Remember that Budweiser commercial from a few years back? The one where Dale Earnhardt, Jr. announces he’ll be changing his digits from No. 8 to No. 6.7?
It was an amusing 30-second spot — one in a long line of Anheuser-Busch’s partnership with the most famous name in NASCAR. Earnhardt, sporting a slick-looking sport coat, rolls up to the podium blinded by flashing cameras to let the world know that no longer will he be driving the No. 8 — the number he made and still makes famous in his days driving for Dale Earnhardt, Inc.
“I’m here to tell you,” Earnhardt says, “that I’m changing my number from 8 to 6.7.”
What followed was a plague-like panic. One man had been grooming his front-yard hedges to display his proud support of the No. 8 to the neighborhood, only to become distraught when his wife storms out of the house to declare that Junior is changing the number. In TV land, it was that big of a deal, and the commercial winds down with a young fellow sucking it up in the middle stages of an Earnhardt tattoo.
There the painfully placed ink was — 6.7, in bold red-and-black numbering and right between his shoulder blades. Then Earnhardt admitted he was just kidding and there’d be no No. 6.7. Ouch!
Funny? Sure. But it’s a real-life situation for the Dale Earnhardt, Jr. fans that are dedicated enough to permanently brand themselves with Bud and the No. 8.
We all know how these folks operate. Look in the grandstands at any Nextel Cup Series race, and there is an easily noticeable hint of red. When Earnhardt’s Budweiser Chevy takes the lead, it’s one of the few times you can actually hear the roar of the crowd over the roar of the engines. And when he wins — oh, boy, does the Budweiser ever begin flowing.
In real life, Earnhardt made a similar announcement in May. He made it official that he’ll be leaving Dale Earnhardt, Inc. — the multi-car organization founded by his late father — for rival Hendrick Motorsports at the end of the season. And because Teresa Earnhardt and DEI own the rights to the No. 8, Earnhardt, his car and all of the accompanying marketing and merchandise tools will not carry that number. Budweiser is out, too.
It’s a defining moment for Earnhardt fans. Bail on Bud and the No. 8? That, to some fans, means you’re bailing on DEI. Or stick with Junior, regardless of what number his car carries or what likeness is on the hood?
It’s not that easy of a call. Earnhardt defected from his dad’s place to the evil empire. Some fans of the No. 3 won’t forget that. Hendrick Motorsports, after all, fields cars for Jeff Gordon. Gordon evolved into the elder Earnhardt’s biggest rival — billed as the baby-faced Wonder Boy against the scruffy, open-faced helmet-wearing veteran with black goggles called the Intimidator.
Now an Earnhardt is Gordon’s teammate? It can’t be — but it is.
They will, of course, stick with Junior, and he’s sticking with some of them — permanently.
Several calls to tattoo parlors in the Charlotte, N.C., area revealed just what the Earnhardt name really means to some people. A profile of Earnhardt was pen and inked onto a man’s back, as was the Budweiser Chevy onto another man’s shoulder. Roll up the sleeves on another dude, and there’s a No. 3 on the right arm and a No. 8 on the left. And there is always the low-profile, non-descript No. 8 tucked away on a young woman’s ankle or small of the back.
Fans buy Earnhardt’s merchandise because it has his name on it. They drink Budweiser because he does. They drive a Chevrolet because he does. And, yes, they’ve tattooed themselves because Earnhardt, in some eyes, is a god.
These decisions, while maybe spontaneous, are made with the Junior Nation at heart. You’re either for or against, and a little body artwork won’t get in the way.
There’s always the alternative. Just pony up a couple grand to get rid of it through cosmetic surgery. Maybe you’ve watched “Nip/Tuck”?
With Earnhardt fans, however, that’s doubtful.