Last weekend was an extremely successful showing for American Ethanol in both NASCAR and NHRA.
It was a historic weekend for Richard Childress Racing (RCR), one of the most storied teams in all of NASCAR, as they celebrated the team’s 50th anniversary. In the fall of 1969, Growth Energy Board Member and Chairman and CEO of RCR Richard Childress got his first opportunity to compete in a NASCAR-sanctioned race due to 16 drivers going on strike before a race at Talladega Superspeedway. That strike opened the door for Childress to get behind the wheel for the first time as a NASCAR driver, and the rest is history, as Childress built a dominant racing team that has been a cornerstone of the sport ever since.
To mark the occasion, Childress himself took to the track once again to drive the official pace car for the 1000Bulbs.com 500 at Talladega in Dale Earnhardt’s legendary No. 3 Chevy. Last Sunday’s race marked the first time Earnhardt’s iconic black and red No. 3 car – still equipped with the same engine he used to secure his final NASCAR victory in 2000 before his tragic passing in 2001 – had been taken out of the RCR museum. You can watch the video of Childress driving the car on the RCR twitter here.