Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (8), Kenny Wallace (27), Jimmy Spencer (26) and Mike Wallace (7) collide as they enter turn three on the first lap of the NASCAR Dura-Lube 400. ASSOCIATED PRESS

The only difference between the two was Earnhardt's wreck in the fourth turn left the seven-time champion dead on impact. His son's similar head-on crash a week later hardly left a scratch.

In between the two crashes was one of the most tumultuous weeks in the history of stock car racing. The sport mourned the death of a champion, then got back in the fast lane as scheduled.

The tribute to Earnhardt continued before the race at the rain-soaked North Carolina Speedway, but those who knew him best said the greatest way to honor one of its most popular figures was to get back to racing.

While the Dura-Lube 400 didn't last long, it was the perfect elixir for a community that desperately needed to separate itself from Earnhardt's death with some racing miles.

Rain created a 1-hour, 40-minute delay at the start, then brought out the caution flag twice in the first 52 laps. By 4 p.m. - about the time the race should have ended - NASCAR had seen enough. Radar images of more rain forced the sanctioning body to postpone the main event until today at 11 a.m. (FX).

Earnhardt Jr. didn't even make it a mile before he crashed on the first lap. But being inside one of his father's Chevrolets was a major step toward his own recovery.

Ron Hornaday's Pontiac slammed into Earnhardt Jr.'s rear bumper as several cars hit the brakes in the third turn. Earnhardt Jr. was turned right and into the outside wall in the same manner that claimed his father's life.

Although Earnhardt Jr.'s car was destroyed, the third-generation driver walked away.

``I got piled up there getting into (turn) three, and somebody got into the back of me, and I couldn't keep it under control once that happened,'' Earnhardt Jr. said. ``The No. 4 car (driven by Robby Gordon) slid down in the front of me, and everybody kind of backed off. Then we were sliding, and suddenly we were going the wrong direction.

``I got into the wall a little too hard. I think it's killed the car, but we're doing all right. I just was ready to get back to racing, but now I guess I'll just have to get ready for Vegas (next Sunday).''

Earnhardt Jr. limped as he left his race car. He said his seat belt was so tight it left a bruise.

Cars driven by Kenny Wallace, Mike Wallace, Jimmy Spencer and Hut Stricklin also were involved. Kenny Wallace's car, like Earnhardt Jr.'s, was knocked out of the race, while the others made repairs and returned.

The weather was a perfect backdrop for 70,000 water-logged fans and 43 race teams who remained in shock over Earnhardt's tragic death a week ago at the Daytona 500.

There were several mentions of Earnhardt during the pre-race ceremonies, but nothing compared to the spontaneous ovation of fans extending black and red pennants into the dreary mist and hands waving three fingers on the first lap of the race.

``The truth is, Dale would be kicking our butts if he knew how much trouble we've made over all this,'' said a spokesmen for Dale Earnhardt Inc. ``The best thing we could do is race. That's the way Dale would have handled something like this. That's what he would have wanted.''

Earnhardt died on the final lap of last week's Daytona 500 when his car slammed into the fourth-turn wall. NASCAR officials said Earnhardt's seat belt broke on impact, throwing the driver's head and chest into the steering wheel.

Each fan attending the race was given a pennant featuring Earnhardt. Darrell Waltrip, a three-time Winston Cup champion who now provides racing commentary for FOX Sports, delivered the invocation.

An airplane pulled a banner overhead that simply read: ``3.''

After the singing of the national anthem, four U.S. Air Force F15-E Strike Eagles from Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in Goldsboro, N.C., were scheduled to perform the missing man formation over the raceway, but the rain washed out those plans. The third fighter jet was to pull out of formation to honor Earnhardt and his No. 3, which had been on the side of his race car for the past 18 seasons.

The fly-by would have made history as the first time such a maneuver was performed for a civilian, according to military sources.

Pole-sitter Jeff Gordon and outside pole winner Steve Park led most of the early laps.

Stacy Compton assumed the lead by skipping a pit stop during the second caution for rain. He will start from the pole when the race resumes for the final 341 laps.

Gordon will be second, followed by Park in third, Tony Stewart in fourth, Ricky Rudd in fifth, Bobby Labonte in sixth, Jeff Burton in seventh, Johnny Benson in eighth, Michael Waltrip in ninth and Brett Bodine in 10th.

The postponement will hamper many teams' preparations for the cross-country trip to Las Vegas for next Sunday's UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400. The trucks hauling cars and equipment will leave Tuesday, meaning teams will have less than a day to get ready for that race.

The delay also creates a change in television coverage. FOX, which televised the first 52 laps, will turn over the rest of the broadcast to its sister station FX, which plans to replay the race in its entirety at 8 p.m.

SKINNER ADDED TO NO BULL:

As the winner of last October's Winston 500 at the Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, Dale Earnhardt made himself eligible to win a $1 million bonus this week at Las Vegas.

His death, however, now makes Richard Childress Racing teammate Mike Skinnereligible for the bonus.

The R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. offered the $1 million prize to any driver that can follow up a top-five finish at a pre-selected No Bull Five event with a victory at the next No Bull Five race.

Five race fans are picked at random and assigned to the eligible drivers. If the driver wins the bonus, the fan also gets $1 million.

Skinner finished sixth at Talladega, so R. J. Reynolds decided to fill Earnhardt's void with the next-available driver. The other drivers competing for the bonus on Sunday will be Kenny Wallace, Joe Nemechek, Jeff Gordon and Terry Labonte.

Reach Don Coble at doncoble@bellsouth.net.