 in Miami , Tim and his mother moved to Florida and his father stayed in Ohio . While home in Ohio over a summer break , he met local drag racer Raymond Beadle through lifelong friend Fred Miller . When Richmond reached age 16 , his parents purchased him a Pontiac Trans Am , a speedboat and a Piper Cherokee airplane for his birthday . Yet his mother Evelyn often worried about spoiling her only son . She once said , " Tim was lazy ... " , and " ... I did everything for him . I ruined him , I admit it . He was my whole life . "   Richmond excelled in sports ; he set a conference record in high hurdles and his high school football career was stellar enough that the academy retired his sports jersey after his gridiron days were over . Miami Military Academy named him Athlete of the Year in 1970 . Richmond 's other interests included flying , and he earned his private pilot license at age 16 . Following high school graduation , Richmond attended Ashland University for about one year before dropping out .   = = Racing career = =   = = = Open wheel racing = = =   A friend of Richmond 's father co @-@ owned a sprint car and Richmond joined the team as a crew member for Dave Shoemaker . In 1976 , 21 @-@ year @-@ old Richmond took the car onto Lakeville Speedway at Lakeville , Ohio for some practice laps . " Somebody put a stopwatch on me , " Richmond said . " I was running laps faster than Dave had been . It was the first time I had ever driven a race car . " Richmond and his father found a red , white and blue @-@ colored No. 98 car in Pennsylvania , which was the same number and paint scheme that Richmond used on model cars as a child . In his first competition at the track , officials placed Richmond in the slowest heat . He passed several cars before spinning out and breaking an axle . Although he made several attempts to get the car pointed in the right direction , the broken axle prevented the car from driving straight . After being towed to the pits , he parked the car for the rest of the event . Later that season , they towed the car to Eldora Speedway , only to have Richmond crash the car again . In response , Richmond 's father fired him as the driver . The next season , Al Richmond bought a SuperModified better suited to his son 's driving style . In 1977 Tim Richmond became both Sandusky Speedway 's Rookie of the Year and the SuperModified class track champion .   