The question is often asked: When will Kyle Petty retire from racing? The main reason he has lasted so long is the same reason he has to continue.
When 19-year-old Adam Petty was killed in 2000 during a practice in New Hampshire, Kyle and Pattie Petty lost a beloved son and Petty Enterprises lost its future. The fourth-generation driver was being groomed to take the lead of the team and gradually replace his father in what was then called the Winston Cup Series after another year of Busch Series experience.
The kill switch was ordered by NASCAR after Adam’s death, which preceded Dale Earnhardt’s fatal crash at Daytona by nine months and six days.
Grief-stricken but strengthened by his Christian faith, Kyle, already a full-time Cup Series driver, climbed into the No. 45 Sprint Pontiac and finished the 2000 Busch program to allow Adam’s team to keep their jobs. during that season. Today, Kyle drives the No. 45 Dodge in the Sprint Cup Series, a car that was designed with Adam in mind. Great-grandfather Lee drove the 42, Grandpa Richard the 43, and Kyle had driven the 44. The Wells Fargo-sponsored 45 car is painted black whenever Kyle drives at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, in memory of Adam.
For the second time in two years, Kyle is on hiatus from NASCAR racing while covering six races on television for TNT. The 45 is being shared by non-retired former champion Terry Labonte and rookie Chad McCumbee. With the majority sale of Petty Enterprises to Boston Ventures, Kyle stepped down as CEO of the company and spends more time running Victory Junction Gang Camp, a racing-themed medical camp built in Adam’s memory for youth ages 7-15. who have special needs. . VJGC houses and treats children and adolescents with chronic and life-threatening illnesses, physical ailments and other disabilities. The $24 million, 65-acre facility in Randleman, NC, was founded in October 2000 and opened around June 2004, offering eight one-week sessions at no charge. NASCAR drivers, race teams, various businesses and corporations, and race fans have donated millions in seed money.
The camp was Adam’s idea. He and his mother discussed the business nearly a year before his death. His parents are fulfilling his wishes while honoring his continuing legacy. With the majority sale of the race team, Kyle is now able to spend more time and energy overseeing VJGC, building more camps and becoming more active in the Richard Petty Driving Experience schools.
When Kyle stops racing for good, for the first time in over 60 years there will be no Petty driving for Petty Enterprises. Having someone else run the business side of the business frees him up to build another VJGC in Wyandotte County, near Kansas City, he says. If that works, more camps may come. Tony Stewart recently donated $1 million in proceeds toward construction costs at Kansas City after winning the Prelude to the Dream, an exhibition race at his Rossburg, Ohio track in early June.
Meanwhile, Kyle continues to drive for his firstborn son. He runs for Adam.
June 21, 2008
by Mel Kizzidek
