Sometimes Success Takes Time Author: Dale Jarrett
From Chicken Soup for the Soul
I think growing up around the sport of stock-car racing, I always knew that's the business I'd end up spending my life around. Did I think the sport would end up as big as it is now, or that it would provide the kind of life that it has for my family and myself? Not really. I just knew I enjoyed watching racing and being around it as a kid, and if I could make a living doing something I love, then why not.
The world of NASCAR Winston Cup racing has changed considerably since I was a child, watching guys like my dad, Richard Petty and David Pearson compete. Growing up in the shadow of a champion can be a daunting task. I'm very proud of what my dad accomplished both on the racetrack and off. He set quite an example, both as a competitor and human being. Even today, everywhere I go, people constantly ask about my dad and tell me what a gentleman he is. It makes me very proud to be a Jarrett.
Despite growing up the son of a racing champion, creating a career in racing was not an easy job. I'm not one of these guys who started racing at the age of five and just progressively moved from series to series. Those opportunities weren't as available when I was a kid as they are today. So, I diverted my interest in competition to high-school sports. I kept busy with football, basketball, baseball and golf. I enjoyed the competition aspect of those sports and put 110 percent into those activities. It even paid off to the extent that I was offered a couple of football scholarships to some small colleges. I was even offered a golf scholarship to the University of South Carolina. I was so into golf that if you asked my dad, he really thought I would be on the PGA Tour today rather than the NASCAR Winston Cup Series tour.
I got married right out of high school and quickly became a dad to my oldest son Jason. Being married with a child at eighteen required a job. At that time, my dad owned our local racetrack - Hickory Motor Speedway. He was gracious enough to give me a job there, and that's probably where I decided that I really wanted to have a career in racing.
Like I said earlier, my path to the NASCAR Winston Cup Series wasn't nearly as conventional as that of many of the guys who compete today. While holding down a regular job, I'd spend my evenings with a couple of my high-school buddies who were also interested in racing. Andy Petree, who is now a NASCAR Winston Cup car owner, and Jimmy Newsome were those two friends. The three of us actually built the first car I ever raced. In my first race I started twenty-fifth and finished ninth. From then on, my mind was made up that racing was what I had to do.
It hasn't been easy, but sitting here today, I can tell you that everything has worked out the way it was supposed to.
After my first marriage ended in divorce, I focused every waking minute on my racing career. I started competing in the Limited Sportsman Division at Hickory Motor Speedway. While competing at Hickory and working to support my racing career, I met my wife Kelley. We had both grown up around Hickory, and we knew it was where we wanted to live our lives and raise a family. We married and started to build our life together. It wasn't easy in the early days, and a lot of times we were almost broke just trying to build my racing career. Kelley was a teacher, and we know they are well underpaid for all they do.
In the early 1980s, I started competing in a series that eventually became what is now called the NASCAR Busch Series. It was at this time that I started getting the attention of some of the car owners in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series. I competed in a few Cup races here and there during the mid-1980s. In 1988, I competed in twenty-nine races with four different car owners.
I finally got the break of my career in 1990. It didn't come until after the 1990 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season had already started. I got a call from the Wood Brothers. Neil Bonnett had started the '90 season driving their #21 Ford, but was involved in a crash at Darlington that prevented him from competing the rest of the season. I didn't have a ride at the time and I really wasn't sure what was going to happen. They asked me to step in and drive, and it ended up becoming a full-time job. To this day, I tell everyone that if it hadn't been for Len and Eddie Wood, I might not have made it as a NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver. Not only did the Wood Brothers give me a career boost, they also gave me their friendship. Eddie Wood is still one of my closest friends. I scored my first NASCAR Winston Cup victory at Michigan in 1991 and was thrilled to be able to put the Wood Brothers Ford back in the victory lane. It was a wonderful way to help repay them for believing in me and giving me such a great opportunity.
I have been very fortunate throughout my NASCAR Winston Cup racing career. I've won some of NASCAR's biggest races, such as the Daytona 500 and the Brickyard 400. In addition to the Wood Brothers, I have been able to compete for two gentlemen who will go down in history as NASCAR's most successful and respected car owners, Joe Gibbs and Robert Yates. I was able to give Robert Yates his first NASCAR Winston Cup championship when we won that title in 1999. I hope to be able to win that second championship for Robert Yates before the time comes to hang up my helmet.
