The 2001 Daytona 500 will no doubt be one of the saddest days in NASCAR history. The sport changed that day after Dale Earnhardt Sr. was killed on the last lap and things were never the same.
While he preferred to have his “Intimidator” persona out in the public, Dale Earnhardt Sr. could be a jokester and someone who could appreciate a good joke and good friend Dale Jarrett pulled a good one on him the morning Dale Sr. died.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. shared a story that Jarrett told him before filming NASCAR America on NBCSN. It involved Jarrett posing as a fan the morning of the 2001 Daytona 500 and getting Dale Sr. to sign a UPS hat.
In 2001 at the Daytona 500 hours before the race DJ was getting ready to do his hospitality for his new sponsor UPS. As he exited his motorcoach (parked directly across from my fathers) he noticed dad is meeting with a group of sponsors and fans of his own.
— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) June 7, 2018
This is a perfect example of the close knit friendships NASCAR drivers have for each other. While they may be competitors on the track, they really are family off the track. And this story was a bright spot on an otherwise dark day.