Driver brings European fashion sense to NASCAR

Scott Speed breaks the mold of your typical NASCAR driver.

Not too many drivers in the Sprint Cup Series have dyed their hair, worn a mohawk or love getting their toenails painted.

SOUTHERN 500 SPECIAL EDITION

Make sure you pick up a copy of the Morning News on Thursday. Inside you’ll find the 2009 Southern 500 preview pullout featuring everything you need to know on race day.
This year, they take a special look at the hobbies that keep drivers busy when they aren’t behind the wheel. All week, we’ll be publishing those stories online here at scnow.com.

MONDAY: Mark Martin, fitness fanatic
TUESDAY: Scott Speed, fashion guru and remote control car enthusiast
WEDNESDAY: Marcos Ambrose pans for gold
THURSDAY: Sam Hornish brings vintage cars back to life

In addition, this special edition will have recaps of past races, facts, figures, and more drivers and their hobbies - it's coverage of the Southern 500 you can only find Thursday in the Morning News.

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But that’s what might separate the 23-year-old rookie driving the No. 82 Toyota for Team Red Bull from the other guys in the garage area.

“I go through different phases,” Speed said. “I’ll go from punk-rockish. I dyed my hair white at the beginning of the year. I like making an image my own and, when I get bored with it, I change it up.”

Speed also has an eye and passion for the fashion industry. One of his heroes is Tom Ford, a head fashion designer for Gucci.

Speed’s love of fashion comes from his days in Europe on the Formula One series, where he spent two seasons before making the jump to stock cars last year. He said when he went to Europe, he didn’t care what clothes he wore, much less if they matched.

But that all changed, and having good fashion sense has become one of Speed’s top interests away from the track.

“It’s fun to match clothes and wear different things. I love dressing up and wearing suits. I guess that’s where my feminine side comes out,” Speed said with a chuckle.

Speed said he wouldn’t mind starting a clothing line someday and got a taste of that last year before the fall race at Phoenix.
Speed teamed up with the Muze Clothing Co. and designed a “Muffin Man” T-shirt, which depicted a muffin man baker. Proceeds from sales of the shirt went to benefit the Southwest chapter of Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America, a disease Speed suffers from.

Speed has ulcerative colitis, an inflammatory bowel disease that affects young adults.

“Muze wanted someone with a fashion background so I thought I would be a candidate for it,” Speed said. “I was pretty hands on with the design of it and it was pretty good to see it come to life.”

Speed’s latest project involves designing logos and shirts for he and Kyle Busch’s remote control car team called “Team BS,” which stands for Busch-Speed. The team’s motto is, “All BS, all the time.”

The duo got the team started a couple weeks before the race at Martinsville this year and race usually at a track near a mall in the Charlotte area.

“Everyone I know loves RC cars and is getting into them,” Speed said. “It’s been fun to see everything come together. Kyle is great at getting the cars ready and built the whole kit from scratch. I’m good for the fashion stuff and help out that way.”

Speed says his variety of interests don’t get in the way of his racing pursuit but give him a sense of normalcy in life away from the track.

“Everyone has stuff they like and they work on away from racing,” he said.

“It’s a good balance you need to have.”