, like you said. The Luminas were pretty much the last nascars that I cared for the looks of, but you go back 10 years and there's something really special in the 3rd gen Chevelles and 4th gen Cutlasses and such in stock car guise...Those and the early 80s nascar Regals and Monte Carlos. Also sad to see other important motor racing places become vape shops or fall into disrepair, especially considering what a badass Bud Moore was, not just in terms of success in NASCAR but being pretty much synonymous with Fords efforts and success in the original Trans Am with the Cougars and then Mustangs. I guess that's the inevitable wheel of time turning and dropping the chips were they lay.
Great job dude good quality video,thanks so much for the tour.Dale, Darrell and Jeff were my favorite drivers. My dad and my uncle used to race at old smryna raceway in Tennessee.
Just wanted to let you know that the clear mask on the Dega car is actually something we do often especially at tracks that are super sandy . Others for example, Cali, Phoenix, Daytona . If we didn't do it the sand will literally just destroy the nose. Great job on the video, love it !
@@Stapleton42 Anytime you have a question ,hit me up and I'll do my best to help out. I was a team member for a number of mid to top cup teams up until 2011. Even owned one of Dale Sr's old Busch Grand National cars for awhile. Lol, it sat in my yard for years growing weeds. Anyhow it's great to see your enthusiasm and your interest at sharing what I consider the best years in stockcar racing and certainly one of the most talented drivers who will ever live ! Although Dale's death brought alot of needed safety innovations to our sport it also sadly took a spirit away I'm afraid we may never get back. Racing simply hasn't been the same since. Good luck, Keep Diggin, and try not to crash out !!
Awesome commemoration. Really appreciate the detail put into it and your careful treatment of these historic places and artifacts. I've been a Dale Sr. for forty years and really enjoyed this. Also appreciate how the Fandom for Dale and RCR transcends generations. (PS Kevin Harvick's "sharktooth" cars are one of the most attractive ever - Kevin did such a great job in his "new" role...) Thank you so much for this!
I grew up near the shop now Museum The last time I was there I took my wife and Chocolate was there.Got a lot of pictures and Chocolate was kind enough to autograph some of the cars id collected over the years.the only model car I don't have is the blue and white Piedmont cars that was there on display at the time I was there.I have a room full of mainly Winston Cup cars from 1/64 scale to 18th scale Even was given permission to take a picture of the 1 car there that has the penny taped to the dash.It was such a awesome time to be able to have Chocolate there and gave my wife and I a personal tour thru what used to be the shop now Museum.
I completely agree with you about the luminas! Best looking cup cars! Days of Thunder wouldn’t have been the same if it wasn’t for them lol. Awesome vid btw
I liked all the 90’s and earlier cars, they had an identity to them, and everyone was racing, you know, all the GM’s, Pontiac, Buick, etc. The 2000’s had some cool hats and t-shirt designs though. That was a really cool shop. Sad about the run down shop, could be a great place for a drag team or fab shop.
I live about 2 mi from childress home in about 3 mi from his museum sometimes I can hear him testing motors from my house 🤪 and that's a nice motorhome keep on keeping on
Don’t matter when you upload the content is always worth the wait! The history is great and the way you notice the stuff that isn’t so obvious and bring it up is refreshing in today’s cookie cutter everything is done for you world ..Magic happened at those shops and people made it happen. Looking forward to more of the journey.