Richmond returned to racing sprint cars in the United States Automobile Club 's ( USAC ) national sprint car tour in 1978 . Competing in 12 races , he finished 30th in points as the series ' Rookie of the Year . That year he attended Jim Russell 's road racing school at Willow Springs International Motorsports Park , setting a student course record . Richmond raced in a 1978 Mini Indy car event at Phoenix International Raceway , winning the Formula Super Vee support event in a Lola T620 . The win attracted sponsors and attention from major owners like Roger Penske . He also competed in USAC 's Silver Crown series .   Richmond 's father bought an Eagle Indy Car chassis and an Offenhauser engine for the 1979 race at Michigan International Speedway . Richmond qualified 21st fastest with a 175 @.@ 768 mph ( 282 @.@ 871 km / h ) lap , significantly slower than Bobby Unser 's 203 @.@ 879 mph ( 328 @.@ 111 km / h ) pole position speed . The race ended for him when his motor blew up on the fourth lap , and he finished last ( 23rd ) . Owner Pat Santello was looking for a driver to replace Larry Rice for his CART team at the following race at Watkins Glen International , so he gave Richmond a test at Willow Spring where he had previously set the student record . Santello hired Richmond , who then qualified 15th fastest for the event and finished in eighth place , the best of his IndyCar career . Richmond raced in three more events that season .   After crashing during the first day of qualifying for the 1980 Indianapolis 500 , Richmond nevertheless obtained the 19th starting position in the race . He worked his way up to the top 10 during the race , led a lap , and finished ninth as he ran out of fuel at the end of the race . To the delight of the crowd , winner Johnny Rutherford gave him a ride back to the pits . He was named the 1980 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year . " I busted up a few Indy cars right after that , " he said . " Milwaukee , Mid @-@ Ohio . . . at Michigan I cut one in two . I was afraid my racing career would come to a halt . So when I got an offer to drive stock cars , I took it , and it turned out I liked driving them better . "   = = = NASCAR = = =   Pocono Raceway President Joseph Mattioli III convinced
Ġin ĠMiami Ġ, ĠTim Ġand Ġhis Ġmother Ġmoved Ġto ĠFlorida Ġand Ġhis Ġfather Ġstayed Ġin ĠOhio Ġ. ĠWhile Ġhome Ġin ĠOhio Ġover Ġa Ġsummer Ġbreak Ġ, Ġhe Ġmet Ġlocal Ġdrag Ġracer ĠRaymond ĠB ead le Ġthrough Ġlifelong Ġfriend ĠFred ĠMiller Ġ. ĠWhen ĠRichmond Ġreached Ġage Ġ16 Ġ, Ġhis Ġparents Ġpurchased Ġhim Ġa ĠPont iac ĠTrans ĠAm Ġ, Ġa Ġspeed boat Ġand Ġa ĠPiper ĠCherokee Ġairplane Ġfor Ġhis Ġbirthday Ġ. ĠYet Ġhis Ġmother ĠEve lyn Ġoften Ġworried Ġabout Ġspo iling Ġher Ġonly Ġson Ġ. ĠShe Ġonce Ġsaid Ġ, Ġ" ĠTim Ġwas Ġlazy Ġ... Ġ" Ġ, Ġand Ġ" Ġ... ĠI Ġdid Ġeverything Ġfor Ġhim Ġ. ĠI Ġruined Ġhim Ġ, ĠI Ġadmit Ġit Ġ. ĠHe Ġwas Ġmy Ġwhole Ġlife Ġ. Ġ" Ġ Ġ ĠRichmond Ġexce lled