Thanksgiving has passed, holiday music and decorations are abound, and the 2021 Paint Scheme Leaderboard is here! Here’s how the process works. I will rank all of the Cup Series teams by their paint scheme GPA. I will rank them by manufacturer, then all of them in one final list. There is no committee this year, as Zoe chose to skip the proceedings. Here is the Chevy list:
Well, it’s that time again! We have the annual Paint Schemie Awards for the 2021 season. As per the usual, every year, I pick the best and worst paint schemes and award them the Paint Schemie. This was done using the Driver Suit Blog executive committee for paint scheme analysis and consists of me and Driver Suit Blog assistant, my cat Zoe, and uses the following standards:
*Color Scheme:How the colors look, and how they work with each other.
*Overall Design:How good the design itself looks, is there too much, or not enough.
*Primary Sponsor Logos: How the primary sponsor logos look on the car
*Originality: How original is the scheme.
All of the above can work for or against a scheme, and all will be taken into consideration.
Let’s get the bad Paint Scheme Awards out of the way…
First, the Paint Schemie Award for Worst Regular Season Single Paint Scheme.
The next Paint Schemie Award is for Exhibition or Throwback Paint Schemes. This category is a little different, as the Schemie will go to the best and worst throwback. For this category, all exhibition race and throwback paint schemes qualify automatically.
The 2021 Paint Schemie Award for Worst Exhibition or Throwback Paint Scheme goes to…
The next award of 2021 is the Paint Schemie for Worst Paint Scheme Set of 2021. This is based on the total GPA of the individual grades for paint schemes. The nominees are:
The next category is Paint Schemie Award is for Best Exhibition or Throwback Paint Schemes, and it should come as no surprise that the competition was strong this year.
The final award of 2021 is the Paint Schemie for Best Paint Scheme Set. Like the Worst Set, this is based on the total GPA of the individual grades for paint schemes. The nominees are:
This is kind of an odd moment for me. I’m sad and excited at the same time. When I wrote a column for Uni-Watch back in 2013, I never thought I would end up creating The Driver Suit Blog. I never thought I would be able to keep this project going for eight years. I never thought I would be able to interview Funny Car drivers Jack Beckman, Cruz Pedregon, Alexis DeJoria, and Del Worsham. I also never thought that this would be the last traditional Friday Feature column I would ever do. For the last few years, I’ve been thinking of ending The Driver Suit Blog, and I always find a way to save it. Starting next year, Friday Features will be replaced with Driver Suit Blog Radio, a podcast. Everything is ready to go, and I will start on the first Friday of January. With that, on to the column.
It can be said that a lot of drivers who had success in the Xfinity and Truck Series, didn’t have that same success in the Cup Series. One such example is Robert Pressley. While he only had 5 top 5’s and 11 top 10’s in the Cup Series in 205 races between 1995 and 2002, his Xfinity and Truck careers are different. In the Xfinity Series, he has 10 wins, 38 top 5’s, 76 top 10’s, and 6 poles in 244 starts. In the Truck Series, he has 2 wins, 11 top 5’s and 27 top 10’s in 69 starts.
From 2002 to 2005, Robert Pressley raced in the Truck Series. During that time, while raced for Bobby Hamilton in 2002, and James Harris from 2003-2005. During that time, he was constantly sponsored by Harris Trucking. As mentioned before, he has 2 wins, 11 top 5’s and 27 top 10’s in 69 starts. He raced in this Simpson firesuit at some point during that time. The suit doesn’t really show any use.The black collar is unadorned, and doesn’t have any closures.The cowl has a standard Simpson warranty label.The right chest features a NASCAR CRAFTSMAN TRUCK SERIES logo and a DUCK HEAD FOOTWEAR logos embroidered.The left chest features HARRIS TRUCKING, MOOG CHASSIS PARTS, and STARLINE logos embroidered, and a SIMPSON patch sewn into it.The red front torso is unadorned.The red belt has ROBERT PRESSLEY embroidered in white.The red legs are boot cut, and have black vertical stripes.The black shoulder epaulets have GOODYEAR embroidered in white.The right sleeve has a HARRIS TRUCKING logo on the upper sleeve, and an SFI 3-2/A 5 certification patch, and a SIMPSON logo sewn into the end of the sleeve..The left sleeve has a SIMPSON logo and a HARRIS TRUCKING logo embroidered, and nothing at the end.The back of the suit doesn’t have any wear.The back of the neck is unadorned.There is an additional set of fabric on the belt area of the back of the suit.I still can’t believe that this is my final traditional Friday Feature. I’m sad, but excited for the future as well. I will do the traditional Paint Scheme Awards and Rankings starting in two weeks.
