I began writing this song the night Dale Earnhardt died. I was very much in disbelief and didn't quite know what to say or do.

I was sitting in the drive through at Arby's getting a couple of roast beef sandwiches and talking to my wife on the celphone. She stopped the conversation and said "They just announced on TV that Dale Earnhardt died". I couldn't say anything. I sat there, for what felt like an eternity, and all I could say was, "I can't believe it".

It took a while to sink in. My Mom was very upset. I just absolutely couldn't think of what to do....then the fact sunk in that there was nothing anyone could do. My wife finally mentioned that I should write a song about Dale. I had written many songs before, but it kind of surprised me when she mentioned the idea. I never really though of myself as a good writer....aside from a few good songs, I didn't think I had really accomplished much as far as my songwriting goes. Through her comment that night, though, she inspired me to begin writing a song for Dale.

I didn't have to look very far for inspiration for the content of the song....I'd been a Dale Earnhardt fan for quite some time. I started watching the news and all the memorials that were on TV. I thought of what Dale meant to me and my family and saw what he'd meant to all the other families in the communities in North Carolina as well as around the country. That was my inspiration for the content of the song. I began writing it that same night and finished it on Wednesday of the same week.

I am currently trying to upload the song to my "Dalezmemorial" site. I am working on converting the song to a different type of file that will be uploaded to the site. I have my brother-in-law working on it. He works in Hollywood, CA as a music writer and works with computer music files all the time. As soon as he and I can "get it together", I will have the song uploaded and playing on my "Dalezmemorial" site for all to hear. I have also applied for the copy rights as of 2-21-01.

I hope this will help those who are having a difficult time with the tragic death of our hero and will also bring a smile to our faces as we remember the man he once was, and always will be.