Ġin Ġsports Ġ; Ġhe Ġset Ġa Ġconference Ġrecord Ġin Ġhigh Ġhurdles Ġand Ġhis Ġhigh Ġschool Ġfootball Ġcareer Ġwas Ġstellar Ġenough Ġthat Ġthe Ġacademy Ġretired Ġhis Ġsports Ġjersey Ġafter Ġhis Ġgrid iron Ġdays Ġwere Ġover Ġ. ĠMiami ĠMilitary ĠAcademy Ġnamed Ġhim ĠAth lete Ġof Ġthe ĠYear Ġin Ġ1970 Ġ. ĠRichmond Ġ' s Ġother Ġinterests Ġincluded Ġflying Ġ, Ġand Ġhe Ġearned Ġhis Ġprivate Ġpilot Ġlicense Ġat Ġage Ġ16 Ġ. ĠFollowing Ġhigh Ġschool Ġgraduation Ġ, ĠRichmond Ġattended ĠAsh land ĠUniversity Ġfor Ġabout Ġone Ġyear Ġbefore Ġdropping Ġout Ġ. Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= ĠRacing Ġcareer Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= Ġ= ĠOpen Ġwheel Ġracing Ġ= Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ ĠA Ġfriend Ġof ĠRichmond Ġ' s Ġfather Ġco Ġ@ - @ Ġowned Ġa Ġsprint Ġcar Ġand ĠRichmond Ġjoined Ġthe Ġteam Ġas Ġa Ġcrew Ġmember Ġfor ĠDave ĠSho emaker Ġ. ĠIn Ġ1976 Ġ, Ġ21 Ġ@ - @ Ġyear Ġ@ - @ Ġold ĠRichmond Ġtook Ġthe Ġcar Ġonto ĠLake ville ĠSpeedway Ġat ĠLake ville Ġ, ĠOhio Ġfor Ġsome Ġpractice Ġlaps Ġ. Ġ" ĠSomebody Ġput Ġa Ġstop watch Ġon Ġme Ġ, Ġ" ĠRichmond Ġsaid Ġ. Ġ" ĠI Ġwas Ġrunning Ġlaps Ġfaster Ġthan ĠDave Ġhad Ġbeen Ġ. ĠIt Ġwas Ġthe Ġfirst Ġtime ĠI Ġhad Ġever Ġdriven Ġa Ġrace Ġcar Ġ. Ġ" ĠRichmond Ġand Ġhis Ġfather Ġfound Ġa Ġred Ġ, Ġwhite Ġand Ġblue Ġ@ - @ Ġcolored ĠNo . Ġ98 Ġcar Ġin ĠPennsylvania Ġ, Ġwhich Ġwas Ġthe Ġsame Ġnumber Ġand Ġpaint Ġscheme Ġthat ĠRichmond Ġused Ġon Ġmodel Ġcars Ġas Ġa Ġchild Ġ. ĠIn Ġhis Ġfirst Ġcompetition Ġat Ġthe Ġtrack Ġ, Ġofficials Ġplaced ĠRichmond Ġin Ġthe Ġslow est Ġheat Ġ. ĠHe Ġpassed Ġseveral Ġcars Ġbefore Ġspinning Ġout Ġand Ġbreaking Ġan Ġaxle Ġ. ĠAlthough Ġhe Ġmade Ġseveral Ġattempts Ġto Ġget Ġthe Ġcar Ġpointed Ġin Ġthe Ġright Ġdirection Ġ, Ġthe Ġbroken Ġaxle Ġprevented Ġthe Ġcar Ġfrom Ġdriving Ġstraight Ġ. ĠAfter Ġbeing Ġtowed Ġto Ġthe Ġpits Ġ, Ġhe Ġparked Ġthe Ġcar Ġfor Ġthe Ġrest Ġof Ġthe Ġevent Ġ. ĠLater Ġthat Ġseason Ġ, Ġthey Ġtowed Ġthe Ġcar Ġto ĠEld ora ĠSpeedway Ġ, Ġonly Ġto Ġhave ĠRichmond Ġcrash Ġthe Ġcar Ġagain Ġ. ĠIn Ġresponse Ġ, ĠRichmond Ġ' s Ġfather Ġfired Ġhim Ġas Ġthe Ġdriver Ġ. ĠThe Ġnext Ġseason Ġ, ĠAl ĠRichmond Ġbought Ġa ĠSuper Mod ified Ġbetter Ġsuited Ġto Ġhis Ġson Ġ' s Ġdriving Ġstyle Ġ. ĠIn Ġ1977 ĠTim ĠRichmond Ġbecame Ġboth ĠSand usky ĠSpeedway Ġ' s ĠRookie Ġof Ġthe ĠYear Ġand Ġthe ĠSuper Mod ified Ġclass Ġtrack Ġchampion Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠRichmond Ġreturned Ġto Ġracing Ġsprint Ġcars Ġin Ġthe ĠUnited ĠStates ĠAutom obile ĠClub Ġ' s Ġ( ĠUS AC Ġ) Ġnational Ġsprint Ġcar Ġtour Ġin Ġ1978 Ġ. ĠComp eting Ġin Ġ12 Ġraces Ġ, Ġhe Ġfinished Ġ30 th Ġin Ġpoints Ġas Ġthe Ġseries Ġ' ĠRookie Ġof Ġthe ĠYear