Richard Petty admitted that Bristol Motor Speedway was one of his toughest tracks to race on. The Hall of Famer explained how he struggled to run 500 laps on the high-banked oval without the 'comforts' of modern cars.Petty has made 60 starts at the half-mile concrete, but it took him 12 races to finally take the checkered flag. Although he stepped on the podium many more times, he could only win on two more occasions, and both were in consecutive order.However, his shortcomings on the track weren't without reason. Cars in his time lacked the driver aids that are present nowadays. Without ergonomic seating and power steering, one had to wrestle the cars through every turn and endure the same for 500 laps as well.Reflecting upon the same, Petty answered a fan question about his time at Bristol."My biggest problem was staying in the car for 500 laps with the banking. Now the drivers have got all the comforts of home; they've got the seat, and they've got all the stuff holding them up. We didn't have all that kind of stuff, and we didn't have power steering. The track just wore me out, and you know, I think I won three races up there, and I think they were all within four races.""It was just never a good track, but we always run pretty good. We just never could win that many races well when they first opened the track," he added via X/Richard PettyAcross all his starts, Richard Petty has an average finish of 11.2 at Bristol. He had his last race at the track back in 1992, when he retired from the sport altogether.When Dale Earnhardt Jr. praised Richard Petty's influence on the sportIn 2013, Dale Earnhardt Jr. spoke with USA Sports and outlined how Richard Petty shaped NASCAR's culture. Much of his praise comes from how Petty took the time and interacted with his fans, a trait Earnhardt himself would share in his 15-year stint as the sport's Most Popular Driver."He set the standard back when he was driving. Everyone would say, and you'd heard quite often how he was the example of how you were supposed to interact with the fans and how you carried yourself around the garage and interacted with the other drivers," Earnhardt said.Richard Petty signed autographs and took photos with fans during the Kyle Petty Charity Ride. Syndication: Star-Gazette - Source: ImagnThe veteran driver also mentioned 'the Richard Petty way' as the best approach when it comes to signing autographs. He revealed that Petty supposedly never turned down an autograph, and it's said that Petty would stay back an hour or more just to do it.Moreover, the NASCAR legend never charged a cent for his signature either. This simple gesture makes it all the more valuable for fans of the sport.