It might come as a surprise to many NASCAR fans that Kyle Busch, a two-time Cup Series champion started out selling RC cars as his first job instead of wheeling actual racecars on track around the country at breakneck speeds. Often regarded as a prodigy during his early introduction to the sport, Busch has now cemented himself as one of the greatest drivers in the sport.
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However, despite his achievements in NASCAR, the Las Vegas native’s first paycheck came from humble beginnings. Elaborating in an interview from 2015, the now Richard Childress Racing driver said, “My first paycheck came from HobbyTown USA in Las Vegas. They had like planes and trains and RC cars, things like that.”
HobbyTown is a retail store chain that specializes in toys and collectibles, with over 105 stores spread throughout the country. The particular store where Busch worked also came courtesy of his initial racing exploits.
The now 39-year-old explained, “What was cool about it was the people I worked for, they had a race car out at the Bullring (at Las Vegas Motor Speedway) every week.”
“We were kind of friends just from the racetrack for years, and when I was 14, I wanted to have a job for the winter and the summer when I wasn’t in school. So I went to work at HobbyTown,” added the #8 Chevrolet driver.
While Busch’s first job did not come with an official designation, he found out soon enough that his niche inside the store revolved around guiding people on how to purchase the correct remote-controlled cars and answering their queries on what they needed.
“I was the RC car specialist and I’d talk to people about RC cars and what they needed and what questions they had,” he said.
The 2024 season marked Busch’s first winless year in the sport since his full-time debut in the Cup Series. Regarded as one of the elder statesmen of the sport heading into 2025, fans wish to see ‘Rowdy’ get back into victory lane in the sport’s highest echelon as the 2025 season approaches. Whether he can do it or not, remains to be seen.
Busch’s first opportunity will present itself at the 67th running of the Daytona 500 next month. Since he’s never won the Great American Race, it would come across as a feel-good story for both himself as well as fans of the sport if he does end up in victory lane.
