With the inspired stroke of a paintbrush or pen, Kenny Youngblood can transform the visuals of drag racing into a lasting work of art. He has been doing it for 45 years. Now his artwork will blast down the dragstrip -- on T.J. Zizzo's PEAK/Herculiner Dragster.
 
Zizzo, who said he noticed Youngblood's distinctive handiwork on the walls of every manufacturing facility or racing shop he ever has visited, wanted to commemorate the lively artist's  body of work with a variety of Youngblood-replication  paint schemes.

 With the inspired stroke of a paintbrush or pen, Kenny Youngblood can transform the visuals of drag racing into a lasting work of art. He has been doing it for 45 years. Now his artwork will blast down the dragstrip -- on T.J. Zizzo's PEAK/Herculiner Dragster.
 
Zizzo, who said he noticed Youngblood's distinctive handiwork on the walls of every manufacturing facility or racing shop he ever has visited, wanted to commemorate the lively artist's  body of work with a variety of Youngblood-replication  paint schemes.
 
They'll ride on Zizzo's dragster this weekend and at the six other Full Throttle Drag Racing Series events the Lincolnshire, Ill., resident is scheduled to enter. All Zizzo Motorsports uniforms will carry the logo. Various decals will be added during the season to display some of Youngblood's favorite paintings.
 
"I'm speechless, which is rare," Youngblood said Thursday, just before the unveiling of the high-performance artist's easel and Zizzo's 3.870-second, 312.57-mph pass that landed him tentatively in the No. 7 qualifying position.
 
Said Zizzo to Youngbloood, "When I get strapped into that car today, I will be honored to have your insignia, your touch, everything you wanted to put into this riding on my car, riding in my heart."
 
"It's a dream come true for me, not only to have my art on one of these cars," Youngblood said, "not just at this event but all year -- but for it to be on this car. I'm just really honored. This is a great team, so that makes it all the better. They don't run all that much, man, but when this thing runs, it runs good. It qualifies well."
 
Youngblood is an artist, not a spy, and he couldn't keep part of the yet-to-be-unveiled first paint scheme secret Thursday.
 
"As soon as he told me about wanting to do this, I thought, 'Gee, how about if we took that dragster off the 'Beyond 300' painting [the one that celebrated Kenny Bernstein's classic speed milestone] taking off like a rocket and put it right up the nose of the car?' I'm just thrilled to be involved."
 
The idea took shape at last September's Mac Tools U.S. Nationals at Indianapolis, as Youngblood, Zizzo, and Old World Industries brand manager Brian Bohlander brainstormed about combining drag racing's nostalgia and new technology.
 
"TJ’s one of those guys, you meet him and you feel like you’ve known him for 10 years," Youngblood said.
 
Zizzo said, "It wasn't the artwork" that has compelled him to become friends with Youngblood but rather the wisdom from the drag-racing fixture. "Whether it's the stress-o-meter or about my marriage or my kids, I always learn something from kenny. And that has touched me personally."
 
Kevin McNeiley, a graphic artist with Old World Industries, has worked with Freelance Imaging in Indianapolis to take the artwork and turn it into a unique wrap dragster.
 
"This is one of the most exciting things we've done in drag racing," Bohlander said, "and we've been in this sport for a long time. We would like to thank T.J. for all he does and thank Kenny for being a part of this project."

 

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