I agree with you 💯 Million Percent.. I love the history associated with racing.. Darrell Waltrip's wife Stevie did ALWAYS give Dale Sr a Bible verse before every race and yes he or Stevie placed it in the race car before the cars were given the command"Gentleman,START YOUR ENGINE'S" 🤗🏁🏆🏁 Thank you for sharing this special video and GOD BLESS YOU AND YOUR FAMILY NOW AND ALWAYS 🙏🤗🙏
@@Stapleton42 You are truly welcome 🤗 Racing is a part of my genetic makeup.. I absolutely LOVE IT ❤️🤗 DIRT TRACK HAS BEEN A PART OF MY LIFE SINCE I CAME INTO THIS WORLD.. AND WE ALWAYS WENT TO DARLINGTON FOR BOTH RACES EVERY YEAR BACK WHEN.. I DON'T WATCH AS MUCH NASCAR NOW THAT DALE SR. PASSED AND DALE JR IS NOT DRIVING AS MUCH HOWEVER I THINK HE WAS REALLY SMART GETTING OUT OF THE RACE CAR DUE TO ALL THE CONCUSSIONS ETC. BUT IT'S JUST MISSING SOME EXCITEMENT WITHOUT SOME OF THE EARNHARDT'S AND OLDER DRIVER'S WHO I GREW UP WATCHING.. AND I ABSOLUTELY HATE THE STAGE RACING FORMAT.. I DON'T KNOW IF THERE WOULD BE A HANDFUL OF DRIVER'S WHO COULD RACE WIDE OPEN FOR 400-500 LAPS OR EVEN THE 600 AT CHARLOTTE.. TAKE CARE AND THANK YOU FOR THOSE INSIDE PIC'S AND STORIES.. IT'S AWESOME 😁🏁🏆🏁❤️🤗🏁
13:23 holy shit lmfao. I started the video while making my coffee and had been listening, not watching, I turned to watch at 13:23 and was like "he's going to have to squeeze between that mannequin to fit in that hauler, that's a hot mannequin too, weird choice of museum display". Then she moved. LOL
Went to the Nascar Hall of Fame in february when I was in charlotte for work. Every car was all original other than the hooters car. They had Dale's wrangler #3 and a goodwrench #3. Great to see some awesome cars and history behind them with the tour. Got some awesome pictures!
That is the original trailer. They had it parked out back for quite some time and it hadn't ran in a couple years and the original driver got it and pulled it into his final resting place which you see where it's at now
Not many car videos make me cry but kinda like Don's song about Buddy Holley's death, #3 passing away was the day the music died. Dale was the fiercest, nicest person ever. Sigh.
Planning to go back to Charlotte in 2022 after going few years ago. Thanks to your great video will be adding a trip to the RCR museum. Last time we visted Jnr's shop and then the Earnhardt shop/museum but never here. We have nothing like this in the UK!
That museum is pretty cool, kind of reminds me of the Shelby shop/museum in Vegas. Also, on that abandoned shop wall (28:41), you can actually still read the bottom word "Motorsports", though the "motor" parts is real faint. That's pretty cool.
It was good to see the 98 Daytona Win Monte again. I was there in 1998 when he finally won the 500. It was Nascars 50th Anniversary, the 40th Daytona Race Track Anniversary, Dales 20th attempt to win the Daytona 500 and my first visit of a race track. I will never forget that day being a long time Earnhardt fan. One of the best days in my life. Thankfully i did not go to Daytona in 2001. It was devastating enough to watch it on TV. Life is no longer the same. The joy is gone.
I argued for weeks with some fellas at work over the whole red/orange paint. Both guys wouldn’t be caught dead without an Earnhardt shirt or hat on. Finally the shop paid for us to go to a race in North Wilkesboro and I proved it to them. They bought me lunch lol I live less than an hour from where y’all were in this video. It’s really sad how those great places in Auto Racing history are almost forgotten now a days. NASCAR died when we lost Sr!!
February 2024 update: Back when we recorded this video I had no idea the channel would take this direction and have learned so much since then. This is the first video in the “racing history nerd zone” playlist that now has over 100 videos on it!
Your voice is like butter on pancakes
This dude has such a talent- the more he talks , the more you hate him. Pretentious people are so clueless. 😂😂😂
So good things did come from the Talladega tire war. The driver's tried a organized walk out due to tire safety issues. Bill France had just sunk everything he had into building that track over the old Air base.
My wife and I were lucky enough to have Danny "Chocolate" Myers show us around the shop and give us a verbal history of each car. The stories that he had were amazing and I left there with a different outlook on Dale Sr. . I wasn't a fan of him during his racing days, he wasn't my cup of tea as it were, but after watching a biography piece about him and what he did away from the track it changed how I felt about him. The one thing that effected me the most was the "Lucky Penny" car. Chocolate Myers told us the story we both had tears in our eyes then looking at him he had tears as well. Dale is missed RIP Dale.
Tm racing "dale wasn't my cup of tea as it were" 😆 Sound like the kind of soft weenie head Dale Sr. Loved to run off the race track. RIP DALE Nascar isn't worth watching now, now we have Bubbah Wallace seeing nooses when he ties his shoes. Damn shame what the sports become. Need more We Earnhardt's and Petty's .
From what I understand that lucky penny is still on the dash at the Daytona museum. Or do they just keep the car for a year? I've heard stories from many people who knew Dale and interacted with him, he was in my opinion the greatest driver in history but an even better man.
