Dale Earnhardt was called ‘The Intimidator’ for a reason. The seven-time Cup Series champ had an aggressive attitude both on and off the track, striking fear in the hearts of whoever crossed him along the way. While many racers dreaded seeing that black No. 3 Chevy in their rearview mirrors, they weren’t the only ones who were terrified of his anger.

As it turns out, Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s closest friend, Josh Snider, had a scary encounter with the legendary racer when they met the very first time. Taking a trip down memory lane, Josh Snider recalls meeting Dale Earnhardt in Charlotte and how that chance encounter forced him to run for his life. Even if that meant abandoning his shoes, just to avoid having a face-to-face encounter with ‘the Man in Black.’

Josh Snider made amends with Dale Sr.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Josh Snider have been on plenty of adventures over the years. From bonding over beers, jokes, and even flirting with the same girl in 1996, to becoming roommates and sharing a double-wide trailer. Both of them left no stone unturned to prank each other, and they even celebrated important milestones such as Junior’s Xfinity Series win in 1998. But through all the ups and downs of their ‘wild’ years, perhaps none will top Dale Earnhardt meeting Snider in Charlotte.

Recalling the encounter on the Dale Jr. Download podcast, Josh Snider said, “Oh, scared the s— out of me.” He went on to say, “My shoes were kind of by the front door. Next, I hear this horn is blaring and I mean, the next thing I know, that back door flew up. ‘Get the f— off my property.’ I’m like, oh, I just ran out the front. He (Dale Earnhardt) looked like ten feet tall, and I got the heck out of here and left my shoes. And I didn’t realize I left my shoes until I turned left and looked down at my feet and I’m like damn. I ain’t going back to get them.”

Later, Josh Snider had another encounter with Dale Earnhardt, and told him that ‘incident’ in Charlotte “was the most scared I’ve ever been.” In response, ‘The Intimidator’ replied, “I was p—–.” But burying that hatchet proved to be the turning point in their relationship, with Snider telling Dale Earnhardt Jr, “He was always so cool to me after that. I’m glad I got my Dale Sr. cussing out the first time. You know what I mean?” Looks like first impressions don’t always last.

Afterwards, when Dale Earnhardt Jr. won his first Xfinity Series race, Josh Snider, along with Kelley Earnhardt, planned a big party at their Mooresville trailer, full of graffiti banners and bed sheets hung on pine trees, saying something along the lines of ‘Junior lost his virginity in Texas’. When Jr. rolled in with ‘The Intimidator’ and Teresa Earnhardt, he expected a stern reaction from his father, who saw the banner, but just laughed it off. Perhaps that’s what Josh Snider meant when he said that Dale Sr. was always ‘cool’ with him after the encounter in Charlotte.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. once pranked his best friend

Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Josh Snider have played some very diabolical pranks with each other over the years. From room-destroying flour bombs to pregnancy scares, they’ve been there and done that, leaving no stone unturned to give each other a hard time. They weren’t the only victims either, with another friend, Broly, having five gallons of water and 2 pounds of flour being poured over him, a prank that Jr. said he was “still p—-” about. But nothing tops what Dale Jr. had in store for his best friend.

The veteran racer recalled, “We put a lot of pranks over the years, the most notable prank that I believe are the 2,000 crickets that I turned loose in your bedroom. I don’t know why I needed to do this. I don’t know what you had done that made me think that this was what I needed to do. Do you remember what provoked me putting the crickets? Was it the pregnancy test? What happened first?”

Ultimately, Josh Snider had to get professional help to get the crickets removed, as their numbers continued to increase rapidly after the existing ones laid eggs. Snider recalled, “I was dating a girl at the time, she wouldn’t come over and stay. She was like, ‘That place is already a s——-, I ain’t coming.’” Even as far as pranks go, that was pretty crazy, but Dale Earnhardt Jr. was determined to take revenge, especially after that pregnancy scare. And who can blame him? After all, such pranks are the cornerstone of friendship.