Harley J. Earl Trophy - The Trophy and The Award

The Trophy and The Award

Winners of the Daytona 500 through 1997 received the Harley Earl Award, a wooden trophy approximately three feet tall, adorned with silver figurines. Starting in 1998, to celebrate the 40th running, individual winners of the Daytona 500 have been presented with a miniature replica of the Harley J. Earl Trophy, which was recreated by John Lajba, a sculptor from Omaha, Nebraska. Previously commissioned to craft a sculpture of Bill France and his wife, Ann France, for display in front of NASCAR corporate headquarters in Daytona Beach, Florida, Lajba's work on each replica trophy requires six weeks of 12-hour days to create the Firebird I automobile, with all the work done by hand, before it gets plated in silver by A&J Plating, also located in Omaha. The first replica trophy, won in 1998 by Dale Earnhardt was originally on a marble base, but has since been switched to an acrylic stand, making it lighter. For the 2008 Daytona 500, the 50th anniversary of the first race, the replica of the trophy, presented to winner Ryan Newman, was plated in gold rather than silver.

The replica trophies weigh 54 pounds (24 kg), and measure 18 inches (460 mm) tall, 22 inches (560 mm) wide and 12 inches (300 mm) deep.