@@brianpair2934 In September in Randelman NC Nascar day happens, Richard Petty signs autographs and Dale's Daytona car is on display.
that must've been incredible to meet Danny Chocolate Myers! The Lucky Pennycar, is that the 1998 Daytona 500 winner? I remember going RCR in 2001, and the first thing when you walked through the door then was that 1998 Daytona 500 car and I remember the Lucky Penny being taped on the dashboard from Dale senior meeting the sick child & Stevie Waltrip's Bible verse.😢It startled everyone and me seeing it RIGHT AS YOU WALK IN, I noticed a few other people walking in also were emotional, I was already in tears and more when I saw how startled they were. We were Instinctively touching the car like we were at a wake (no problems with that from RCR) that car.😭 moment now like seeing Danny Chocolate Myers after Harvick's 1st win in Atlanta.
@@brianpair2934 the penny was shown in this vid. It's on the dash of the car he won the Daytona 500 in.
Went there in 2003. Met Chocolate Myers (longtime 3 car gas man, retired in 2002) in the parking lot and talked to him for 10 or 15 minutes. Such a cool guy.
From 1989 thru 1993 I ran the Ford training center in Winston Salem. I had to drive past RCR everyday. I would stop at the garage and look around. Richard was always very friendly. There was a giant bear in the lobby that must have been 12-13 feet tall.
Love your videos. It would be so cool to get as many drivers and team members in a room with them telling their stories. I love to hear them talk about their careers. Keep up the great work.
Just to back you up and "clear the air" about the interior and stripe colors on the Earnhardt cars, it is in fact, called Poppy Red, it also goes by the name Calypso Coral, Competition Orange, and Competition Red, the paint code is from the1965 Ford Mustang, color code.M1730. That same color/paint code was also used on 1966-67 Ford Trucks, 1968 Mercury Comet, and several other Ford cars up until 1979. In 1983, Chrysler used it as a Fleet color and called it "Red." Look it up and compare Red to Poppy Red. Side by side one does look red and the other one does look orange. Its even been compared to Chevrolet engine orange. Keep bringing us these interesting vlogs.
It’s definitely on the orange side of red yes. Pretty neat.
My dad has a 1969 Mercury Cyclone GT painted in Competition Orange. It's a beautiful color.
Cool to know my dad 1978 Econoline 150 van was the Colypso coral color
My dad had a competition orange foxbody
Not as big as an RCR or Dale Sr as you are, but this was enjoyable.
When I moved to Jackson, MI in 2000, I felt I couldn't live in a NASCAR town and not have a driver, so when 2002 rolled around, and my son was about to be born, I picked this rookie named Jimmie Johnson. Maybe you've heard of him.
The most attention to detail of any Museum that you have shown. You can tell that Dale and Richard were Passionate about their craft and fans.
That is interesting considering this was the first one we ever did and had no tour guide. It was completely impromptu and we did not even ask if we could film beforehand lol. I did not know near as much back then as I do now.
Man this video makes me emotional. Many of us fans never met Dale but we were connected to him like he was our best friend or family member. Dale came from the same humble beginnings as many of his fans and his shyness and intimidating smirk made us fall in love with the man in black. Great video and thank you for keeping Dale's memory alive.
I wasn't even in the room, but I felt Intimidated.
Dale was my icon my hero I looked up too. I cried 3 days after he hit that wall and even did a memorial poster for him. I was 9 years old I could not believe my hero was gone just like that in a blink of an eye. Thank you man for doing a video like this. Brought a tear to my eye.
I cried until the following Sunday (I was in first grade and everyone was concerned about me).
And this is coming from a Jeff Gordon fan. It shows how much it shook the sport.
I can remember my step Dad cryed and he didn't shed a tear when his own father passed.
Same. I still cry just thinking about it. I was born an Earnhardt fan. Nascar, unfortunately, died along with him. I haven't watched a full race since. His passion g just destroyed it for me.
*his passing
I didn't know the rainbow color car existed until now but I'm not surprised that he hated it and wouldn't wear the matching race suit!! The gesture of a true legend and hero!!
Easter egg 😂
I love how original everything has been kept. Great attention to detail! Awesome!
5:00 I have the die cast that my mom got me literally days after his crash. If I remember right, those front scuff marks were probably from pushing Tony Stewart. usually Dale Earnhardt Sr. was known to be kinda grumpy come speed weeks the last few years because of how bad the cars were because of rule changes that would be implemented before speed weeks. But he was very happy running with Tony Stewart I remember, the big signature grin and him saying he loves running with Tony Stewart during a post race interview obviously because of similar driving styles of hustling to the front, as my dad would say. Glad that me and my dad were too busy helping students doing CDL testing and practicing to go to the Daytona 500 2001 because that was our part time job when we weren't truckin'. I love your stock car history videos, me and dad started going to Nascar events in 1985 when Greg Sacks won in an R&D car over Bill Elliott all over his back bumper (Smiff has that vid) at the Firecracker 400. We live in central Florida and saw Daytona races from 1985 up to 2000s and I still have all the programs.
