Fast Facts: The "Dale Trail"

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Each February since 2002, fans have gone to Daytona International Speedway remembering the events of February 18th, 2001: the day we lost Dale Earnhardt on the final lap of the Daytona 500. If you ever get a chance to visit North Carolina, make sure your take a trip down the “Dale Trail.”

A nearly all-inclusive history lesson on the life of “The Intimidator,” the Dale Trail is a self-guided tour of 19 sites in Cabarrus County, North Carolina. Among the sites:

Dale Earnhardt Blvd., which begins at I-85 exit 60 and weaves through Kannapolis

• The grave of Dale’s father, Ralph Earnhardt
• “Idiot Circle,” one of Earnhardt’s hang-outs as a teen
• Dale Earnhardt Plaza, featuring a nine-foot bronze statue of Earnhardt and many other features drawing on Earnhardt’s number, “3”
• Fieldcrest Cannon Stadium, home of the Kannapolis Intimidators, a minor-league baseball team Earnhardt was part owner of
• Richard Childress Racing, the home of the No. 3 for many years
• The Sam Bass Gallery, with many works of art featuring Earnhardt.
  

Find out more about the Dale Trail, and download a map to take the tour yourself, at the Dale trail website.