Ġ. ĠThat Ġyear Ġhe Ġattended ĠJim ĠRussell Ġ' s Ġroad Ġracing Ġschool Ġat ĠWillow ĠSprings ĠInternational ĠMotors ports ĠPark Ġ, Ġsetting Ġa Ġstudent Ġcourse Ġrecord Ġ. ĠRichmond Ġraced Ġin Ġa Ġ1978 ĠMini ĠIndy Ġcar Ġevent Ġat ĠPhoenix ĠInternational ĠRac eway Ġ, Ġwinning Ġthe ĠFormula ĠSuper ĠV ee Ġsupport Ġevent Ġin Ġa ĠL ola ĠT 620 Ġ. ĠThe Ġwin Ġattracted Ġsponsors Ġand Ġattention Ġfrom Ġmajor Ġowners Ġlike ĠRoger ĠPens ke Ġ. ĠHe Ġalso Ġcompeted Ġin ĠUS AC Ġ' s ĠSilver ĠCrown Ġseries Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠRichmond Ġ' s Ġfather Ġbought Ġan ĠEagle ĠIndy ĠCar Ġchassis Ġand Ġan ĠOff en ha user Ġengine Ġfor Ġthe Ġ1979 Ġrace Ġat ĠMichigan ĠInternational ĠSpeedway Ġ. ĠRichmond Ġqualified Ġ21 st Ġfastest Ġwith Ġa Ġ175 Ġ@ . @ Ġ768 Ġmph Ġ( Ġ282 Ġ@ . @ Ġ8 71 Ġkm Ġ/ Ġh Ġ) Ġlap Ġ, Ġsignificantly Ġslower Ġthan ĠBobby ĠUn ser Ġ' s Ġ203 Ġ@ . @ Ġ8 79 Ġmph Ġ( Ġ328 Ġ@ . @ Ġ111 Ġkm Ġ/ Ġh Ġ) Ġpole Ġposition Ġspeed Ġ. ĠThe Ġrace Ġended Ġfor Ġhim Ġwhen Ġhis Ġmotor Ġblew Ġup Ġon Ġthe Ġfourth Ġlap Ġ, Ġand Ġhe Ġfinished Ġlast Ġ( Ġ23 rd Ġ) Ġ. ĠOwner ĠPat ĠSant ello Ġwas Ġlooking Ġfor Ġa Ġdriver Ġto Ġreplace ĠLarry ĠRice Ġfor Ġhis ĠC ART Ġteam Ġat Ġthe Ġfollowing Ġrace Ġat ĠWatkins ĠGlen ĠInternational Ġ, Ġso Ġhe Ġgave ĠRichmond Ġa Ġtest Ġat ĠWillow ĠSpring Ġwhere Ġhe Ġhad Ġpreviously Ġset Ġthe Ġstudent Ġrecord Ġ. ĠSant ello Ġhired ĠRichmond Ġ, Ġwho Ġthen Ġqualified Ġ15 th Ġfastest Ġfor Ġthe Ġevent Ġand Ġfinished Ġin Ġeighth Ġplace Ġ, Ġthe Ġbest Ġof Ġhis ĠIndy Car Ġcareer Ġ. ĠRichmond Ġraced Ġin Ġthree Ġmore Ġevents Ġthat Ġseason Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠAfter Ġcrashing Ġduring Ġthe Ġfirst Ġday Ġof Ġqualifying Ġfor Ġthe Ġ1980 ĠIndianapolis Ġ500 Ġ, ĠRichmond Ġnevertheless Ġobtained Ġthe Ġ19 th Ġstarting Ġposition Ġin Ġthe Ġrace Ġ. ĠHe Ġworked Ġhis Ġway Ġup Ġto Ġthe Ġtop Ġ10 Ġduring Ġthe Ġrace Ġ, Ġled Ġa Ġlap Ġ, Ġand Ġfinished Ġninth Ġas Ġhe Ġran Ġout Ġof Ġfuel Ġat Ġthe Ġend Ġof Ġthe Ġrace Ġ. ĠTo Ġthe Ġdelight Ġof Ġthe Ġcrowd Ġ, Ġwinner ĠJohnny ĠRutherford Ġgave Ġhim Ġa Ġride Ġback Ġto Ġthe Ġpits Ġ. ĠHe Ġwas Ġnamed Ġthe Ġ1980 ĠIndianapolis Ġ500 ĠRookie Ġof Ġthe ĠYear Ġ. Ġ" ĠI Ġbusted Ġup Ġa Ġfew ĠIndy Ġcars Ġright Ġafter Ġthat Ġ, Ġ" Ġhe Ġsaid Ġ. Ġ" ĠMilwaukee Ġ, ĠMid Ġ@ - @ ĠOhio Ġ. Ġ. Ġ. Ġat ĠMichigan ĠI Ġcut Ġone Ġin Ġtwo Ġ. ĠI Ġwas Ġafraid Ġmy Ġracing Ġcareer Ġwould Ġcome Ġto Ġa Ġhalt Ġ. ĠSo Ġwhen ĠI Ġgot Ġan Ġoffer Ġto Ġdrive Ġstock Ġcars Ġ, ĠI Ġtook Ġit Ġ, Ġand Ġit Ġturned Ġout ĠI Ġliked Ġdriving Ġthem Ġbetter Ġ. Ġ" Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= Ġ= ĠNASCAR Ġ= Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ ĠPoc ono ĠRac eway ĠPresident ĠJoseph ĠMatt iol i ĠIII Ġconvinced