I never knew it was orange, guess I’m colorblind, definitely blew my mind.
I remember there was a race in 89 or 90. Maybe even early 90s I was watching a race and Dale spun or wrecked and Rusty Wallace came along and slammed Earnhardt’s rear end off and you could clearly see it was orange inside. It totally shocked me.
Does anyone remember what race this is?
@@christopherlucas4620 Yup
Knew what was orange? lol
@@BSUxFAN29 16:23
@@BSUxFAN29 the inside and the stripe
Dale was my guy even back in the day when he wasn’t the most beloved driver in NASCAR. The Man was larger than life. Great tour, glad you got to be there.
That's a fabulous RCR Racing Museum video. You did a great job on that one. I was just at the museum last week and learned so much from your commentary, even after reading most of the plaques and written documentation there. Still learned so much from you. Way to go.
Thank you so much.
Thanks man!!
Back in 2007 or 2008 my dad and I were given a tour of DEI. We went into the 8 shop and it was like Cooters Garage. I couldn't believe they were winning races with the 8 car from a crappy little shop that was on the back of DEI. The engine shop, however, was state of the art and looked like an operating room.
You're knowledge regarding Dale and RCR has my respect. As a kid that grew up in the 90s watching this man race, I was a student since I could remember, and still am. Thanks for stating the facts sir, great video.
appreciate it man
I sat in that car at 7:30 at a Tech Center event back in the late 90s. They had a Jeff Gordon car and Bobby Labonte Interstate Pontiac as well. Used for photo ops.
I was just at the museum yesterday.. It put a tear in my eyes for good and sad memories because I was such a fan of Dale Sr.
Fantastic video! I am an Earnhardt fan and it is great to see that some of his car are frozen in time. It takes me back to when it happened. You and Logan rock.
Dale Earnhardt was one hell of a driver loved watching him drive
I was one Of his biggest fans for years we lost a lot when he passed away
Dale use to have that tire mounted up above his office door as a Reminder how close he came to winning the Daytona 500 before he actually won it....👍🏁
I was there back in 1994 for open house, and waited 8 hours to get Dale’s autograph. Worth every second. I also got everyone on the pit crew, builders/fabricators, engine builders, and everyone in between. I even have Richard’s wife Judy, and his daughter Tina’s autograph. Richard is such a great , down to earth person. I wished I had lived down there, so I could have tried working there. I also have pictures of Mike Skinners Supertruck, BEFORE anyone knew he was going to drive it. It was built, but painted primer black. People were speculating if Dale was going to drive it. Neil Bonnet’s Mom & Pop’s #31 Lumina was there also. It’s the one he flipped, and wrecked, then went to announcers booth, and help call them he rest of the race. R.I.P. to both Dale, and Neil.
Those would be awesome pictures to see. If you wanna email them to me it’s mdstapleton42@gmail.com
@@Stapleton42 - I’ll dig them out. Lots of cool stuff was there. Just wish I had today’s cell phone back then!!! 😂
You think you can send me those pictures Chester? I have multiple emails.
Thanks man! We share the same passion for Dale, Richard and the history of them both. I’ve been to the RCR museum and it was a very emotional experience that not a lot of people would understand but I could see that you totally get it. Thanks for showing the other shops Dale raced out of, I’d never thought of trying to find those.
Logan in that hauler with her hat on reminded me of one of those store manikins. Perfect form:)
13:22
That’s exactly what I thought too
Perfect form for an x pipe lol
Your voice is so relaxing
Living out in Oregon and a race fan makes it tough to visit and know all of the history like this. It is so great that people like you do this for content!!!
Thanks dude I’m so glad I can help you out!!
I worked at BACE Motorsports in concord (late 9os)We had an old trailer/hauler that moved Randy's cars ..It was completely wrapped on the sides with Fina Randy Lajoie #74 .. but when you climbed on top it still said Goodwrench . It was originally one of Richards for Dale.
There was also an old wives tale at RCR .. there was an aluminum air cleaner housing that was always imitated but never duplicated. For some reason when they put the engines on the dyno with this air cleaner the engine would have three more HP. The fabricators were told to make the exact same one numerous times. But that one air cleaner was unexplainable ...they used it on every race engine! The guy used to say" it was like it was some kind of magic aluminum "😂. They were always afraid that it was going to get wrecked.
