Talladega-Texaco Davey Allison Memorial Park

A while back I bought a brick for the Walk Of Fame. Now was the time for me to finally be able to see my brick in the actual park.

Each year the fans select a current driver and an inactive driver for the Walk Of Fame. This year's inductees are Bobby Labonte and Rex White.

We walked around the Walk Of Fame and I took pictures of some of the plagues, but it was getting dark quick.

Allison - Bonnett Memorial Park

So much of Hueytown has changed in the 15 years since Davey's death, but it is nice to still see little remembrances of him!

Home Track Restaurant

I had read a newspaper article about a restaurant in Hueytown that Davey had frequented. It said that there was alot of memorabilia and also a mural on the wall of Bobby Allison and Dale Earnhardt Sr. on the front row with Davey and Dale Jr. behind each of them.

We took off searching for this restaurant. Unfortunately Home Track no longer exists, but a great little restaurant called GW's is in it's place.

I knew it was the same building when I looked in the door and saw the WINNER'S CIRCLE sign over one of the doors.

There we visited with a lovely waitress and an older couple who were there for dinner also. They talked about how they knew Davey and the last time they ever saw him was there in the restaurant, knawing on a chicken bone.

There were lots of memorabilia on the walls and it was nice to at least feel like a part of Davey was there.

We never did find Neil's grave...

After more research, I was given some wrong information, but Randy and I spent over an hour searching. We came across some really neat graves though. I love looking at old cemeteries, but it's not Randy's thing...but he sure was looking!

This one really caught my eye because it was broken and stuck in the ground.

First Stop - Highland Memorial Gardens

Our first stop while in Hueytown was to Highland Memorial Gardens to visit the grave-site of the Allisons.

Davey's grave-site was the first one we came to. It was easy to find with the marble bench on the side of the road that read "In Loving Memory of Our Daddy" Robbie and Krista. Davey's grave was located just on the other side of the tree. It was said that Davey was buried in that section, closest to the woods because he loved nature and loved to hunt.

By the way, that's my three red roses in Davey's arrangement.

Next we got back in the Explorer and headed to find the remaining of the Allisons' graves.

As we were driving down the lane, I was drawn to this stone tomb and we stopped to take a picture.

Once we reached the section of "Our Lady Of Lourdes", we knew we were close. A back-hoe driver apparently noticed my shirt and came over to offer to show us where the grave-sites were. Can you believe that the rest of the Allisons' are buried directly in front of that tomb? There we found the graves of Clifford, Miss Kittie, Bobby and Judy (although not deceased) and also an unmarked marker.

We decided to leave and head to find Neil Bonnett's grave-site. Before it got too dark.

Hueytown, Alabama

Hueytown, Alabama - Home of the Alabama Gang.

What was "The Alabama Gang"? The Alabama Gang was a group of NASCAR drivers who tore up the short tracks of Birmingham and called Hueytown their home. It was comprised of Bobby Allison (sons Davey and Clifford), Donnie Allison, Red Farmer, and Neil Bonnett (son David).

Clifford Allison died in August 1992 while practicing in Michigan.
Davey Allison died from a helicopter crash at Talladega in July 1993.
Neil Bonnett died in February 1994 while practicing at Daytona.

Bobby and Donnie Allison still live on today but their driving careers were cut short by terrifying crashes.

Red Farmer (who survived the helicopter crash with Davey) still lives on and can be found still running the dirt tracks at 75 years of age.

Day 1 - Hueytown, Alabama

Our day began on Thursday, October 2nd. We headed out of Sanderson at approx. 6:30 a.m., heading for Hueytown, Alabama (home-town of Davey Allison).

For those who do not know who Davey Allison was / is...he was THE BEST, yes, THE BEST NASCAR driver in the late 80's, early 90's. Davey was my family's favorite BAR NONE. Davey was tragically killed in a helicopter crash while trying to land at Talladega Super Speedway in July of 1993. My whole family's outlook on NASCAR drastically changed in one quick second. Had Davey lived and gone on to continue driving, there is no doubt that Jeff Gordon would not have won so many championships and Dale Earnhardt Sr. would not have won so many races. Those wins and championships would have been shared with Davey. Yes, he was that good!

Every year the Talladega Fall race is held the week-end of the Boys Ranch and since Kara competes every year, I have spent the past 12 years at the Boys Ranch, however this year, finding out that Kara was pregnant and would not be able to compete, I decided that this would be the perfect time to head to Talladega and Hueytown.