Foreword (by seven-time NASCAR champion Richard Petty)…………. vii

Introduction……………………………………………………………… xiii

1. A Hardscrabble Past……………………………………………………  3

2. The Fans Anoint a King ……………………………………………... 27

3. Racing’s Mountaintops and Valleys……………………………….  53

4. Dale Earnhardt: Working-Class Hero………………………………  75

5. The Wonder Boy and Indy ………………………………………... 102

6. The Champ and the …………………………………………………..28

7. Bright Lights, Big Cities…………………………………………….. 153

8. “We’ve Lost Dale Earnhardt”……………………………………… 174

9. Good-bye, Miss Winston…………………………………………….200

10. Gearing Up for the Global Economy…………………………..  221

11. That’s Entertainment…………………………………………….  244

Conclusion ………………………………………………………………263

NASCAR’s All-Time Champions 1949–2007……………………… 269

“One Helluva Ride”: Key Events in NASCAR’s Development ….273

Acknowledgments…………………………………………………….. 281

Index……………………………………………………………………… 285