CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The witness who discovered Michael Waltrip's overturned car initially thought no one survived the accident until the NASCAR driver wiggled out the back window.

The witness, an 18-year-old college student at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte, requested anonymity during a phone interview Wednesday with The Associated Press for fear of reprisal from Waltrip's fan base.

But she said she lives near the two-time Daytona 500 winner in Sherrill's Ford, and stumbled upon the accident when she was returning home around 2 a.m. Saturday. She saw an overturned Toyota Land Cruiser in a ditch and rushed over to check on the occupants. She didn't see anyone in the car and no one answered her shouts, so she called 911 for help.

"After I got off the phone I was walking around the car again and somebody stuck their foot out the back driver side of the window," she said. "That's when Michael Waltrip got out. He wiggled out the back window. I knew immediately it was him. He just got out the back driver side window and stood up."

The witness said she asked Waltrip how long he'd been in the car and he told her about 10 minutes.

"He was bleeding from his forehead and had some cuts on his fingers and arms," she said. "I told him 'You are really lucky you are alive. I didn't think anybody was alive in there.' We sort of talked for a minute or two, and I told him 911 was on the way, and he just turned around and started walking home.

"I didn't know what to say or what to do. He had a T-shirt and sweat pants and socks on, he might have taken his shoes off in the car, but I wasn't sure. And he just turned around and started walking home in his socks."

Waltrip was charged Saturday evening with reckless driving and failing to report an accident, both misdemeanors. He told police he fell asleep the wheel and woke up to find his car overturned in the gravel.

Waltrip has a May 14 court date in Newton on the charges.

NASCAR spokesman Jim Hunter said NASCAR would talk with Waltrip on Friday in Texas.

Waltrip had a scheduled interview with The Associated Press on Wednesday, but a representative, Brooke Hondros, canceled it, saying Waltrip wasn't feeling well. (Continued)