By Craig Anderson

DOVER — Two decades later, Jim Hosfelt choked up continues to get choked up at the searing memory.

“I still get emotional when I think about it,” he said, recalling 12 days after Sept. 11, 2001, when the Monster Mile hosted the first major sporting event since the deadly terrorist attacks on the United States.

A Dover Police Department corporal at the time, Mr. Hosfelt can remember fans waving thousands of small American flags inside Dover International Speedway that Sept. 23.

After postponing the New England 300 on Sept. 16, the Winston Cup schedule resumed for about 140,000 fans in Dover with the MBNA Cal Ripken Jr. 400.

“I can just remember being near the start-finish line, up at Gate 1, looking out and seeing that sea of people,” he said.

He paused for a few seconds to compose himself before explaining, “I just get emotional thinking of everyone waving those flags. I think the thing that struck me the most was the patriotism. NASCAR, as a whole, has always been very patriotic, but that patriotic day, there were thousands of flags. They were everywhere.

“It was just amazing to see. You know the thing that quickly brings you back around is thinking of today, ... 20 years later, how divided this country is, and that’s what bothers me the most.”

Besides that, Mr. Hosfelt said, the memories of that day are tough.

“Other than the flag-waving, whatever else happened was just a blur,” he said.

Race day had plenty of unforgettable moments, though.

Future MLB Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. served as grand marshal, before returning to Baltimore for an Orioles game that night.

And before the green flag waved to start the race, Tanya Tucker sang the national anthem and “God Bless America.”

There was a moment of silence, and a C-5 cargo plane from nearby Dover Air Force Base provided a flyover. Thousands of spectators chanted, “USA! USA!”

Images of 9/11’s worst moments were shown on a large screen, which prompted loud rally cries of “America fights back” from the crowd.

It was then singer Lee Greenwood’s time to take center stage, singing his stirring “God Bless the USA.”

In an interview around the time of 9/11’s 15th anniversary, Mr. Greenwood recalled vividly “not being sure if I could get through it.”

He added, “I had to fight back my own emotions as an American. As I was singing, I was picturing people falling out of the (twin) towers. ... I will never forget that moment on the track when I felt like I was representing the face of America.”

Asked in 2016 about her performances, Ms. Tucker said she remembered being “locked in” to both songs in a setting — recovery from terrorist attacks — she hopes is never repeated.

“It was very powerful to me,” she said at the time. “It was the great American sport that was involved in an all-American place, and every American was (feeling a strong sense of patriotism) at the time.”

According to Mr. Ripken in 2016, “The unity of the fans and the feeling of patriotism was remarkable. It seemed like everyone there had an American flag, and they were chanting, ‘USA, USA.’ It was incredibly powerful and moving.”

Moments after the checkered flag waved, race winner Dale Earnhardt Jr. drove backward around the track in his flag-adorned No. 8 vehicle, as the crowd roared. Several other cars were also decorated in the red, white and blue.

Mr. Hosfelt was in charge of Dover PD’s motorcycle unit during the event. The group was tasked with traffic control and faced significant challenges, he recalled.

He said Del. 1 hadn’t been fully completed yet, and all vehicles were pulled into Dover on U.S. 13.

Plus, there was the great unknown of how the first big sporting event following 9/11 would play out.

“It was like, ‘Do you think we’re going to have fans or not?’” Mr. Hosfelt recalled. “Obviously, (140,000) people thought it was important enough to come out and unite, be here together and get back to normal because, for (several days), it wasn’t normal.

“It was that first chance we were able to get back and do the things we wanted to do, and that was come to a NASCAR race, be there with like-minded individuals.”

Now, as assistant vice president of public safety and track operations for Dover and Nashville Superspeedway, Mr. Hosfelt’s office is adjacent to the Monster Mile.

He said 9/11 “changed everything” from a security perspective.

“Before, we couldn’t get people through the gates fast enough,” he said. “Now, we’re searching people, running them through a magnetometer, just everything.

“There used to be a limited law enforcement presence on-site. Now, they’re everywhere. Public safety back then would have been thought of as fire rescue, people inside the track. It wasn’t law enforcement. It wasn’t security at the gates. It wasn’t those things we do now, so we have evolved so much as a result of 9/11. It’s not just NASCAR; it’s all sports.”