History makers

“I've never not known NASCAR.” It's not grammatically correct, but that's just how Winston Kelley describes his passion for the sport. And yes, it is a sport.

As executive director of the NASCAR Hall of Fame, Kelley is surrounded by what he loves. What he has loved since he was a small child. He sees the history of racing everywhere he walks. As a broadcaster for MRN Radio, he is a witness to the future Hall inductees and the evolution of the sport.

Since the 1964 Daytona 500, he's been a fan.

In his jobs within motorsports, Kelley has access to the legends of racing. So who is he most impressed by?

Richard Petty. It's not just his on-track accomplishments, either.

“It's how he treats people,” Kelley said. He's apparently the same to Joe Fan as he would be to the President of the United States.

With the Hall of Fame 2011 class being inducted at 7 p.m. Monday, attendees will see all the living inductees, along with Maurice Petty representing Lee Petty, and Dale Jr. representing his father.

And, did we know just how big a war hero Bud Moore is? He fought with Gen. George Patton, was at D-Day and received 5 Purple Hearts and 2 Silver Stars. After his service, he was back in the speedy sport.

So good with the mechanics of cars, which makes them good on the track, Moore was Ford Motor Company's Go-To Guy for 25-years when it came to engines.

So, why only 5 each year? Kelley explained it like this. In stick and ball sports, there are hundreds, actually thousands of possible Hall of Famers. And baseball, basketball and football have been around for a century.

NASCAR, just over 60 years. With only 43 drivers, crew chiefs and owners at any time in the main series, that makes it pretty limited, especially considering there are at least 22 people on a football multiplied by so many teams over 100 years, plus coaching staff and owners.

This year's inductees are David Pearson, Bobby Allison, Lee Petty, Ned Jarrett and Bud Moore.

Did you know inductee Bobby Allison was in an airplane and a witness to the eruption of Mount St. Helens? He was flying near the volcano on May 18, 1980 and could see the red sky as its result.

A seeminly quiet, reserved man, Ned Jarrett is another inductee with a story from Kelley.

After the announcement of his selection to the Hall, Jarrett told him, "I will make you a good inductee." He wanted to know how he could help the Hall of Fame and be its ambassador.

On another note of history....

The American Pickers episode where Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz were given a budget and told to get what they could for the Hall, is on display on the main floor.

A twisted seat from the Daytona 500 in 1982, came from Tiger Tom Pistone, a well-dented door panel of Richard Petty's #43, and Humpy Wheeler's desk nameplate and a personal humidor are among the items on display in the case.