The son of the seven-time series champion won the race that consumed his father.

The son of the seven-time series champion won the race that consumed his father.
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. was reminiscing about his father when someone brought over a cell phone.
Hold on, guys. Junior needs to take this call.
It's the president.
Even George Bush couldn't resist the urge to congratulate Earnhardt after his emotional victory in Sunday's Daytona 500 -- six years to the day that his late father won NASCAR's premier race for the first, and only, time.
This one was straight from a storybook. The son of the seven-time series champion takes the checkered flag in the race that consumed his father -- and eventually took his life.
Not far from the spot where the Intimidator died in a last-lap crash during the 2001 race, his son was carried on the shoulders of his crew, cheered by an adoring crowd and even praised by the guys who tried to beat him.
"Considering what this kid went through, losing his father here at the Daytona 500, it's nice to see him get his victory here, too," said Tony Stewart, the victim of a daring pass by Earnhardt with 20 laps to go. "I think his father's really proud."
Bush got it started
Bush was on hand to start the race, but left at about the midway point. Shortly after Earnhardt's emotional win, the president put in a call.
"Take it easy," Earnhardt drawled at the end of their brief conversation, reflecting the laid-back style of a driver who likes to wear his hat backward and hang out with rock bands.
While this product of the MTV era is a different man than his hardscrabble father, Junior didn't fall too far from the tree.
His pass of Stewart -- with no drafting help, the cars nearly trading paint through the trioval at 190 mph -- would have made the old man proud. And Junior's passion for Daytona is right up there with his father's.
The Intimidator failed to win the 500 on his first 19 tries -- losing in just about every way imaginable. He finally broke through on the 20th attempt in 1998, a victory that had not been approached in popularity until Sunday.
"To be honest, this is more important to me than any race I run all year," Earnhardt Jr. said. "There's more emphasis on winning the race because of what happened here."
Remembered the frustrations
He remembered his father's increasing frustration as his Daytona quest was felled by a blown tire here, a wreck there.
"You would see it year after year after year," Earnhardt Jr. said. "Not many things, if anything at all, bothered that man. But I could see it on his face. I could tell it bothered him."
Showing the impatience of youth, the 29-year-old Earnhardt won the race on just his fifth try. And Daddy was along for the ride.
"He was over in the passenger side with me," Junior said. "I'm sure he was having a blast."
Showed muscle at end
After Earnhardt's pass at the end of lap 180, Stewart tried valiantly to catch up. He briefly pulled beside the No. 8 car coming out of turn two, but Junior showed his muscle on the backstretch and kept Stewart in the rearview mirror.
That's where he stayed. Earnhardt pulled away on the final lap, winning by about four car lengths while the crowd of 180,000 -- many of them wearing Junior's red and white colors -- erupted in celebration, overwhelming security to leap onto the catch fence in front of the main grandstand.
Earnhardt came back around and stopped his car at the checkered finish line. He pumped his fist and jumped into the arms of his crew, who lifted him on their shoulders for all to see. Then, he climbed back in and attempted a few doughnuts in the grass -- just like his father after the 1998 race.