When Dale passed away, I basically started blocking him out of my NASCAR memories~ It hurt to even think about him~ This is my 128th blog post, and I've yet to do one on Dale, or Dale Jr., for the simple fact that it just pains me to think of Dale Earnhardt... that is, until recently~ It happened one night as I was watching an old Busch Grand National race, and it happened without me even noticing~ I got the fever.. the Dale Earnhardt fever... and the only prescription was more cowbell~ I'm kidding again.. it was more Dale Earnhardt videos~
So with more Dale Earnhardt videos on the horizon, I started getting psychological about it, and that led me to thinking about the death of his father, Ralph.. which led me to wanting to do this post on Ralph Earnhardt, and the #31 Ford Galaxie Fastback, from the 1964 Grand National season~ I've really been thinking a lot about the Earnhardt family the past few days,I feel it's time for me to do a post on the man who started it all~
True love~ Ralph and Martha Earnhardt~
If you do a search on Ralph Earnhardt, the stats you'd find about his racing career are pretty lackluster~ Records from the early days of racing are hard enough to find even for the Grand National series, let alone the many short tracks scattered throughout the south in the early 50's - mid 60's~ In reality, Ralph won over 350 races, multiple track championships, as well as the 1956 NASCAR Sportsman championship~ (Trophy shown above)~
Ralph's Cup career consists of 51 starts, with one pole, six top 5's, and sixteen top 10's~ His lone pole came in his debut start in the Grand National series, driving the #22 DePaolo Engineering Ford (normally Fireball Roberts' car), in the "Buddy Shuman 250" @ Hickory~ He beat out Buck Baker for the pole, and finished runner-up to the #300 Carl Kiekhaefer Chrysler, driven by Speedy Thompson~
Earnhardt was declared the winner of the race, but a protest was requested by the Kiekhaefer team, following claims of a scoring error~ After further inspection, it was declared that Thompson was the winner, to the dismay of nearly everyone in attendance~ Spectators were ready to torch the place to the ground before Earnhardt took to the track microphone to announce that he was okay with the decision, thus saving the venue from the destructive hands of the local crowd~
Cotton Owens, David Pearson, and Ralph~ 1964 Dixie 400 @ Atlanta~
Moving on to the 1964 Grand National season, Earnhardt worked out a 9 race deal (10 if you count the Daytona 500 Qualifier race) with the newly formed Tom Spell racing team to drive their #31 Ford Galaxie~ Spell's team ran a total of 15 races during the 1964 Grand National season, ten with Earnhardt, four with Possum Jones, and one with Cale Yarborough, and ran their final Grand National event in 1965, with Cale at the wheel~ Of these 16 races, Earnhardt had the better average start by 5 spots, as well as having an average finish 5 spots higher than Jones or Yarborough~
Along with these accomplishments, Earnhardt was also the only driver to be running at the end of a race while driving for Spell, doing so four times, as well as the only driver to earn a top 5 or top 10 finish for the team~ During my research for this post, I was unable to find any information about Tom Spell following the conclusion of 1965 Grand National race the team competed in~ I probably spent over two hours trying to find out who he was, and if he was still alive or not~ I'm guessing he's not alive anymore, but I never was able to prove that~ I figure he died in the 60's or 70's.. sometime before the rise of the internet, or else I'd have been able to find an obituary, or a mailing address~
While the conclusion of Spell's fate remains a mystery, one thing is certain... Ralph Earnhardt finished 14th in his Daytona 500 Qualifier race, putting him 28th in the 46 car field for the 1964 "Daytona 500"~ The car had sponsorship from "Jimmy Rivers Body & Paint Shop" for this event, and Earnhardt finished 19th, twenty laps off the pace of race winner, Richard Petty, who killed the field, putting every car at least one lap down before the drop of the checkered flag~ This was the first of 7 Daytona 500 wins for the King, as well as his first win on a superspeedway~
Closeup of Ralph in a Pontiac~
