Ask anyone who knows who Dale Earnhardt is the first thing they think of when they hear his name, and they’re likely to say a black No. 3 Chevrolet.
The seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and Hall of Famer who was always aggressive on the racetrack became even more intimidating to his competition when his Richard Childress Racing automobiles were painted black and carried the Goodwrench colors.
But in 2000, NASCAR’s “Man in Black” became quite colorful for a weekend thanks to renowned artist Peter Max, who died Monday at age 88.
Beginning in 1995, Earnhardt ran special paint schemes for NASCAR’s All-Star Race, then dubbed “The Winston.” Those schemes became iconic in their own right: from the silver Goodwrench livery in 1995, a red, white and blue car commemorating the Atlanta Olympics in 1996, an orange car sponsored by Wheaties in 1997, a gold Bass Pro Shops car in 1998 and a yellow and blue Wrangler-sponsored car in 1999, a throwback to the early days of Earnhardt’s career.
But none of those schemes remain as etched in fans’ minds as the car Earnhardt drove in both the 2000 edition of The Winston and the Coca-Cola 600.
Peter Max designed Dale Earnhardt’s most unique paint scheme
Max designed the paint scheme “to look as if it was driven through the waterfall of the Max color spectrum,” according to DaleEarnhardt.net. It certainly caught the eye of everyone in the garage who were used to seeing Earnhardt pilot a much less colorful vehicle — though notably, Earnhardt’s first race car was bright pink.
“This is by far the most unique paint scheme we’ve done to date,” Earnhardt said of the car. “Peter Max has created some unique artwork over the years. I’m looking forward to driving one of his creations to Victory Lane.”