In the 1970 Rebel 400 at Darlington Raceway, future legend Richard Petty survived one of the scariest crashes in NASCAR history.

For the 1970 season, Richard Petty was safely back in the Plymouth camp after a one-year dalliance with Ford, and was well on his way to another dominating season with wins at Rockingham, Savannah, North Wilkesboro, and Columbia. But on May 9 in the Rebel 400 at Darlington Raceway, NASCAR nearly lost its greatest star when his car struck the inside wall on the front stretch at high speed, flipping violently through the air multiple times before coming to rest upside down and directly in front of the grandstands. At that moment, 42,000 fans were certain they had seen the death of the sport’s biggest winner.

In this video, courtesy of NASCAR All Out, King Richard remembers that wild ride—the parts of it he can recall, anyway—joined by his cousin and crew chief Dale Inman, his wife, the late Lynda Petty, and colleague Ned Jarrett, who was teamed with Jim McKay in the ABC Sports television booth that day. Miraculously, the seven-time champ suffered mainly a dislocated left shoulder, and while he was sidelined for five races, he went on to win another 14 Grand National events that season. In NASCAR lore, it’s said the King’s wild ride at Darlington led to the development of the safety window net. Now watch this—video below.