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Sitting in the dirt


Remembering J. D., the Alligator appeals, and the Global Crossing @ The Glen.





John Delphus McDuffie...........   1938 1991




This weekend marks the tenth anniversary of J. D. McDuffie's tragic death off of turn five at Watkins Glen International. There were several wrecks off of that corner that weekend. The driver of the No. 70 Pontiac was the only one who was not lucky enough to walk away. J. D. was reported to have been killed instantly as his racecar left the track at over 170 MPH and collided with the tire barrier causing it to flip over and land on it's roof. The following year, the chicane, or interloop was added to slow the racecars down in that area of the track to prevent another tragedy.

J. D. was considered to be one of the last of the independent, old school drivers. He transported his racecar to the track on an open trailer behind his pick-up truck and parked right beside the fancy new team haulers. His crew was made up of volunteers and friends. His race shop in his home town of Sanford, NC was also staffed with local volunteers who just wanted to be a part of racing.

J. D.'s life was racing. Without the backing of major sponsorships, he managed to travel to and start over 650 Winston Cup races from 1966 to 1991. Although he never won at the Cup level, he had a dozen top five and almost a hundred top ten finishes. If you would like to learn more about J. D. Mcduffie, I have added a couple of links at the bottom of this page for two sites that have memorial pages for him. Please check them out in remembrance of one of our fallen Winston Cup racers. Special thanks to Dena from Wizard's Earnhardt site for the use of the J. D. McDuffie picture!





The Alligator Appeals...........   Earnhardt Autopsy Photos

The inevitable has happened. The Independent Florida Alligator has appealed Circuit Judge Joseph Will's ruling to prohibit the student newspaper from viewing Dale Earnhardt's autopsy photos. The appeal was filed with the 5th Circuit Court of Appeal in Daytona on August 7th.

This may be just what the doctor ordered! Hopefully, once the appeal is heard, and the court makes it's decision, that will be the end of it! The article in the Orlando Sentinel, which I have added a link to below, states that it may take a year or so for the court to hear the case. I believe that when the impending report from NASCAR is made public later this month, the court will again rule in Teresa Earnhardt's favor to bring closure to the whole sordid affair.
The copyright of the article Sitting in the dirt in NASCAR is owned by Thomas M. Sampson. Permission to republish Sitting in the dirt in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

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