An expected crowd of 60,000 got the word just two hours prior to the scheduled start. Many were driving to the race and were intercepted by trucks with loudspeakers warning them to turn around and go home. Imagine traveling great distances, perhaps 600 miles, to watch a 600-mile race and being told that the stars of CART refuse even to turn one lap. Hey, if safety were the drawing card here, the multitudes would flock every weekend to watch race-walking. Paying customers demand a show.
TV networks require ratings.
And the drivers, most of all, simply won't allow themselves to back down from anything. The Intimidator didn't even remember taking the green flag that day and was pulled from the car in a semi-conscious state. A battery of doctors tried to come up with a quick explanation, playing straight men to Earnhardt's plucky punch lines. Nobody ever wanted Earnhardt to stop racing. Nobody even considered it a serious possibility, least of all Earnhardt himself.