Sometimes in life, you have to part with something. Very rarely does it ever come back. This Stevie Reeves 1997 suit was one such example. I had to sell some of my stuff for reasons not worth getting into. Then, recently, as I browsed through eBay listings, I saw this suit, and was able to buy it back. I never actually featured this on The Driver Suit Blog before.
While his career as a spotter is his current occupation, having spotted for Paul Menard, Jimmie Johnson, Ryan Preece, Christopher Bell, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. during his 2004 Daytona 500 win, Stevie Reeves was also a driver. He raced a few races in Indycar, namely the 1998 VisionAire 500K at Charlotte, where he scored a top 10, and the 2000 Midas 500 Classic, Belterra Resort Indy 300, and Excite 500 at Alanta, Kentucky, and Texas, respectively.
1997 was his standout year in the Xfinity Series. That season, he raced in the #96 Big A Auto Parts Ford Thunderbird for Donald Laird. In 1997, he raced in 28 of the 30 races, and even scored a top 10 at the 1997 Food City 250, where he finished 7th. The rest of the season was rather unremarkable. During that season, he wore this Simpson firesuit. The suit shows light wear.The dual colored collar does not have a Velcro strap, and while there is a FORD logo embroidered on the left side, the right side is unadorned.There is a Simpson warranty label sewn into the cowl.On the right chest, there is a NASCAR logo embroidered, and two SIMPSON patches sewn into it. This suit was from an era where the placement of logos was just started to be enforced, so this was one suit that didn’t have proper logo placement.The left chest features a YOUR LIFE VITAMINS logo, and a BUSCH logo embroidered into the red material.The front torso features a large BIG A AUTO PARTS logo embroidered.The suit has a blue and red belt with STEVIE REEVES embroidered in white.The legs are in red and blue material with a white stripe up the side. There was clearly a lot of effort put in this suit.The right shoulder epaulet is blue on white with GOODYEAR embroidered.
The right sleeve has white, blue, and red material. There is a CURB RECORDS logo embroidered on the upper white material, and there is nothing in television position.The left shoulder epaulet is blue on red with GOODYEAR embroidered.The left sleeve has blue, and red material. There is a SIMPSON patch sewn on the upper red material, and there is nothing in television position, and a red cuff.The back of the suit doesn’t show wear.While the back of the neck is unadorned, just below it is FUTURE SUIT 2 1943 embroidered in white. What exactly “Future Suit” means is still unclear, though it might be an inventory code.The back torso features a large BIG A AUTO PARTS logo embroidered.Next week, on the final traditional Friday Feature, I will discuss a Robert Pressley driver suit.
Some race car drivers stand the test of time and are respected until the end of time. Some drivers have a small impact, but aren’t as well-known. Some drivers race for a few years, and have no real impact outside of a small area. Tom Eastham is in the third category.
Finding information on Tom Eastham as a driver is very difficult. He’s not listed on Racing Reference at all, and his Driver DB profile only lists two races. Through the fine folks at Ultimate Racing History, I was able to find a profile with quite a few races. From this, I can deduce the following:
Tom Eastham was a driver who was active from 1979 to 1982 in the SCCA and IMSA. He primarily raced a Chevy Camaro on the West Coast of America and Canada. He did not really do much with his career, and has faded into obscurity since. During his career, he raced in this vintage Hinchman suit. The suit shows its age, and has a decent amount of wear.The collar has a Velcro closure, and there is a small wash tag in the cowl.The right chest features a CRC Chemicals Trans-Am Championship patch, which dates the suit to 1980 to 1982.The left chest features TOM EASHTAM sewn into the chest in chain-stitching. There is evidence of two patches that have been removed from the suit present.The front torso features a yellow and blue striped design on the cream Nomex.There is an unadorned belt present on the suit.The legs have blue stripes on the cream Nomex, and they have standard cuffs.The shoulders have blue stripes on the yellow Nomex.The right sleeve has a blue stripe and a HINCHMAN NOMEX logo sewn into it.The left sleeve has a blue stripe sewn into it.The back of the suit shows some wear on the fabric.The back of the neck is unadorned though there are some light stains.The back of the torso shows some wear in scuffs.Next Friday Feature, a NASCAR driver suit!
