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[Stomper]

One of my favorite stories about NASCAR's early days involves Junior Johnson and Bill France Sr.

“When I was first starting to drive, I’d run a race or two [and] I’d get back into my whiskey business, making money I needed to run another race or two,” Johnson, laughing, said of his decision not to compete in NASCAR’s top series full time.

Even France Sr., founder of NASCAR, was unable to convince the extremely talented Johnson that he should focus his efforts on chasing the series title.

“One time I was down at Atlanta … at the Holiday Inn,” Johnson said. “I hadn't raced in three or four races. Big Bill came down and sat at the table. I sat down and ordered my breakfast. He came over and sat down and said, ‘Junior, I want to talk to you. I want you to run all the races, and you're committed to run all the races.’”

Maybe in France’s eyes, but clearly not in Johnson’s.

“I sat there and thought a minute,” Johnson recalled. “I looked down at my plate. I had bacon and eggs on my plate. I said, ‘No Bill, I ain't committed to racing. For instance, I'll tell you how it works. Look at my plate when I'm telling you. I said the hen that laid that egg was involved. The hog that that bacon come from was committed.”

From then on, Johnson said, every time he’d run into the elder France, “He would ask, ‘Are you committed or are you involved?’”