After Daytona, the team packed up and headed to Richmond, for the "Richmond 250"~ After qualifying 5th for the event, Earnhardt's car lasted on 73 laps before rear end troubles forced him out of competition, relegating him to a disappointing 22nd place finish~ This race was scheduled to be ran on March 8th, which was a Sunday.. but due to heavy rains, the track was too muddy, and the race couldn't be ran until Tuesday, March 10th~ This was the old dirt track version of Richmond, at the old Fairgrounds, not the track they run in current day NASCAR~ David Pearson held on to win the event, followed by Richard Petty, Billy Wade, Junior Johnson, and Doug Yates finished out the top 5~
Next up on the circuit the team headed to Bristol, for the "Southeastern 500", and it did not go well for the elder Earnhardt~ After qualifying 33rd in the 36 car field, the engine gave out just a few laps shy of the halfway point, leading to a 23rd place showing~ The race was won by Mr. Fred Lorenzen, driving the famed #28 LaFayette Holman-Moody Racing Ford, followed by Fireball Roberts, Paul Goldsmith, Buck Baker, and Marvin Panch~ In his two career starts at Bristol, Ralph had an average starting position of 31.0, and an average finishing position of 28.0, which is surprising for all of his short track talent and abilities~ I'm pretty sure he would have preferred it as a dirt track~
We've now made our way down to the Greenville-Pickens Speedway, in Greenville, SC, for the "Greenville 200"~ Ralph qualified 5th for this event, but again was plagued with rear end issues, dropping out of the race after 69 laps~ He finished 18th in the field of 22, and the race was won by David Pearson, who was on a hot streak in the #6 Cotton Owens Dodge~ Ned Jarrett was 2nd, followed by Marvin Panch, LeeRoy Yarbrough, and Tiny Lund~ Following this race, the team would take a three race absence from the Grand National series, but would return for the Hillsboro race~
Ralph's #31 Ford in the 1964 Daytona 500~
In his return to the Grand National series, Ralph qualified 26th in the 28 car lineup for the "Joe Weatherly 150" (Weatherly was killed in the Riverside season opener) @ Hillsboro/Orange Speedway, with David Pearson on the pole in the #6 Cotton Owens Ford~ Hillsboro was a .900 mile dirt track located in Hillsborough, NC, so you can imagine this was the type of track Earnhardt felt most comfortable racing, and it showed that day~
He not only finished the race, he did so by posting the final top 5 (and top 10) of his Grand National series career, with a 4th place finish~ The Silver Fox outfoxed the field again, with his closest competition three laps off of his race winning pace~ Ralph Earnhardt earned $575 in race winnings for his 4th place effort~ Adjusted for inflation, that is the equivalent of $4,612.41 today.. it's not much, but still good enough for a short track event back then~
Next up on the schedule was "Race #16", which had no name.. so we'll call it the "Spartanburg 200"~ The race was held at the Piedmont Interstate Fairgrounds, a 1/2 mile dirt track in Spartanburg, SC~ Earnhardt started 11th in the field of 19 cars, and finished 16th following an overheating problem~ The team received 100 dollars for their efforts, which equates to $802.00 today, so it's not as bad as it sounds, though a little skimpy if you totaled your car in the event~ Ned Jarrett went on to win the race in the #11 Bondy Long Ford~
Eyes on the prize~
Moving on to another 1/2 mile dirt track, Ralph qualified 11th for the "Columbia 200" @ Columbia Speedway~ He finished the event 12 laps down to race winner, Ned Jarrett, who lapped the field on his way to the checkered flag~ The thought of so many dirt tracks on the schedule is mind blowing these days~ We get one dirt race in the truck series, and I'm surprised that happened~ I feel like the Eldora race has become one of NASCAR's crown jewels, and it's easily one of my most anticipated races each year~
Earnhardt returned to the Tom Spell team for two more races during the 1964 Grand National season~ After qualifying 9th for the "Pickens 200" @ Greenville, overheating issues resulted in an 18th place finish~ In his final start of the season, and what turned out to be the final race of his Grand National career, he qualified 5th for the "Concord 200" @ Concord, NC, a 1/2 mile dirt track~ The engine blew 55 laps into the event, resulting in a 13th place finish~ Ralph attempted to make one more Grand National race during the 1966 season, when he DNQ'd for the "World 600" @ Charlotte, driving the #00 Emory Gilliam Dodge~
Ralph on break with King Richard, Ned Jarrett, and Bobby Isaac~
