http://www.baltimoresun.com/topic/sports/auto-racing/daytona-500-EVSPR000046.topic
France started this racing craze having cars that look like the cars regular people drive competing at the nearby beach before moving to the Speedway. The race is 200 laps on the 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway. The race is also different in that the starting order, except for the first two spots, is determined by two 150-mile qualifying races, held the Thursday before the race.

The race, nicknamed the "Great American Race," is one of four run with a restrictor plate, a devise used to keep speeds down. The 500 is the culmination of two weeks of racing at Daytona known as Speed Weeks. The first winner of the race was Lee Petty, father of NASCAR's all-time winningest driver Richard Petty, who won the Daytona 500 a record seven times. The race is also the scene of one of racing's saddest days when Dale Earnhardt was killed on the last lap of the 2001 race. His death led to changes in the safety harnesses drivers wear. The race in 2008 will be the 50th.]]> en-us http://www.baltimoresun.com/topic/sc-spt-0208-notes-autos-module--20120207,0,5906220.story?track=rss-topicgallery 2012-02-07 19:11:55 http://www.baltimoresun.com/topic/bal-raw-recap-circular-storytelling-with-undertaker-and-triple-h-may-be-a-bit-stale-20120206,0,3910486.story?track=rss-topicgallery 2012-02-06 20:37:00 http://www.baltimoresun.com/topic/sc-spt-0201-notes-autos-module--20120201,0,7750417.story?track=rss-topicgallery 2012-02-01 00:00:00 http://www.baltimoresun.com/topic/sc-spt-0125-notes-autos-module--20120124,0,1842984.story?track=rss-topicgallery 2012-01-24 20:54:59 http://www.baltimoresun.com/topic/sc-spt-0118-notes-autos-module--20120118,0,5840685.story?track=rss-topicgallery 2012-01-18 00:00:00 http://www.baltimoresun.com/topic/sc-spt-0215-notes-autos-module--20120215,0,2039593.story?track=rss-topicgallery 2012-02-15 00:00:00 http://www.baltimoresun.com/topic/sc-spt-1012-notes-autos-module--20111012,0,1454361.story?track=rss-topicgallery 2011-10-12 00:00:00 http://www.baltimoresun.com/topic/sc-spt-1012-lede-autos-module--20111012,0,1970644.story?track=rss-topicgallery 2011-10-12 00:00:00 http://www.baltimoresun.com/topic/bs-sp-wheldon1018-20111017,0,6348634.story?track=rss-topicgallery 2011-10-18 09:42:00 http://www.baltimoresun.com/topic/sc-spt-0817-notes-autos-module--20110817,0,3537734.story?track=rss-topicgallery 2011-08-17 00:00:00 http://www.baltimoresun.com/topic/sc-spt-0824-lede-autos-module--20110824-14,0,4764400.story?track=rss-topicgallery 2011-08-24 00:00:00 http://www.baltimoresun.com/topic/sc-spt-0824-notes-autos-module--20110824-11,0,6809846.story?track=rss-topicgallery 2011-08-24 00:00:00 http://www.baltimoresun.com/topic/kwch-photos-hendrick-motorsports-200-wins-part-182,0,4580799.photo?track=rss-topicgallery 2012-05-15 20:55:00 <img src="http://www.trbimg.com/img-4fb324c1/turbine/kwch-photos-hendrick-motorsports-200-wins-part-182/187/16x9" alt="Darrell Waltrip finally won his long-pursued Daytona 500 on Feb. 19, 1989 giving Hendrick Motorsports its second victory in the Great American Race." width="75" height="42" > http://www.baltimoresun.com/topic/kwch-photos-hendrick-motorsports-200-wins-part-141,0,3990970.photo?track=rss-topicgallery 2012-05-15 20:23:00 <img src="http://www.trbimg.com/img-4fb31d21/turbine/kwch-photos-hendrick-motorsports-200-wins-part-141/187/16x9" alt="Jeff Gordon won his first Daytona 500 with Hendrick Motorsports teammates Terry Labonte and Ricky Craven second and third on Feb. 16, 1997 at Daytona International Speedway." width="75" height="42" > http://www.baltimoresun.com/topic/kwch-photos-hendrick-motorsports-200-wins-part-106,0,3794363.photo?track=rss-topicgallery 2012-05-15 13:48:00 <img src="http://www.trbimg.com/img-4fb2c097/turbine/kwch-photos-hendrick-motorsports-200-wins-part-106/187/16x9" alt="Jeff Gordon opened the 1999 season the same way he closed out the previous one with his second Daytona 500 victory on Feb. 14 at Daytona International Speedway." width="75" height="42" >