RIP.
That’s interesting! Have you seen the video we did at Randy’s shop?
So cool Mitchell ! Thanks for sharing !!
Thanks for watching!
In regards to the note that you saw in the GREY #3........Stevie Waltrip (Darrell's wife) used to write a Bible verse or inspirational note for Dale before every race that he would put in the #3, with the exception being the time he glued the penny from the Special Needs child to his dash, that he believes won him his first and ever Daytona 500 on his 20th attempt in '98.
That 03 Childress is something. Nice looking car right there.
Great history and great info!! Dale was the man! There will never be another driver like him!!
Couldn't agree more!
18:10 the original "To the moon!"
What a guy Richard Childress is, leaving the place exactly as it was and making it a museum is a treasure to people like us.
These videos are a wonderful way to preserve history and let the rest of us see! Thanks! I have driven by RCR in Mooresville, NC but did not stop because it was late and we were headed home from Charlotte Auto Fair. I think I would have enjoyed this more. This was in 2000 though so I don’t guess it was a museum yet, Dale was still with us at that time. Those Bible verses on the dash turned out to be a great way to show the world their need for a Savior! We can be taken at anytime, certainly Dale wasn’t thinking about that at that instant he was focused on helping Dale Jr. win that day, I remember that like it was yesterday!
I was in my early 20’s back then. All those cars bring back a ton of memories. All those races and being at some. It was a great time to be alive. Everyone was a race fan back then. I still have all my die cast cars and memorabilia. Thanks for sharing.
My wife and I stopped there 3 years ago on our way home from our honeymoon. I’m not gunna lie, I got the shakes and choked up when I walked into that shop and seen all that history. He was my hero and always will be. For3ver The Man.
That Goodwrench carKevin Harvick drove from 2003 on is one of the best looking paint schemes of all time that black and silver 29 looks awesome
Dude!!! Mad respect for the “you can pause and read that” (I did) no time unnecessary time added to a great video
Credit Robert with forced performance with that idea
I would say I used to be a Dale Earnhardt fan, I can't say that when I will always be a Dale Earnhardt fan, I was devastated when he passed away on the last lap of the '01 Daytona 500, it's been 20 year's and to see this video brings back memories of the greatest driver in NASCAR, people loved him and people hated him, the Man in Black is in heaven racing around with his friend, Neil Bonnet, and as they say "rubbing is racing!"
Nascar never been the same after Dale passed. Love the tour and keeping it alive in your own way.
It’s important to me to keep the lessons of his life path alive. So much inspiration for me
I think that's when I stopped watching Nascar races. I just felt like there were to many new faces coming in that I kinda fell away from it. I wasn't even a big Dale fan, but I respected the hell out of him.
Dale was the man. Larger than life. Such badass
Stapleton Adventure World is back!!! Do it for Dale!!!
Absolutely 🤟🏻
RHE was Ronnie Hopkins Engineering. I worked for the machine shop that made the suspension components before we branched out into our own line
Got to meet Richard Childress about 6 yrs ago at a opening of a bass pro shop here in Chattanooga I got him to sign one of mine dale eranhardt die cast cars
Mitchell. I’m a bit older than you and I can say I watched NASCAR and Dale is a legend to me forever.
Worst day was seeing the wreck on tv.
He made a difference that’s forever.
Watched again.
Great you doing these videos.
Mitchell, thank you so much for this! It was so cool to see all the history in this shop, and your knowledge of the cars and drivers made it that much better to watch
Glad you enjoyed it!
@25:20 yes the 1st generation no headlight Lumina and T-Birds 1989-1994 are one of the best eras. Also loved the Grand Prix and Olds!
When I went to Earnhardt Chevrolet back in the mid-1990s, they just drove all the cars out in front of the dealership !
The 2nd small shop was still in use at that time !
Very cool to see you & Logan doing some exploring and checking out the Intimidator's past history! I always enjoyed watching him drive a race car, made it look so easy to do. At least he left this mortal earth doing what he loved so much, racing stock cars. He was a definite BAMF.
It's my personal opinion that, had he not been killed in that horrible crash, that he would have won an 8th championship and then hung up his driving gloves and helmet to enjoy some semblance of "retirement" in 2001.
I still have a VHS videotape of Dale's memorial service. He still is missed 20 years later.
