September 13, 2002

Recently I had a conversation with Administrative Assistant for NASCAR public relations Susan Goodrich. This interview with the sanctioning body focused on car numbers in the Winston Cup series.

Car numbers and where they come from has been somewhat of a grey area for race fans. This is certainly not a secret subject with files being held in an undisclosed location but, as most things in NASCAR there is a need to know system in place. The rule book for Winston Cup covers most of this information but is not available to the general public.

Numbers were instituted in 1948 in an effort to distinguish between cars of similar makes and models. Early attempts at the numbering system were vague with cars displaying different sized numbers and even letters that accompanied the number itself.

In this day and age when a new Winston Cup team comes on board and ventures down to Daytona Beach to the NASCAR office they will apply for membership. Upon approval from the sanctioning body the new team will pay a fee of nearly $ 600. This payment will allow the team’s owner to pick a number for the subject car from a pool of available numbers.

The numbering system for NASCAR starts at zero and goes to nearly three hundred. You will notice that I say nearly because that direct information is somewhat specific to the license that this reporter did not purchase (didn’t want me in) at the time of this interview.

We have noticed on road courses for example that a driver whom is not a regular in the series will be entered with a three digit number into the lineup. I posed the question about why we see a three digit number on the entry list but not on the car when it races. Susan Goodrich whom was great (tolerated me) by the way said “because of possible confusion on the track they will use only two of the three numbers and, the displayed numbers will be based upon other race participants that may have similar numbers for that event”

We were also curious as to the use of letters with any combination of numbers as to what we have witnessed in the past. A good example, 300A (Carl Keikhaefer entry). It was stated that NASCAR in the pre modern era did have letters in combination with numbers but stopped that practice. I think that issue boils itself down to possible confusion for the proper scoring of the event.

After close examination of the facts it was discovered that there are twenty numbers that have never won a Winston Cup race. Those numbers are:
35, 36, 39, 50, 57, 61, 63, 65, 67, 68, 69, 70, 74, 76, 79, 82, 84, 93, 94, 95.

Not even my good looks was enough to privy me to knowing what car numbers are available at this time. We were able to find that there are no numbers such as the No. 13 that have been removed from any availability list. That thought came up after knowing of buildings that don’t really have a thirteenth floor listed in there elevator. So as best we can tell superstition does not play into the NASCAR plan for available car numbers.

Another thought that came to mind during the interview was the issue of who owns the rights to these numbers. The team owner whom has been granted membership in NASCAR owns the rights to how the number itself appears. For example, when you see the No.3 or its likeness on a scaled model of Dale Earnhardt's car it is the design of the number itself that RCR owns. NASCAR owns the actual number but not the designed logo thereof. That has confused some race fans in the past because when you read the fine print on the box you will see that it says “the likeness of the stylized No. 3 design are trademarks of Richard Childress Racing Enterprises Inc. and are used under license. It almost makes you believe that RCR owns the number but that is not the case.

An issue that came up recently was the idea that Richard Childress gave the No. 3 to Dale Earnhardt Inc. This could not be the case given the knowledge that NASCAR owns the number itself. RCR could not give the number or even sell the number to anyone. If there was a deal worked out in regard to the likeness of the number or the rights thereof, we are not in the loop to have that information.

Car numbers do have restrictions on how they must appear.

The numbers on the side of the car must be 21 inches in height and have clean and even edges. Displayed numbers on the roof of the car must be 31 inches in height with the bottom of the number being located toward the driver’s side of the car. This location of the roof number is to enable the number to be easily recognized from the infield area of the track for scoring purposes.

There has never been a car number in NASCAR that has been retired or discontinued. This issue came up upon the passing of the seven time Winston Cup champion Dale Earnhardt. I personally am not ready to see the No. 3 on the track given the history involved and, the larger than life presence that “The Man” represented. Perhaps one day there will come a man that is worthy of this number but I can’t see that happening any time soon.

Although Dale Earnhardt made the No. 3 famous, Dick Rathmann was the first driver to win with that number. Rathmann won three times in 1954 and finished fourth in the points that year behind the Grand National Champion Lee Petty.

Well fans we hope that we were able to clear up issues that you may have had about where numbers come from. It’s not a big secret by any means but can be confusing to say the least. Like anything in NASCAR not all the information is made public. I don’t know that all the information needed to be made available to me as a reporter to get to the bottom of this issue. I walked away from the interview with a better understanding and felt like NASCAR was very helpful in their attempt at explaining the numbers game.

You can contact Joe at: Insider Racing News