With Sterling Marlin recently deciding to hang up his helmet for good after driving in NASCAR for four decades, it's a good time to look back at a career marked by some surprising twists and turns.

According to a story written by Larry Woody last week, Marlin has decided to spend more time with his family, his farm in Tennessee and dabble a bit as co-owner of a team that hopes to compete in one of NASCAR's lower-tier series.

"Between the farm and the grandkids and all the chores that [wife] Paula gives me, I've got about all I can handle," Marlin said to Woody. "[Racing in the Cup Series] was fun, but like everything else it had to end sometime."

Sterling Marlin starred in both football and basketball in high school, and could have chased other athletic pursuits. But his first love was racing, and he decided to follow his father Coo Coo into the family business. When his dad was injured in the spring of 1976, 19-year-old Sterling was the logical choice as replacement driver of the No. 14 Chevrolet, making his Cup debut at hometown Nashville Speedway and finishing 29th in the 30-car field.

Seven years later, Marlin landed his first full-time ride, driving for Roger Hamby. He scored a top-10 finish at Dover and wound up 19th in the standings, earning rookie of the year honors. But after finishing 15th in the 1984 Daytona 500, Marlin and team parted ways, and he found himself picking up rides here and there over the next three seasons.

Marlin's next big break came in 1987, when Billy Hagan hired him to drive the No. 44 Oldsmobile, and over the course of the next four seasons, Marlin recorded a total of 19 top-five finishes and was 10th in the final 1988 point standings.

Switching to Junior Johnson's operation in 1991, Marlin began to display the talent on superspeedways that would ultimately lead to that elusive first victory. He finished second to Ernie Irvan in the Daytona 500, then won poles at Daytona and Talladega later in the season. He added five more poles in 1992, including one in the Daytona 500.

But after a disappointing season with the Stavola Brothers in 1993, Marlin's career path seemed to be heading for a dead end. That's when Larry McClure came calling.

When Ernie Irvan left the No. 4 Chevy team in midseason, McClure had one name on his list as a replacement: Sterling Marlin.

"Sterling can run fast," McClure said at the time. "He's had several poles in the past and he had the skill to keep the car up front, even though he hadn't won a race.

"An added feature with Sterling is that he's a very personable guy. Most people like him, and all the other race teams like him. I felt like he's been a victim of circumstances throughout his career, and I felt like maybe if we gave him the support we had to give him, we'd all be successful."

And from the moment Marlin joined the team, he felt confident in his chances of snapping a personal 278-start winless streak.

"They're a great race team," Marlin said. "All the guys in the shop are really dedicated. [They] really work hard. I had a good feeling when I joined the team, and when we came here and tested and went to Talladega and tested.

"I told them, 'We're going to win the Daytona 500.' " (Continued)