The Spirit of Dale Earnhardt

The Nova has served our son faithfully during his high school years. His Nova became pretty well known in local circles. The vanity tags are 73CUSTM this spelled out the year and model of the Nova and the distinct rumble of the exhaust note let everyone in the neighborhood (including his mother) know exactly what time he was getting home every night.

The 73 Nova with the Dale Earnhardt 3 on the dashboard
pays homage to the late Dale Earnhardt.

The previous owner had affixed a Dale Earnhardt "3" to the dashboard and unlike Dale, our son had resisted stuffing it into a wall. I'd like to think the 3 reminded him to drive safely. Whether it was his safe driving or the spirit of Dale looking out for him, both my son and the Nova made it through his teen-age years without incident.