Keep up the quality videos you've been doing, they are great! Thanks man!
Awesome tour of RCR. Man I miss Dale.
I grew up here! My house and high school are both on the Route between the two shops. The original RCR shop is a couple miles from the house I grew up in. The museum/shop is 2 miles from my High School I went to. Everyone in the community loved Dale. Too bad I didn't get to experience it because I was born in 94
Same! I still live about 5 mins away from where this video was shot 😂
Go to North Davidson?
YES! I went there years ago. Huge Dale and Harvick fan since I was young.
Spot on with the orange. Makes me mad as hell when people try to say it's red!
glad you feel the same haha
You sir are an ambassador for the NASCAR fan.
thanks man. we want to help more people get into it
I also love going back and checking out the history of different places and people, especially Dale and also I'm a huge BOCEPHUS fan!
Love seeing this man, pure American racing that we dont see much of in Australia. keep the vids coming! 👌🏽
Thanks man we will 💪🏻
What an amazing place! First time I was able to see and touch a real Nascar I was blown away at how thick and heavy the body's are! Makes you respect the true power of those engines and how flippin scary i'd be the get into an accident with!
The Talladega car from 2000 was used during Speedweeks testing at Daytona in 2001 and was the secondary (back-up) car for the 500.
A.K.A hatchet man. Your appreciation and knowledge of history is astounding. This video was just as good as some documentaries I have seen. Thanks for tour. Chances are I will never make it there.
Brand new to the channel cause this video popped up in my feed, man this was such a badass trip
Thanks dude I’m glad you’re here 🤟🏻
Same here haha loved it!
I went to that old shop in 95 when they were finishing up the silver car. I remember they had it blocked off where people couldn't see it. Also, got to meet Richard. He was awesome. Just so generous, down to earth, and kind.
Kevins Atlanta car he won in was prepared for Dale.
@iron head probably the first half of the season worth of cars
Heard when Kevin drove one of Dale's setups it was the loosest car he'd ever driven!
@@TSi99999 Kyle Busch, Jeff Gordon and Dale Sr my personal top 3 when your talking about car control
I did not know that!
@@fatpatlives1998 I've always heard Gordon could drive a loose car never heard that about Earnhardt look I know I heard the reason he handled I had such a good car at Daytona and Talladega was because he had more spoiler than everybody else which would tighten the car up. And then they all knew how to use the side draft to keep people from getting by him. I know Dale didn't set his own cars up he mostly had Dave Marcus do that for him
You are amazing with all of your knowledge you have about Dale Ernhart history....keep up the amazing Videos.........Btw
Thank you so very much for sharing and making these amazing videos....... God bless Dale Earnhardt
Appreciate the work you put into this. Awesome job. Would love to visit that entire area one day. Thanks for the upload!! 3 gone but never forgotten.
Thanks man
I know this video is a couple years old but, a quick little add that a lot of people forget or don’t know. After the 1998 Daytona win, Daytona international keeps the car on display at the track museum for one year and it can’t be touched. (Probably why it has sun fade) The morning of the 1999 Daytona 500, Dale went to the museum and took the penny off the dash of the 1998 car and put it in his 1999 car. It was then glued back into the 1998 car after the 1999 race. This is why you can see a previous glue mark
Interesting!
I remember Osterlund had a shop up in Harrisburg or near Concord off 29 back in the late 70's. His crew chief hooked me up with a 4speed trans that cam out of one of Dales cars.
Love the tour of RCR hopefully you took Logan to the Childress Vineyard for a little tasting while you were ib the area, if not when you guys are back this way ill treat you to a meal and wine at Childress. enjoy the trip down memory lane!
We had found that building on one of our Hot Rod Power Tour Trips but we got there like a half an hour after the building.
Thank you for the tour. We'll make it back there someday
It's nice that RCR made the building an exhibit in and of itself, like you said. The Luminas were pretty much the last nascars that I cared for the looks of, but you go back 10 years and there's something really special in the 3rd gen Chevelles and 4th gen Cutlasses and such in stock car guise...Those and the early 80s nascar Regals and Monte Carlos. Also sad to see other important motor racing places become vape shops or fall into disrepair, especially considering what a badass Bud Moore was, not just in terms of success in NASCAR but being pretty much synonymous with Fords efforts and success in the original Trans Am with the Cougars and then Mustangs. I guess that's the inevitable wheel of time turning and dropping the chips were they lay.
I'm sure the person. Who owns the property is happy he has a rent payer... world goes on , can't preserve everything
Good show man thanks! So cool you grew up in a race fan family!
