Columnist Rusty Wallace: Loss of Earnhardt weighs heavily on teams

Rusty Wallace

Monday, Feb. 26, 2001 | 10:41 a.m.

Rusty Wallace, driver of the Miller Lite Team Penske Ford Taurus, is writing a daily column exclusively for the Sun in conjunction with Sunday's UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

We always enjoy coming to Las Vegas for the annual Winston Cup race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, but this year we come with very heavy hearts in the wake of the tragic loss of our friend and colleague, Dale Earnhardt.

There just aren't enough words to say how sad my family and I are feeling at the loss of our friend. Dale and I were about as close as friends can be in our competitive sport.

He and I have had some great battles on the racetrack throughout the years, but more important are the great times we shared with our families off the track. None of us were ready to let Dale go and we will miss him terribly.

Obviously, our thoughts and prayers are with Dale's family: Teresa, Taylor, Kerry, Dale Jr., Kelly, Karsyn, Martha, Kay and his brothers and sisters, all of whom Dale loved so much. Our hearts also go out to Richard and Judy Childress, two of Dale's dearest friends, along with his entire racing team and his many employees at Dale Earnhardt, Inc.

My wife, Patti, and I are both having a hard time dealing with this. It's such a tragic loss. We're grieving just like so many people are with such a loss. Like I said, Dale and I were about as close of friends as you can get in our sport, with the competition and all that goes along with it.

We've had some battles out there on the racetrack through the years, but we've had so many good times off the track. I can't help but think about all the fun we've had out on the water with the big boats and all. We've had some good times out on the boats down in the Bahamas and we both were on the boats down in Daytona for all those days leading up to the Daytona 500.

All the ups and downs we've both experienced ... that all comes to mind. I just keep on running that last lap at Daytona in my mind and keep saying to myself, 'Man, if I'd just been able to give him a little tap from the rear, that could have meant all the difference in the world.'

It's just a helpless feeling I have. I have to think that the way it happened and where it happened, he and his old buddy Neil Bonnet are up there doing something fun together right now.

It's just such a hard blow to the sport for everybody involved and for me personally.

God created only one Dale Earnhardt and no one will ever replace him, neither in our sport nor in our hearts.