It's kind of funny how my life and career have taken shape. I always tell people that Jeff Gordon and I have been racing the same amount of years. The only difference is he started when he was five years old, and I started when I was twenty! Although my racing career has been a struggle at times, it has also been very gratifying. It has taken place one slow step at a time. I've always been a believer that things are brought to you when you can handle them. Remember, good things come to those who wait.
I am in the midst of what has been a very rewarding career. I am able to make a living at something I love to do. It has provided for my family and me in ways I never dreamed possible. I'm able to provide a wonderful life for my wife, Kelley, and our three kids, Natalee, Karsyn and Zachary. Most of my favorite moments are spent at home with Kelley watching the kids play basketball and soccer. I also enjoy the times I am able to watch my oldest son, Jason, race in the ARCA Series. I'm pretty proud of the fact that one of the traits I have passed on to my children is their competitive nature.
A lot of times my career keeps me away from home with testing, sponsor commitments and races. I am always amazed at how Kelley juggles her job of taking care of our kids, keeping up with their schedules, keeping me informed on how well they are doing and then making it to as many races as possible. She is truly an amazing person.
For now the Jarrett family is going to keep on competing. Now that I'm getting older, the question I get asked a lot is whether I've thought about retirement. I always tell people that I have to keep racing because our youngest son, Zach, is just eight years old, and I've still got to put him, Natalee and Karsyn through college. That's true, but I also plan to keep on racing until I feel I can't be competitive anymore. I love my job, and I thank God every day when I wake up that I get to do what I love doing for a living. I know how fortunate I am to be able to do that. It hasn't always been an easy way of life, but racing has been good to the Jarrett family for many years, and I hope it continues to be that way for many years to come. More importantly, I hope that the Jarrett family has been and continues to be good for the sport of NASCAR racing.
http://www.beliefnet.com/nllp/ChickenSoupSoul.aspx?date=5-10-2007&WT.mc_id=NL49
From Chicken Soup for the Soul
I think growing up around the sport of stock-car racing, I always knew that's the business I'd end up spending my life around. Did I think the sport would end up as big as it is now, or that it would provide the kind of life that it has for my family and myself? Not really. I just knew I enjoyed watching racing and being around it as a kid, and if I could make a living doing something I love, then why not.
The world of NASCAR Winston Cup racing has changed considerably since I was a child, watching guys like my dad, Richard Petty and David Pearson compete. Growing up in the shadow of a champion can be a daunting task. I'm very proud of what my dad accomplished both on the racetrack and off. He set quite an example, both as a competitor and human being. Even today, everywhere I go, people constantly ask about my dad and tell me what a gentleman he is. It makes me very proud to be a Jarrett.
Despite growing up the son of a racing champion, creating a career in racing was not an easy job. I'm not one of these guys who started racing at the age of five and just progressively moved from series to series. Those opportunities weren't as available when I was a kid as they are today. So, I diverted my interest in competition to high-school sports. I kept busy with football, basketball, baseball and golf. I enjoyed the competition aspect of those sports and put 110 percent into those activities. It even paid off to the extent that I was offered a couple of football scholarships to some small colleges. I was even offered a golf scholarship to the University of South Carolina. I was so into golf that if you asked my dad, he really thought I would be on the PGA Tour today rather than the NASCAR Winston Cup Series tour.
I got married right out of high school and quickly became a dad to my oldest son Jason. Being married with a child at eighteen required a job. At that time, my dad owned our local racetrack - Hickory Motor Speedway. He was gracious enough to give me a job there, and that's probably where I decided that I really wanted to have a career in racing.
Like I said earlier, my path to the NASCAR Winston Cup Series wasn't nearly as conventional as that of many of the guys who compete today. While holding down a regular job, I'd spend my evenings with a couple of my high-school buddies who were also interested in racing. Andy Petree, who is now a NASCAR Winston Cup car owner, and Jimmy Newsome were those two friends. The three of us actually built the first car I ever raced. In my first race I started twenty-fifth and finished ninth. From then on, my mind was made up that racing was what I had to do.
