Darlington Stripes through the years

Riding the high line around the tight turns of Darlington Raceway has been a time-honored custom. So has scrubbing the outside retaining wall as drivers push the limits of speed and control. As one of NASCAR's oldest tracks celebrates its 75th anniversary season, take a look at the tradition of the "Darlington Stripe" through the years.

Nelson Stacy's No. 29 Ford was the final winner of NASCAR Convertible Division races at Darlington, entering Victory Lane in May 1962. Along the way, Stacy's ragtop scraped the outside wall but kept going, taking the lead from Marvin Panch with one lap remaining.

Fred Lorenzen offers a smile alongside his battle-scarred No. 28 Holman-Moody Ford before an event at Darlington Raceway in the 1964 season. Lorenzen, a NASCAR Hall of Famer, prevailed in the springtime race at Darlington that year.

Contact with the wall is evident on Richard Petty's No. 43 Plymouth after some hard-nosed laps on the 1.366-mile track in the 1964 campaign.

Cale Yarborough's Banjo Matthews-owned No. 27 Ford goes across the scales before the 1965 Southern 500, already showing some right-side wear and tear. Yarborough's car ended up far worse in the race, careening over the guard rail after a Turn 1 tangle with Sam McQuagg.

The tradition of Darlington Stripes has continued into NASCAR's "modern era," with car numbers often bearing the right-side scuffs.

Clint Bowyer's No. 07 Chevrolet makes its way through the garage in 2008 after sustaining some scrapes.

Tony Stewart's No. 14 took the brunt of a classic Darlington Stripe in 2009.

Greg Biffle was twice a Cup Series winner at Darlington, but his No. 16 Ford was not immune to Darlington's cosmetic damage.

The green M&M is smiling on the side of one of Kyle Busch's former No. 18 rides, but an encounter with the wall had added some extra color to the bodywork.

The sponsor was different, but the appearance was somewhat similar for Kyle Busch's No. 18 in the 2010 season.

Jamie McMurray's No. 1 Chevy needs some right-side attention after a practice-day wall-glancing in 2010.

Joey Logano's No. 20 Toyota from 2010 found new markings after a meeting with the outside wall.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. clings to the high groove as he works his way through the Darlington Raceway corners in the No. 88 Chevrolet.

Even Earnhardt, though, has made an impression on the outside barrier, as his No. 88 discovered in the Darlington garage.

A 2015 brush with the outside wall during practice brought Austin Dillon's throwback No. 3 Chevy to the garage, where his RCR crew was waiting.

A tradition as old as the track itself, the Darlington Stripe endures.