CHARLOTTE - All 40 drivers in the field for the Coca-Cola 600 took a back seat on Sunday.
Instead of their own names stretched across the top of their windshields, each driver's car featured the name of a fallen service member.
Dale Earnhardt Jr., NASCAR's most popular driver, riding in his final 600, was paired up with a local family.
PFC James McClamrock, a graduate of South Iredell HS, was Killed In Action in Iraq on Sept. 7, 2010.
His family thought they were going to have a quiet Memorial Day weekend, until they found out their son's name would be on Earnhardt's Chevy.
"Humbling," said James' mother, Susan McClamrock. "For one thing. We know the effort and the love that has gone to it. To see his name and to know that when Dale Junior races it will be across the nation, and men in his unit, friends, will be able to say c'mon Dale Jr., do it for James."
To say thank you, the McClamrocks have given Dale Earnhardt Junior some of a soldier's most prized belongings.
His Combat Infantry Badge. His purple heart. His name.
"To let him know how much it means to us to have James honored," said James' father, Mark.
Earnhardt Jr., finished 10th in the race.