Death of Dale Earnhardt 10 years ago changed NASCAR, not necessarily for the better

(By Liz Clarke, Washington Post) - Amid the most deafening spectacle in sports, they will stand in silence on Lap 3 of Sunday's Daytona 500, more than 150,000 strong, and raise three fingers in the air.

The Fox broadcast will fall silent, too, in salute to seven-time champion Dale Earnhardt, who was killed 10 years ago Friday when his black No. 3 Chevrolet slammed into the wall at roughly 160 mph on the last lap of NASCAR's biggest race.

In the decade since Feb. 18, 2001, NASCAR has kept racing on the high banks of Daytona International Speedway. But for many, stock-car racing's soul died that day. And all the exhaust fumes, tire smoke, fender-banging and paint-swapping since have amounted to little more than left turns.