In a highly-anticipated announcement that has been generating a lot of discussion -- and even better, hours upon hours of spirited debate -- the members of the new NASCAR Hall of Fame’s inaugural class have been announced.
The announcement took place in the ballroom of the Charlotte Convention Center on October 14, an ideal location for such an event.
There is something about the very word “ballroom” that is evocative of, for lack of a better word, stateliness. It is a word that conjures up the image of impeccably dressed ladies and gentlemen, moving across polished floors in graceful spins and arcs. Although the styles of each participant may differ, the dance remains the same.
From a field of 25 nominees who literally put stars in one’s eyes, the following NASCAR legends were selected to take the first steps down the hall: Bill France Sr.; Bill France Jr.; Dale Earnhardt Sr., Richard Petty and Junior Johnson.
Whoa. I feel like the time traveler’s wife, if the time traveler were an avid NASCAR fan who periodically fell back into everyday life with rubber between his teeth, grease under his fingernails and the faintest whisper of moonshine on his breath.
The instant the names were announced, the analysis commenced. Were these the “right” five names to take the first figurative steps down that hall?
The answer, of course, is yes. Selecting Hall of Famers is something like trying to pick the prettiest girl on “Deal or No Deal,” except in this game, every suitcase contains a million bucks. You can’t go wrong when every choice is right.
The thing that’s so cool about the inaugural class for NASCAR’s Hall of Fame is that this group sort of represents a “Reader’s Digest” version of the sport’s evolution.
Bill France Sr. founded NASCAR, fed and watered it and watched it grow tall and strong, with deep roots and ambitious branches. His son, Bill France Jr., took over its care in 1972, and over the course of the next 30 years, moved NASCAR from a sport people sometimes felt forced to watch, to a force to be reckoned with.
None of this phenomenal growth and success could have been possible without the athletes themselves, and they more than did their part. Junior Johnson moved stock car racing from the cover of darkness to prime time. Richard Petty set a standard of racing excellence by which all drivers will forever be judged.
And Dale Earnhardt showed that men could not only move those machines, they could also move merchandise, sponsors’ products … and the hearts of millions of fans.
Inevitably, some are arguing that the list is too modern, that true legends from stock car racing’s past – guys like Red Byron and Raymond Parks -- might have gotten overlooked in a rush to populate the Hall with celebrities.
It is an understandable position. When you really think about it, athletic halls of fame are living history lessons, moving visitors brick by brick from a sport’s foundation to the pinnacle of its skyscraper.
Harvard University professor John Kotter, who is widely considered an authority on leadership and change, says that leaders establish a vision for the future and set the strategy for getting there; they are a catalyst for change.
Some people -- you know, those annoyingly ambitious, motivated types who make your teeth hurt -- believe that if we have nothing to look up to, we will forever be looking back.
What’s wrong with that? Sometimes it is not only necessary, but absolutely right, to look back. The heroes of the past play an integral role in pointing present and future generations in the right direction. This is the reason halls of fame exist in the first place, to recognize and honor their achievements.
In the final analysis, it seems a little disrespectful for anyone to say, “Yes, these five men are certainly deserving, BUT …”
But what? Without the combined efforts, talent –- and yes, drive –- of Petty, Johnson, Earnhardt and the two Mr. Frances, NASCAR might look very different. They worked hard and did a spectacular job. They literally made the sport what it is today. If that isn’t reason enough to give them the very best seats in NASCAR’s Hall of Fame, I don’t know what is.
They lived their lives always striving to be first. Now, they are.