On September 26th, 1973, Ralph Earnhardt suffered a heart attack in his race shop behind the house~ Dale came in and found him, and he was taken to the hospital, but pronounced DOA.. he was 45 years old, and Dale was 22~ Dale Jr. was born the following year, and lost his father at the age of 27~ It's hard to imagine what that had to feel like for both of them~ Dale won the Winston Cup championship seven years after his father's death, and probably would have traded the world to have his dad be there to witness that~
And then when Dale died, Dale Jr. had to go through the same thing, and will continue to do so for the rest of his life~ Earlier this month he was quoted saying "It's sad sometimes~ When I have my daughter, it will be super sad thinking about Dad, wishing he could see what I was able to accomplish, the man I have become, having a child~ I just would love if he could meet her and see what's going on~"... and what's sad about that is that I'm almost positive his father lived his adult life having those very same feeling about his father~
We only get one father in life, and though you may be able to find a "father figure" in someone, it's never going to be the same as your real father, the man who raised you, and made you who you grew up to be~ Some people might not have had the best father in their life, and some people have never had a father in their life~ It's important to cherish your time with your parents.. you don't always realize it when you're young, but the older you get, the more you wish you'd have spent a little more time with them, and cherished the moments a little bit more~
Ralph Earnhardt #31 1964 Ford Galaxie Fastback~
Well, here's the #31 Ford that Racing Champions came up with, but I don't know how they came up with it~ I looked high and low, but I couldn't find a single photo of Ralph driving a white #31 Ford with a black top~ Heck.. I couldn't even find a photo of him driving a white #31 Ford period~ I found him driving a red #31, and the one I posted earlier from Daytona, where his car was kinda Fireball Roberts purple color, with a gold top~ Also, though Racing Champions produced this car as a 1964 Ford Fastback, Ralph actually drove a '63 Ford during the 1964 season~
Unless Racing Champions knew something that I'm not aware of, this car is a fantasy car, and never competed in NASCAR competition~ I'm not saying that as 100% fact, but as my personal opinion as of this posting~ If photo evidence of this car ever becomes available, I'll update this post accordingly~ I like this car, and would give it a B+ on the Racing Champions quality scale~ It's a nice, clean, simplistic paint scheme, with a nice card, and these Fastback cars are a great collection to have, and look great on display~
There is also a red #54 Ralph Earnhardt car from this set, that is far more rare than this one is, but I'll save that one for another post~ This car was available in the Fred Lorenzen blister pack, as well as a PVC promo box (5,000 produced)~ As of this posting neither car is available on Ebay in Racing Champions form, though the white one shown here is seen more often than the red one when they do pop up for sale~ And now, let's move on to the bonus car for this post~
Jeff Krogh #56 Clearwater Forest Industries Chevrolet~
Jeff Krogh was born in Kamiah, Idaho, on March 21st, 1972~ He is the brother of fellow racer Mark Krogh, and the son of Robert Krogh, who owns Clearwater Forest Industries~ I guess what I'm saying is that Robert bankrolled Jeff and Mark's NASCAR careers... and there's nothing wrong with that, I suppose~
Sadly though, sometimes bankrolled drivers that shouldn't be allowed to compete in the highest form of motorsports are allowed to pay their way into competition, and they end up causing a lot of damage, and sometimes, even death on the race track~ Jeff Krogh found this out in 1999, during practice for the "DieHard 250" @ the Milwaukee Mile, when he slammed into the wall, and was sent into a coma~ He laid in a vegetative state for nearly a month before regaining contentiousness, and his recovery time took well over one year~
Thank you all for stopping by the blog again~ Please share it with your friends on social media, and if you'd like, click the "follow" button at the top right hand side of this page to subscribe to these blog posts~ Below are some random NASCAR videos, as well as one small video clip featuring an interview with Ralph Earnhardt himself~ Thanks again for stopping by, and I'll see ya' the next time you come around!~ :)
1962 "Southern 500" Earnhardt slams into guardrail~
Ralph's wife Martha doesn't want the #3 on the track~ (I agree with her)~
Colorizing a black & white Brad Teague photo~ (My channel)
Short Ralph Earnhardt interview/clip~ Turn volume up~