Bob Tasca III has been around racing his whole life. He started racing at 16, and eventually worked his way into Top Fuel Funny Car. According to his website: “In March of 2007 Bob Tasca III broke the world record, recording the quickest pass in Alcohol Funny Car history at 5.451 at 263MPH! Tasca also holds one of the quickest passes in Fuel Funny Car at 3.855 at St. Louis and 335.32 MPH at Reading, PA in 2019, and is the first Ford Driver to break the Three Second Barrier!” He helped bring Ford back to the NHRA in 2019.
Each category of auto racing has its own unique rules and safety equipment. This is especially true in the Top Fuel Funny Car category of drag racing. Driver visibility is limited, and both the engine are located in front of the driver. As such, the NHRA has mandated boot covers or “over-boots” for drivers. This example is a pair of over-boots worn by Bob Tasca circa 2011. The over boots show some wear, close to the sole.
The right boot has been signed by Bob Tasca with the inscription “BOB TASCA 405 315 MPH.
The top center of the right boot has an IMPACT patch sewn on to it.
The inside of the right boot has an IMPACT warranty label, with a date of manufacture of 01-28-11.
There is also an SFI 3.3/20 BOOT patch sewn into the inside.
The inside of the right boot shows some wear towards the bottom.
The left boot has also been signed by Bob Tasca with the inscription “BOB TASCA 405 315 MPH.
The top center of the left boot has an IMPACT patch sewn on to it.
The inside of the left boot has an IMPACT warranty label, with a date of manufacture of 01-28-11.
There is also an SFI 3.3/20 BOOT patch sewn into the inside.
The inside of the left boot shows some wear towards the bottom.
For this week’s Friday Feature, I’m going to do a test video of Driver Suit Blog Radio. This is a work in progress, but this will be how things will more than likely work. Without further ado…
Just a quick one this week. Sometimes, I come across an item from a racing team I’ve never heard of. This makes research a little difficult, but I’m usually able to work around this. In this case, things are much different. This is a jacket from a team called “Baker Motorsports” that raced in the NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour. There are so many race teams with Baker in the name, and most of them race modifieds, so figuring out specifics is very difficult here, so I can’t say where and when this was worn. What I can say that this is a Leaf Racewear jacket, which has some minor wear, and an SFI rating of 1. We will go from there.
The collar has a Velcro strap, with a LEAF RACEWEAR logo sewn into it. There is a tag sewn into the cowl.
The right chest features a NASCAR WHELEN SOUTHERN MODIFIED SERIES logo embroidered.
The left chest features BAKER MOTORSPORTS embroidered.
The front torso features a blue stripe across. No sponsor logos are present.
The shoulders have black unadorned epaulets.
The right sleeve has a LEAF RACEWEAR patch sewn into it. There are no logos in television position.
The left sleeve has an SFI 3.5A/1patch and a LEAF RACEWEAR patch sewn into it. There are no logos in television position.
The back is unadorned, and shows some light wear.
The back of the neck is unadorned.
The back torso is unadorned.
With that done, let’s do some…
TAILGATING TIME!
Fried chicken tenders are a good idea for watching racing. Beer battered chicken is better. So, I present to you:
Easy Beer Battered Chicken
Ingredients:
*3/4 cup all-purpose flour
*1 12 ounce bottle of beer, ales are preferred.
Directions
1-Heat oil in pan
2-Combine flour and beer in a large bowl, whisking constantly until smooth.
3-Dip chicken pieces in batter, and allow excess to drip back into bowl and drop directly into oil
4-Fry chicken pieces for 3 minutes or until dark golden brown, then remove and drain on paper towels.
5-Serve with sauces of choice.
Next week, some vintage Burger King NASCAR toys with an unusual backstory…IN PODCAST FORM!
