‘Ultimate good ol’ boy’ Bill Elliott thanks family, fans for NASCAR Hall of Fame spot By Jim Utter Bill Elliott’s induction Friday night into the NASCAR Hall of Fame is not about him. It never was as far as he’s concerned. It’s about them – his family members who sacrificed time and money to kick-start his racing career. And it’s about you – the fans and followers whose adulation made Elliott NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver an unprecedented 16 times in his career. “I wish my mom and dad were here, first off,” said Elliott, whose first entry in what is now the Sprint Cup Series was fielded by his late father, George, and crewed by brothers Ernie and Dan. “It’s a great feeling. I was trying not to show my emotions and then they call my name first one out of the box and you’re just stunned. I’m so happy for everybody who worked with me throughout the years, there’s so many good people, and all the great fans.” Yes, the fans. Much is made about the popularity of Dale Earnhardt Jr. these days and his legions of fans, but Elliott was the Dale Jr. before there was a Dale Jr. Elliott’s performance on the race track certainly turned heads. He won 44 Cup series races, which is 16th all-time, over a 37-year career and while many drivers in that era flourished on short tracks, it was on the superspeedways where Elliott shined. All but two of his wins came on tracks longer than a mile. His iconic No. 9 Ford set speed records at NASCAR’s biggest tracks – Daytona International Speedway and Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. Elliott’s 212.809 mph qualifying mark set at Talladega on April 30, 1987, is unlikely to ever be matched, let alone surpassed with NASCAR’s current use of horsepower-reducing restrictor-plates. After finishing second in the series standings twice, Elliott finally claimed the Cup series championship in 1988 driving for Michigan industrialist Harry Melling. All of the accolades are reason enough for the lanky, red-headed native of Dawsonville, Ga., to draw the attention of fans, but there was something even more special about Elliott. “He was Richard Petty with reddish-blonde hair,” said former Charlotte Motor Speedway president and now consultant, Humpy Wheeler. “He talked like him. He was the ultimate good ol’ boy when we still had good ol’ boys racing. “When a driver retires, fans tend to pick another driver that is usually like them to follow. When Richard Petty was in the twilight of his career, so many of his fans went over to Bill Elliott.” Many of those same fans, and now their children, still find themselves cheering for an Elliott on the race track in Bill’s 18-year-old son, Chase. Near the end of Bill’s career, while racing Dodges for then-car owner Ray Evernham, Chase could often be found being carried around the garage area atop his father’s shoulders. While Chase wasn’t old enough to see and appreciate much of what his father accomplished on the track, he still has a strong grasp on what made him a favorite of fans. “I think my dad was just relatable to just about anybody and especially to fans in the Southeast. He came from a very hard-working family and really didn’t have a whole lot at a young age,” Chase said. “He worked his way to the top – not just in racing but in providing for a family. I have a lot of respect for him in that sense.” Known throughout his career for his quiet and unpretentious demeanor, Bill Elliott beams with pride over his induction into the Hall of Fame. “It’s the top of everything that I’ve ever done because as you get older you tend to always look to the next level and this is the pinnacle of the sport,” he said. “This I’ll appreciate for the rest of my life.” Lately, as Chase’s career has blossomed with his championship in 2014 in what is now NASCAR’s Xfinity Series, Bill has often demurred from talking about his accomplishments by proclaiming, “I’m just known more as Chase’s dad now.” Yes, he is. But he’s that and a whole lot more.
Posted on: Mon, 26 Jan 2015 14:50:06 +0000
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