Richard Childress’s childhood was a story, set in America, written by Charles Dickens. He had a deep passion for race cars, served popcorn at Bowman Gray Stadium, and aspired to make a lot of money. Because of the latter, he illegally bootlegged alcohol as a youngster who had no intention of completing high school. Childress worked at an all-night gas station when he was sixteen or seventeen years old. Wilkes County bootleggers would stop in the station after driving booze down from the mountains. Childress may then be left to deliver the cases straight to stores while they go out to do “other” things. He received a specific sum as payment for this service.
The merchants were the once-common illicit “drink houses” of Winston-Salem. The only things that took place in these places were drinking, partying, and celebrating the night. He was having a good time with this side gig until one fateful night he heard a gunshot at one of the bars. He recently told Dale Earnhardt Jr. about the event on his podcast. “I was in the right room, and there was a killing,” he stated. I rushed as soon as I heard the cannon go off. The roughest area of town, Old Patterson Avenue, is home to such drinking establishments. Something happened. Some of that is still visible to me. He was severely shaken by the experience and fled the liquor trade for good.
Following the murder, Childress chose to concentrate on stock car racing
From that point on, he wisely decided to focus on a less risky venture. In 1969, he participated in the inaugural race at the Talladega Superspeedway, marking his first NASCAR experience. 16 Grand National Series drivers have abstained from the competition due to safety concerns. Childress and other Grand American drivers were then asked to fill the void by William H.G. France. Despite his unimpressive 23rd place performance, Childress’s $7,500 prize money marked the start of Richard Childress Racing. “Everyone’s life has moments that change it, and Talladega definitely set the road, the path for me to move up in racing,” he stated many years later. Time has flown by without a break since those days. Now 79 years old, the benefactor looks back at his adventurous journey and reminisces about the wonderful time that he had.
