Editing Dale Earnhardt (section)

==Biography==

===Early and personal life===
Ralph Dale Earnhardt was born on April 29, 1951, in the suburb of [[Kannapolis, North Carolina]], as the third child of Martha ({{née}} Coleman, 1930–2021) and [[Ralph Earnhardt]] (1928–1973). Earnhardt's father was one of the best short-track drivers in North Carolina at the time and won his first and only NASCAR Sportsman Championship in 1956 at [[Greenville Pickens Speedway]] in [[Greenville, South Carolina]]. In 1963 at the age of 12, Dale Earnhardt secretly drove his father's car in one of his races and had a near victory against one of his father's closest competitors.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}} In 1972, he raced his father at Metrolina Speedway in a race with cars from semi mod and sportsman divisions. Although Ralph did not want his son to pursue a career as a race car driver, Dale dropped out of school to pursue his dreams. Ralph was a hard teacher for Dale, and after Ralph suddenly died of a [[heart attack]] at his home in 1973 at age 45, it took many years before Dale felt as though he had finally "proven" himself to his father. Earnhardt had four siblings: two brothers, Danny (died 2021) and Randy (died 2013);<ref>{{cite web|last=Caraviello|first=David|url=http://www.nascar.com/en_us/news-media/articles/2013/07/28/dale-earnhardt-junior-sees-struggles-on-off-track-at-indy.html|title=Earnhardt meets struggles on, off track at Indy|publisher=[[NASCAR]]|date=July 28, 2013|access-date=July 30, 2013|archive-date=July 31, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130731070528/http://www.nascar.com/en_us/news-media/articles/2013/07/28/dale-earnhardt-junior-sees-struggles-on-off-track-at-indy.html|url-status=live}}</ref> and two sisters, Cathy and Kaye.

Earnhardt was married three times. In 1968, at the age of 17, Earnhardt married his first wife, Latane Brown. With her, Earnhardt fathered his first son, [[Kerry Earnhardt|Kerry]], a year later. Earnhardt and Brown divorced in 1970. In 1971, Earnhardt married his second wife, Brenda Gee, the daughter of NASCAR car builder Robert Gee. In his marriage with Gee, Earnhardt had two children: a daughter, [[Kelley Earnhardt Miller|Kelley King Earnhardt]], in 1972, and a son, [[Dale Earnhardt Jr.]], in 1974. Not long after Dale Jr. was born, Earnhardt and Gee divorced. Earnhardt then married his third wife, [[Teresa Earnhardt|Teresa Houston]], in 1982. She gave birth to their daughter, Taylor Nicole Earnhardt, in 1988.<ref>{{cite web|last=Wilson|first=Sam|url=http://www.oleantimesherald.com/sports/article_76cd428c-21e9-11e5-9931-ffa4325f22b0.html|title=A familiar name at Ellicottville rodeo|work=Olean Times Herald|date=July 4, 2015|access-date=July 4, 2015|archive-date=July 7, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150707112436/http://www.oleantimesherald.com/sports/article_76cd428c-21e9-11e5-9931-ffa4325f22b0.html|url-status=live}}</ref>