About the time that Steve Wozniak and buddy Steve Jobs were messin' around in the garage with circuit boards and other electrical widgets, Bill Gates dropped out of Harvard to pursue the same interest. Woz and Jobs ultimately created the "Apple" and Gates' made "Microsoft" a household term. Chances are neither group ever realized their creative efforts, the 'personal' computer, would forever change the face of stock car racing. Literally. It would not be overnight, but the die was cast and change was inevitable.There was a time, when the Carolina coast was not a destination location. Golf courses and their condo-dwelling-commandos were unknown. Sub-divisions, zoning laws, noise ordinances and 9-1-1 ambulances (for lawyers to chase) were all blissful decades away. Oysters, sand dunes, and fishing piers were not threatened and nobody had a key to their own house. It was so long ago that public schools got out for the Christmas holidays.Into this utopian society came the weekly operating dirt track. They could even run on Sunday, and many did, and they could make all the noise they could muster, and nobody complained, and they were plentiful...........the antebellum community of Charleston, SC even boasted a handful, as did the Myrlte Beach- Grand Strand area. Tar Heel coastal venues of Wilmington, Jacksonville, and Morehead City were equally endowed.In the beginning, very few racers invested any funds for sineage. Nope, lots of cars were numbered 1 and 11 and 7 and 17 and 4, 14, and 44.............that's right, all such numbers were pretty much "straight" and could "easily" be painted under the shade tree with whatever paint AND brush happened to be available. Although, I've seen more than one "4" painted backwards. Sometimes, brave and talented backyard artist would venture into "curved" numbers like "0" or "8" but the block motiff was frequently employed, as was masking and duct tape.As the 1950's became the '60's and post war boom continued to blossom, pride in appearance became a greater concern for the Saturday night racer. Cars were routinely spray painted a bright color, and the sign painter was the last man to be called to the project. When the sign painter came, the TRACK was the next stop. By the late '60's, the sign painters had begun to take notice of this round-track-cottage industry. It was perpetual business..........these guys wrecked their cars EVERY week! Repairng was a necessity, but sometimes, repainting and re-lettering were part of the process.By the late 1960's, the really cool sign painters had begun to sign or autograph their work. "P.Hannah" , for Phil Hannah of Hemingway, SC was one of note, as was Hope Willard of "Willard Signs" but the most revered and talented of the coastal Carolina race-car artists was the myterious "Lucky of Texas". Lucky was from the Charleston area, and although I never saw or met him, in person, I could recognize his work anywhere and on anything.........I "knew" Lucky by his handiwork.Flowing, curving numbers, and script with shadowing..........."i's" were always dotted by a 5-pointed star, and most phrases were bracketed by tasteful pin-stripes. Lucky's car numbers were BIG and bold and could easily be seen on the track. Once, in about 1970, Lucky had lettered Charlie Powell's late model chevelle. The quarter panels were emblazoned with "CT Powell & Son Const. Co." but each front fender had "McCarter's Union 76 Service" and the "Union 76" was painted just like the logo! Such artistry was light years ahead of the curve....... but such was Lucky of Texas. I recall walking around and around the white #22 chevelle with the incredible blue on blue lettering, and deciding right then and there that I WANTED to be a sign painter when I grew up. On each side of the car was the famillar "Lucky of Texas" signature and in those days, Lucky would include the date.............1969.As a real-life backyard sign painter, I was never in the same time zone as "Lucky". Fortunately, and, definitely in my favor, I didn't become a sign painter. By the early '90's, the world of the keyboard artist and their computer generated "vinly" signs was unleashed. Talent was minimized and glitzly perfect letters in any font were (and are) the rage. A hand-lettered race car is as rare as hen's teeth.Unexpectantly, in the late '90's, my pulse quickened as I spied a "yellow" cab in Charleston, SC with the unmistakeable stars, pinstripes and fonts...........sure enough there was the signature.............. but it was simply "Lucky". No date and no "of Texas". I tried a search for Lucky and never found much, but someone said they thought he had spent his last days living in an old station wagon. The trail ran cold. But, truth be told, the era was already over, and not likely to ever return...........I was searching for a childhood memory............................but there was a time........