The coolest thing ever is to have a girl like yours that shares your passion for racing
it really is man...watch this video! th-cam.com/video/T1uvDUth8II/w-d-xo.html
Great job dude good quality video,thanks so much for the tour.Dale, Darrell and Jeff were my favorite drivers. My dad and my uncle used to race at old smryna raceway in Tennessee.
Just wanted to let you know that the clear mask on the Dega car is actually something we do often especially at tracks that are super sandy . Others for example, Cali, Phoenix, Daytona . If we didn't do it the sand will literally just destroy the nose.
Great job on the video, love it !
makes sense I've seen the nose on Daytona cars look like they've been sandblasted after a race
@@Stapleton42 Anytime you have a question ,hit me up and I'll do my best to help out. I was a team member for a number of mid to top cup teams up until 2011. Even owned one of Dale Sr's old Busch Grand National cars for awhile. Lol, it sat in my yard for years growing weeds.
Anyhow it's great to see your enthusiasm and your interest at sharing what I consider the best years in stockcar racing and certainly one of the most talented drivers who will ever live ! Although Dale's death brought alot of needed safety innovations to our sport it also sadly took a spirit away I'm afraid we may never get back. Racing simply hasn't been the same since.
Good luck, Keep Diggin, and try not to crash out !!
Great history... Fantastic knowledge of cars.. Keep it up. 👍👍👍😎😎😎
Thanks man!
Awesome commemoration. Really appreciate the detail put into it and your careful treatment of these historic places and artifacts. I've been a Dale Sr. for forty years and really enjoyed this. Also appreciate how the Fandom for Dale and RCR transcends generations. (PS Kevin Harvick's "sharktooth" cars are one of the most attractive ever - Kevin did such a great job in his "new" role...) Thank you so much for this!
Thanks Christopher! We think you’d love our other videos about racing history too
@@Stapleton42 I have subscribed and am looking forward to further viewing....
I grew up near the shop now Museum The last time I was there I took my wife and Chocolate was there.Got a lot of pictures and Chocolate was kind enough to autograph some of the cars id collected over the years.the only model car I don't have is the blue and white Piedmont cars that was there on display at the time I was there.I have a room full of mainly Winston Cup cars from 1/64 scale to 18th scale Even was given permission to take a picture of the 1 car there that has the penny taped to the dash.It was such a awesome time to be able to have Chocolate there and gave my wife and I a personal tour thru what used to be the shop now Museum.
I completely agree with you about the luminas! Best looking cup cars! Days of Thunder wouldn’t have been the same if it wasn’t for them lol. Awesome vid btw
I grew up die hard dale fan. When visiting the museum I always get a different feeling just walking in their vs any other museum/race shop
spot on. you can feel it
Pretty cool you visited the old Bud Moore shop. Bud was a WW2 veteran that stormed the beaches of Normandy and also fought in the Battle of the Bulge
A legend
Awesome experience. Cant wait to go there. I always try to tell people it was orange too 😄😄😄.
I liked all the 90’s and earlier cars, they had an identity to them, and everyone was racing, you know, all the GM’s, Pontiac, Buick, etc. The 2000’s had some cool hats and t-shirt designs though. That was a really cool shop. Sad about the run down shop, could be a great place for a drag team or fab shop.
I live about 2 mi from childress home in about 3 mi from his museum sometimes I can hear him testing motors from my house 🤪 and that's a nice motorhome keep on keeping on
Great video my first race was Atlanta 96 been to alot of races I started watching because of Dale
Don’t matter when you upload the content is always worth the wait! The history is great and the way you notice the stuff that isn’t so obvious and bring it up is refreshing in today’s cookie cutter everything is done for you world ..Magic happened at those shops and people made it happen. Looking forward to more of the journey.
You’re exactly right. It’s fascinating just to stand in the same spot
Went here a few weeks ago. This was cooler than the hall of fame itself man.
I agree with you 💯 Million Percent.. I love the history associated with racing.. Darrell Waltrip's wife Stevie did ALWAYS give Dale Sr a Bible verse before every race and yes he or Stevie placed it in the race car before the cars were given the command"Gentleman,START YOUR ENGINE'S" 🤗🏁🏆🏁 Thank you for sharing this special video and GOD BLESS YOU AND YOUR FAMILY NOW AND ALWAYS 🙏🤗🙏
thank you!
