NASCAR legends: Part of a racing family: Kyle Petty

This is an article on Kyle Petty, son of the legendary Richard Petty and father of Adam Petty. Kyle has raced in NASCAR Winston Cup full time since 1981 and is a loved and respected race car driver.

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NASCAR legends: Part of a racing family: Kyle Petty

Like his father had, and his father before him, Kyle Petty, following family tradition, decided to chase his dreams and become the 3rd generation race car driver in his family. Choices are something that Kyle had plenty of when deciding on a career, as he excelled in both baseball and football and was talked to about scholarships for both. In the end though, Kyle couldn't deny himself the thrill that flying around a race track at 200 miles an hour would bring.

Sometimes there just doesn't seem to be enough of a person to go around and that seems to have been the case with Kyle Petty between the years of 1996 and 2000 in regards to his racing career. Having focused much attention on his son, Adam's career and also his having taken on more responsibilities for Petty Enterprises - Kyle's racing had started to fall by the wayside.

To his credit though, Kyle has had his share of success. He started in 1979 and it was soon after when he drove in an ARCA race at Daytona, taking the checkered flag after 200 long and grueling miles. That same year, Kyle also drove on the Winston Cup circuit for the first time, competing in five races (one in which he got his first top ten finish!) Though Petty would continue to enter some NASCAR races in 1980 - it wouldn't be until 1981 when he would run his first full year on that circuit.

Kyle's first career win in NASCAR would come in 1985 while driving for the Wood Brothers race team - he continued driving for them until 1990 when he then went to drive for SABCO and raced for them until 1997. It was then that pe2 was formed (which is also known as Petty Enterprises) and Kyle had come full circle , once again driving for his father, Richard. In 1991, Kyle was the first of the Petty drivers to win at least one million dollars or more in a single season - which was a tremendous accomplishment.

Though it seemed for awhile that Kyle Petty's career had taken a nose-dive, in July of 2000, he made a conscious decision to refocus on his career and also made the statement that he would be taking over the driving of his son, Adam's #45 Sprint sponsored Chevy. Adam had driven the #45 car until his untimely death on May 12, 2000. Kyle will carry on in his sons memory, working to make the #45 a winning team in order to honor Adam. "If we can win races with it, then in my heart and my mind - I've given Adam the best chance he had to have a winning car," stated Kyle.

Kyle is not only respected on the race track but off it as well. He has been an outstanding community leader, volunteering for programs such as The Boy Scouts of America and the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Then, in 1995, Kyle formed the Kyle Petty's Charity Ride Across America in which the proceeds would benefit different children's charities across the country. Not stopping there - in 1998, yet another charitable program was started by Kyle - this one geared towards helping to end hunger, when "The Race to End Hunger" program was formed.

A true pillar of his community, with a heart as big as the notorious Dover "Monster Mile", Kyle deserves to take the checkered flags of life because he is a true winner in every sense of the word!

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