It hasn't been easy, but sitting here today, I can tell you that everything has worked out the way it was supposed to.
After my first marriage ended in divorce, I focused every waking minute on my racing career. I started competing in the Limited Sportsman Division at Hickory Motor Speedway. While competing at Hickory and working to support my racing career, I met my wife Kelley. We had both grown up around Hickory, and we knew it was where we wanted to live our lives and raise a family. We married and started to build our life together. It wasn't easy in the early days, and a lot of times we were almost broke just trying to build my racing career. Kelley was a teacher, and we know they are well underpaid for all they do.
In the early 1980s, I started competing in a series that eventually became what is now called the NASCAR Busch Series. It was at this time that I started getting the attention of some of the car owners in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series. I competed in a few Cup races here and there during the mid-1980s. In 1988, I competed in twenty-nine races with four different car owners.
I finally got the break of my career in 1990. It didn't come until after the 1990 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season had already started. I got a call from the Wood Brothers. Neil Bonnett had started the '90 season driving their #21 Ford, but was involved in a crash at Darlington that prevented him from competing the rest of the season. I didn't have a ride at the time and I really wasn't sure what was going to happen. They asked me to step in and drive, and it ended up becoming a full-time job. To this day, I tell everyone that if it hadn't been for Len and Eddie Wood, I might not have made it as a NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver. Not only did the Wood Brothers give me a career boost, they also gave me their friendship. Eddie Wood is still one of my closest friends. I scored my first NASCAR Winston Cup victory at Michigan in 1991 and was thrilled to be able to put the Wood Brothers Ford back in the victory lane. It was a wonderful way to help repay them for believing in me and giving me such a great opportunity.
I have been very fortunate throughout my NASCAR Winston Cup racing career. I've won some of NASCAR's biggest races, such as the Daytona 500 and the Brickyard 400. In addition to the Wood Brothers, I have been able to compete for two gentlemen who will go down in history as NASCAR's most successful and respected car owners, Joe Gibbs and Robert Yates. I was able to give Robert Yates his first NASCAR Winston Cup championship when we won that title in 1999. I hope to be able to win that second championship for Robert Yates before the time comes to hang up my helmet.
It's kind of funny how my life and career have taken shape. I always tell people that Jeff Gordon and I have been racing the same amount of years. The only difference is he started when he was five years old, and I started when I was twenty! Although my racing career has been a struggle at times, it has also been very gratifying. It has taken place one slow step at a time. I've always been a believer that things are brought to you when you can handle them. Remember, good things come to those who wait.
I am in the midst of what has been a very rewarding career. I am able to make a living at something I love to do. It has provided for my family and me in ways I never dreamed possible. I'm able to provide a wonderful life for my wife, Kelley, and our three kids, Natalee, Karsyn and Zachary. Most of my favorite moments are spent at home with Kelley watching the kids play basketball and soccer. I also enjoy the times I am able to watch my oldest son, Jason, race in the ARCA Series. I'm pretty proud of the fact that one of the traits I have passed on to my children is their competitive nature.
A lot of times my career keeps me away from home with testing, sponsor commitments and races. I am always amazed at how Kelley juggles her job of taking care of our kids, keeping up with their schedules, keeping me informed on how well they are doing and then making it to as many races as possible. She is truly an amazing person.
For now the Jarrett family is going to keep on competing. Now that I'm getting older, the question I get asked a lot is whether I've thought about retirement. I always tell people that I have to keep racing because our youngest son, Zach, is just eight years old, and I've still got to put him, Natalee and Karsyn through college. That's true, but I also plan to keep on racing until I feel I can't be competitive anymore. I love my job, and I thank God every day when I wake up that I get to do what I love doing for a living. I know how fortunate I am to be able to do that. It hasn't always been an easy way of life, but racing has been good to the Jarrett family for many years, and I hope it continues to be that way for many years to come. More importantly, I hope that the Jarrett family has been and continues to be good for the sport of NASCAR racing.
http://www.beliefnet.com/nllp/ChickenSoupSoul.aspx?date=5-10-2007&WT.mc_id=NL49
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