@@Stapleton42 You are truly welcome 🤗 Racing is a part of my genetic makeup.. I absolutely LOVE IT ❤️🤗 DIRT TRACK HAS BEEN A PART OF MY LIFE SINCE I CAME INTO THIS WORLD.. AND WE ALWAYS WENT TO DARLINGTON FOR BOTH RACES EVERY YEAR BACK WHEN.. I DON'T WATCH AS MUCH NASCAR NOW THAT DALE SR. PASSED AND DALE JR IS NOT DRIVING AS MUCH HOWEVER I THINK HE WAS REALLY SMART GETTING OUT OF THE RACE CAR DUE TO ALL THE CONCUSSIONS ETC. BUT IT'S JUST MISSING SOME EXCITEMENT WITHOUT SOME OF THE EARNHARDT'S AND OLDER DRIVER'S WHO I GREW UP WATCHING.. AND I ABSOLUTELY HATE THE STAGE RACING FORMAT.. I DON'T KNOW IF THERE WOULD BE A HANDFUL OF DRIVER'S WHO COULD RACE WIDE OPEN FOR 400-500 LAPS OR EVEN THE 600 AT CHARLOTTE.. TAKE CARE AND THANK YOU FOR THOSE INSIDE PIC'S AND STORIES.. IT'S AWESOME 😁🏁🏆🏁❤️🤗🏁
I went there last year after they opened back up. I really enjoyed seeing all the cars.
If this doesn't show the importance Dale had on Richards career, I don't know what will. Beyond impressive
LOL, showing that front bumper and say there are scuffs there from "bumping stuff" on a Dale Earnhardt car... That is some funny stuff right there!
Dale was the one who kept the tire from 1990 Daytona and had it hung in the shop.
13:23 holy shit lmfao. I started the video while making my coffee and had been listening, not watching, I turned to watch at 13:23 and was like "he's going to have to squeeze between that mannequin to fit in that hauler, that's a hot mannequin too, weird choice of museum display". Then she moved. LOL
😂😂😂😂
Definitely one hot Mannequin
Went to the Nascar Hall of Fame in february when I was in charlotte for work. Every car was all original other than the hooters car. They had Dale's wrangler #3 and a goodwrench #3. Great to see some awesome cars and history behind them with the tour. Got some awesome pictures!
If I had more time I wanted to visit some shops local to the area, will try to do that if I go back up later this year.
Not into NASCAR at all but I love watching and seeing all of the history. Another awesome video!!! 👍🏼👍🏼
So much history in the Greenville Spartanburg area. So cool. Thanks
Glad you enjoyed it
That is the original trailer. They had it parked out back for quite some time and it hadn't ran in a couple years and the original driver got it and pulled it into his final resting place which you see where it's at now
Not many car videos make me cry but kinda like Don's song about Buddy Holley's death, #3 passing away was the day the music died. Dale was the fiercest, nicest person ever. Sigh.
her: "do you want to sit on his face?"
him: "I feel like that's disrespectful"
her: "not if i do it"
She didn't say that
Planning to go back to Charlotte in 2022 after going few years ago. Thanks to your great video will be adding a trip to the RCR museum. Last time we visted Jnr's shop and then the Earnhardt shop/museum but never here. We have nothing like this in the UK!
That museum is pretty cool, kind of reminds me of the Shelby shop/museum in Vegas. Also, on that abandoned shop wall (28:41), you can actually still read the bottom word "Motorsports", though the "motor" parts is real faint. That's pretty cool.
It was good to see the 98 Daytona Win Monte again. I was there in 1998 when he finally won the 500. It was Nascars 50th Anniversary, the 40th Daytona Race Track Anniversary, Dales 20th attempt to win the Daytona 500 and my first visit of a race track. I will never forget that day being a long time Earnhardt fan. One of the best days in my life. Thankfully i did not go to Daytona in 2001. It was devastating enough to watch it on TV. Life is no longer the same. The joy is gone.
I argued for weeks with some fellas at work over the whole red/orange paint. Both guys wouldn’t be caught dead without an Earnhardt shirt or hat on. Finally the shop paid for us to go to a race in North Wilkesboro and I proved it to them. They bought me lunch lol I live less than an hour from where y’all were in this video. It’s really sad how those great places in Auto Racing history are almost forgotten now a days. NASCAR died when we lost Sr!!
Some people 😂
Yes! SB2 in an 85 Monte Carlo coupe with 10.5 rear tires...true dual exhaust, with Flowmaster Super 40's but electric cutouts right after the headers
My senior year in high school we went to indy and did the tour at the track, back then they gave you the option to kiss the bricks and get a picture.