It seems that city officials think that Dale Earnhardt is no longer good enough for his hometown of Kannapolis, North Carolina.

The city put up a series of banners along the “Dale Trail” honoring the 7 time NASCAR Champion following his death in the 2001 Daytona 500.

Now California billionaire David Murdock wants the banners removed, and the city of Kannapolis has agreed.

Murdock owns the North Carolina Research Center, a science research conglomerate that is being developed in Kannapolis.

The Salisbury Post has reported that Murdock’s company wants to “put the best face on the city” for a high profile visitor who is visiting the city. It turns out that visitor is Martha Stewart.

The Dale Train begins at I-85’s exit 60 and travels through downtown Kannapolis on Dale Earnhardt Boulevard. It then passes Ralph Earnhardt’s grave and the old Edelman’s Garage where Ralph learned how build fast engines for bootleggers like Junior Johnson. It continues through a section of Kannapolis known as Car Town, where the Earnhardt clan once lived.

Martha Earnhardt, Dale’s mother, still lives in Kannapolis.

The Dale Trail passes Dale Earnhardt Plaza, where Dale’s friends have built a park with a 9 foot statue of ‘The Intimidator’. From there the trail heads out of town and past Dale Earnhardt Inc’s race shop and corporate headquarters in Mooresville.

City Manager Mike Legg has told the Kannapolis city council that the banners will be permanently removed. Is that any way to honor Dale Earnhardt?

However, the Cabarrus Convention and Visitors Bureau wants to put up new markers along the Dale Trail. A plan that Legg says may not fly.

“There may be a conflict as to what happens later,” Legg wrote, says the Salisbury Post. “There are many that do not want to see anything ‘Dale-related’ going back up.”

If you want to contact Mike Legg – the Kannapolis City Manager — to let him know how you feel here’s how to reach him:

Mike Legg

City Manager

246 Oak Street

Kannapolis, North Carolina 28081

Please let other Earnhardt fans know about this.

What do you think about the way Kannapolis officials have handled this? Comments left here will be forwarded to the Kannapolis City Manager.
http://racingwin.com/kannapolis-boots-earnhardt-flags/

 

im not a huge Earnhardt fan (or nascar for that matter), but i think this is a disgrace to his memory. They put these banners up to honor the memory of a cultural icon (not to mention a local man with historical family ties).

I think EVERYONE who is/was a fan of this man should inundate the city manager,mayor, Governor, and the state senator with e-mail, snail mail, and phone call's showing your disdain for this blatant disgrace...


as a side note, who the hell cares about a pretentious, stuck up, insider trading, Betty crocker wannabe? i wish America would force her to be a cook for the U.S. Military forces SERVING their county with dignity and honor. (and when were done there, we can leave her for the Shi'ite's/Sunni's to fight over)

/End rant
(and yes, i loathe Martha Stewart...)

 

I think it's complete crap that the town officials are doing this to make the town look the way they think Martha Stewart would want it to look.

Why take the stuff down? Maybe Martha would've liked it?

I'm not a fan of that stuck up Martha Stewart either. But it doesn't sound like she's the one to blame here.

 

im not blaming her, i just don't like her.

 

Messed up

 

I may be one of the few members here who has actually seen part of North Carolina State Route 3 in Kannapolis. My dad picks up furniture at a place off of Texas Blvd. off of Route 3, and I've seen these banners.... they are not that big, they are about the size of the Christmas reefs taht some towns put up at that time of year hanging from the light poles along the street. It's not like they're those giant banners you see at the race track. They resemble those college banners that you sometimes see, long and thin. I had a picture of one several years ago... who knows what I did with it. They were small, simple, and I think they said "Dale Trail" and I thought they had his stylized 3 on the bottom.

Here is a picture I found of the signs being removed after writing that... you can see how small they are.



Looks big, but the reason it's as tall as a man is because thats the only way you can actually see them when you're 200 ft back and 15-20 feet below the things. I thought they were rather neat myself"

 

ya know what? I am/was an earnhardt sr fan, but i can think of better ways to honor his legacy than a whole bunch of banners on poles... especially since he's been gone so long.

perhaps they should erect a few small markers at or near the historic places on the 'dale trail'

also nothing says that the 'dale trail' can't be mapped in tourist info, etc for people to follw on their own.

no i dont care for martha stewart either... hey is she related to TONY STEWART? maybe that's the whole reason behind it... they dont want to offend her