Sunday, July 21 was a dark day for Drag Racing. Paul Candies, one half of the legendary fuel team Candies & Hughes, died in the early morning hours. Paul, or "Mr. Paul" as he was affectionally known in his deep southern hometown of Des Allemandes, Louisiana, was many things to many people in the sport. Yes, he was a high profile and successful car owner whose team won NHRA championships in both Top Fuel and Funny Car, but Paul also did more behind the scenes than most people realize. He helped people achieve their own goals and dreams. I know first hand, as I was the recipient of some of Paul's goodwill. So were many others.

For as long as the Candies and Hughes team existed, Paul was the face, and really, the personality, behind the team. This, despite the fact that the team employed drivers such as Richard Tharp, who no doubt has one of the biggest personalities of anyone to ever put on a helmet, and of course partner and crew chief Leonard Hughes, who has a strong personality too, and let's just say a "competitive demeanor" that could easily have defined the C&H team. But it was Paul Candies and his easy going friendliness that really made the C&H team one which you wanted to be part of - or at the very least -  to just hang around. Back in the day, I hung around a lot, and as a result, I might have more images of the C&H team than of any other from my days as a photographer.

Sunday, July 21 was a dark day for Drag Racing. Paul Candies, one half of the legendary fuel team Candies & Hughes, died in the early morning hours. Paul, or "Mr. Paul" as he was affectionally known in his deep southern hometown of Des Allemandes, Louisiana, was many things to many people in the sport. Yes, he was a high profile and successful car owner whose team won NHRA championships in both Top Fuel and Funny Car, but Paul also did more behind the scenes than most people realize. He helped people achieve their own goals and dreams. I know first hand, as I was the recipient of some of Paul's goodwill. So were many others.

For as long as the Candies and Hughes team existed, Paul was the face, and really, the personality, behind the team. This, despite the fact that the team employed drivers such as Richard Tharp, who no doubt has one of the biggest personalities of anyone to ever put on a helmet, and of course partner and crew chief Leonard Hughes, who has a strong personality too, and let's just say a "competitive demeanor" that could easily have defined the C&H team. But it was Paul Candies and his easy going friendliness that really made the C&H team one which you wanted to be part of - or at the very least -  to just hang around. Back in the day, I hung around a lot, and as a result, I might have more images of the C&H team than of any other from my days as a photographer.

More than anything else, Paul has been described as a gentleman. In a sport where being a "gentleman" can almost be seen as a weakness, Paul Candies was just that, a true gentleman and someone who was able to balance  competitiveness and will to win, with being a gentleman. It is something not many are able to do as for most people simply being nice to others is the polar opposite of wanting to crush everyone at the race track. Maybe, if Paul had been a driver it would have been different. But I seriously doubt it.

Larry Dixon told me the other day that after every one of his wins, all 62 of them, he received a fax or text from Paul. That jogged my own memory, and indeed, after winning my first US Nationals in 1997, I had a congratulatory message from Paul myself. Because of the Smokin Joe's history, it really surprised me, and at the time, made a huge impression as to the type of class individual Paul Candies was. It meant a huge amount to me. I wonder how many others got the same treatment? If I had to guess, probably many. That is just how Paul was. Always doing something small or big for others, things that no doubt made them feel good. He did many things he did not have to do.

Back in 1992, Paul sold my fledging team a brand new, ultra light, super cool, unbelievably aerodynamic, and very expensive Ford Probe body. It had a mag wing and was just perfect. It was the most technically advanced and nicest piece of equipment we had (and had EVER had.) He gave us a huge deal - $7,000 for a body that probably cost more than $30k, even back then. We went to Dallas and on the first ever pass with it, we were on our way to running our best ever (about a 5.11 when Cruz had the national record at 5.07) when the left rear tire blew at half track for no reason, totally destroying the body, among lots of other stuff. I had paid Paul $1,000 and owed him $6,000 still. We had no money, and now more debt and a lot to fix. So time went by as did my original agreement with Paul. For about a year, he never said anything, other than hello, how are you , etc., until one day he walked over and casually asked me, "are you gonna ever pay me for that body?" I answered yes, but didn't offer when. And that was good enough for him. About 6 months later, I paid him and he said thanks and gave me a wink like he often did. Just a super cool guy.

Imagine how great the sport would be - or for that matter the entire world, if everyone had the traits of Paul Candies. Paul was one of those rare types of individuals who made all of those around him, even those who had just met him, feel really good. And it wasn't just sometimes -  like if he was in a good mood. It was all the time. All-the-time. We lost a great guy that Sunday morning.

Thanks Paul for all the memories, but more importantly, thanks for all good you did for so many.

These are a few of my special files of Mr. Paul. I hope you enjoying watching as much as I am in sharing.---Whit Bazemore

CAN'T GET ENOUGFH BAZEMORE FILES? - THE COMPLETE COLLECTION

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