AVONDALE, Ariz. -- Friday at Phoenix Raceway, track president Bryan Sperber stepped to the podium alongside Dale Earnhardt Jr. for a special announcement.
The track then presented a check for $100,000 to Childhelp, an organization combating child abuse nationwide, as a gift to take part in Earnhardt's #Appreci88ion tour.
The driver's gratitude was obvious on his face.
"I really appreciate that," Earnhardt said. "It's really great for the speedway to make an impact in their community, and they certainly did an amazing thing today donating to Childhelp. What an awesome amount of money to donate -- that's quite generous. On behalf of myself and my family, all our fans, we really want to thank you guys for that. That'll hopefully make a lot of people's lives a lot better."
But the presentation didn't end there.
On a fun note, Sperber brought up an old tweet from Earnhardt where the driver showed off his favorite pickles, which just so happen to come from Phoenix.
So the track went to the pickle company and got them to produce a very special batch just for this occasion. With that, he presented Earnhardt with some "Dill Jr." pickles.
"The pickles are much appreciated," Earnhardt smiled, noting that his bus driver had already surprised him with a few cases of pickles as well. "I'm taking home so many pickles this weekend, we're not going to need pickles for a while. Actually, I got enough so I can actually share, which is something I enjoy doing.
"Thank you to the track."