From 2002 to 2020, the top series in the NHRA was sponsored by The Coca Cola company. Coca Cola took over the NHRA sponsorship from Winston in 2002, calling it the NHRA Powerade Drag Racing Series. This lasted until 2008, when Full Throttle took over the sponsorship, becoming the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series. This lasted until 2013 when Mello Yello took over, and the series became The NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. This lasted until midway through the 2020 season, when Coca Cola announced they were terminating the sponsorship, and Camping World took over, thus becoming the Camping World Drag Racing Series, which it still has today.
Like any racing series, The NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series issued caps to drivers. The color of the caps was directly in line with when they were issued. Green was issued to #1 Qualifiers. Yellow was issued to event winners. White was issued to season champions. Other colors were issued as interview hats or race officials. We will look at the history of the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series caps, starting in 2013, and ending in 2020.
We will start with 2013, the first year of the Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. This yellow winner’s cap has been signed by all members of Don Schumacher Racing. The front has the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series logo, and 2013 embroidered on the bill. There is a Funny Car Winner patch on the left side, a hold over from the Full Throttle Days. The back has an NHRA logo embroidered, and normally the location of the track is embroidered in black on the Velcro strap. Finally, the right side of the cap is blank. The underside of the bill is plain too.
2014 saw some minor changes. It’s basically the same design, with a few differences. First, the black font on the brim has been replaced by white with black outlines. The phrase Go On Yello has been added to the under side of the bill, and the right side of the cap in the same font as 2014. Finally, the holes and squatchee have changed color from the color of the cap to black. This Shane Gray #1 Pro Stock is one example. The #1 Qualifier logo replaces the winner patch on the sides.
This yellow winner hat was issued to one member of Erica Enders’ crew after a win. This hat could have been worn at both Las Vegas, Houston, Bristol, Norwalk, Indianapolis, and the finals at Ponoma.
Erica would go on to win the 2014 Pro Stock Championship, and one of her crew was issued this white NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Championship cap. The cap has some changes to the formula, with the year and the side GO ON YELLO logos are in black. Erica was kind enough to autograph the cap at the Route 66 Nationals.
2015 would see some slight changes. The white with black outline font has been replaced with yellow with black outline font, as has the lettering on the Velcro strap. I think this is a better look. I got the hat autographed by a bunch of drivers over the years. This was won by Tony Schumacher at Bristol.
In 2015 the NHRA officials wore a different cap, which is a different shade of green. The left side patch has been replaced by OFFICIALS, and the under bill design has been removed.
2016 brought a lot of changes. Mello Yello got a major rebranding, and the series got a new logo, which I think was a major downgrade. The caps got changes as well. The new logo is on the front. The yellow font has changed a bit, and on the qualifier caps, the #1 has moved to the right side. Also on the qualifier caps, the category has moved to the back. This Shane Gray hat from Chicago is an example.
Ron Capps won the 2016 Funny Car Championship. The Championship cap is same as the winner caps, with black replacing yellow lettering. Ron was kind enough to autograph this for me at Route 66 a few years ago.
2017 saw very little change from 2016. This interview cap was given to drivers at the top end for interviews on television. It should be noted that after the rebrand, the only color cap issued to drivers was black. Prior, gray and orange caps were also issued.
2018 saw the second rebrand, with a new, and much better NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series logo. There weren’t many other changes. This is an officials hat, which has an NHRA SALUTES FIRST RESPONDERS logo embroidered, and OFFICIALS on the right side in yellow lettering. There is also an NHRA logo printed on the underside of the brim.
2019 caps remain largely unchanged from 2018. This Ron Capps winner hat from Brainered is an example. It should also be noted that with all the changes made to these caps over the years, the category patch has remained largely unchanged. Capps signed this hat prior to my purchasing.
2020 would be the last year of the Mello Yellow Drag Racing Series brand. As a result of world health events, Coca Cola canceled a number of products due to low demand, and canceled some sponsorships, including the NHRA. This led to a lawsuit, and Camping World took over the sponsorship of the series. The 2020 caps feature an odd change. They remain largely unchanged from 2019, with the exception of a black outline on the front of the bill. The year logo has changed as well. This #1 Qualifier cap was issued to Terry McMillian for qualifying #1 at the third Indianapolis race. This is how the Mello Yello story ends. Not with a bang, but with a whimper.
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