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There was a young boy growing up in Indiana whose uncle taught him how to freshwater fish. However, when he and his mother later moved to Palm Beach County, Fla., he was drawn to saltwater fishing.
He loved it so much that he became a fixture at the old Boynton Docks. He cleaned boats, cleaned fish and became a mate on charters, which ultimately led him to a captaining private sportfishing boats. His crowning achievement was being the captain of NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt’s boat The Intimidator, a 50-foot Hatteras, on trips to the Bahamas.
Not many people’s personal passion evolves into their working career. After retiring from the water, a new passion surfaced that still involving fishing – creating a premier collection of antique fishing lures and reels, for which he won awards.
He also had the love of a wonderful wife, Tree, for 48 years, two children, four grandchildren, five great-grandchildren and two fur babies of the cat variety.
He was Capt. Jim Duncan, who lived life on his own terms for 84 years until it came to a peaceful end on Christmas Eve in Jupiter, Fla. He also happens to be my wife’s dad, and a man I’m proud to know.
At only 16 years old, his mom, Alice Duncan, signed the paperwork so Jim could withdraw from high school. The principal wished him well and even told him he was making the right choice. She was waiting in the car and immediately drove him down to the docks, where he became a fixture for many moons.
After Earnhardt died on Feb. 18, 2001, at age 49 from a skull fracture sustained during a tragic last-lap crash at the Daytona 500, I called the captain to write about the time he spent with the man who was synonymous with the No. 3.
“This is something I’ll never get over,” Jim told me then for a column published in the Lake City (Fla.) Reporter and several other newspapers in The New York Times Co. Never a man to show much emotion, he nevertheless said, “I’m on the verge of tears right now.
“Once when the women were away, Dale said, ‘We’re just guys here. There are no celebrities around, no captains, no mates.’ So we kicked off our shoes, made ourselves a drink and had a good time.”
When he wasn’t turning left, Earnhardt loved to fish. They spent 30 days in the Bahamas in places like Chubba Cay, mostly fishing but also diving and doing a little bit of everything – except driving and talking about it. This was down time.
Jim said there was no air of pretentiousness around Earnhardt. He was a multimillionaire and the first NASCAR driver on a box of Wheaties, but he never acted like he was above anyone else.
The captain’s legend will also live on thanks to Martha Earnhardt and Carol Gordon Bickford, who teamed up in 2009 to write Pit Stop in a Southern Kitchen: Two Moms of Racing Legends Serve Up Stories & Recipes. Martha said one of the foods Dale learned to make was “Jimmy Duncan’s Famous Fish Soup,” which is included in the book.
With his salty hair, sun-stained skin and sharp tongue, Jim was the walking definition of a prototypical boat captain. There will be far fewer stories to tell without him here to share them. Sail on.
David Brown is publisher of the Cherokee Scout. Call him at 828-837-5122 or email dbrown@cherokeescout.com.