LES DUELLMAN HAS A WARDROBE DECISION TO MAKE.
It is August 3, 2019. A Saturday morning.
Standing in front of a packed house at St Mary's Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Fountain City, Wisconsin, Les glances at his father's casket and knows this isn't right. “Dad, I know you're not a suit and tie kind of guy …” the oldest of Elmer and Bernadette Duellman's six children starts.
Then stops.
“Just a moment,” Les says, before walking off to the privacy of the church sacristy. A eulogy with suspense begins to unfold.
The day before, at his father's wake held – naturally – at Elmer's Auto & Toy Museum, crowds of friends and family brought their cars and memories to celebrate Elmer Duellman's life. How many people showed up? No one's sure, but the family received guests for about nine hours while Lakeview Drive-In served around 900 root beer floats, Elmer's favorite treat.
But now, in the Immaculate Conception sacristy, alone with his thoughts and plan, Les takes off his suit jacket and puts on his blue, white and black “Dirt Duelers Chassis” racing jacket, the one emblazoned with sponsor names and flames. He walks back
