In a bit of a different conversation this week, Davey Segal chats with graphic designer Noah Sweet (7:00) about the importance of mental health and his struggles with it over the last few years. On September 2, 2020, "Lefty," as he's affectionately known, vanished. Multiple social media posts left his friends and family worried for his safety. He was in a bad place.
For the first time publicly, Sweet opens up extensively about the darkest time in his life, the events that led to him hitting a breaking point, why he felt he needed to just get away, what the specific time period for him was like, dealing with anxiety, depression, suicidal thoughts and how he is continuing to work his way through it.
Shortly after he returned home, Ally presented him with the chance to design a car for his hero: Jimmie Johnson. Sweet explains why, in hindsight, he didn't necessarily love how it all played out, but felt it was an opportunity he couldn't turn down given the solidarity the community showed him. But he's now continually working on a better version of himself and advocating for mental health awareness. An often taboo topic, Sweet is attempting to let people know they're not alone and as the cliché "it's okay to not be okay" couldn't be more true.
The two also discuss how he got his nickname, his grandfather's time racing on water, the feeling of his work coming to fruition and being on the racetrack, the following he's built, his creative process, his recent "joke" design that went viral and what his ultimate goals are as a motorsports graphic designer.
Davey also discusses the inaugural events at Gateway and Portland, previews Sonoma and Papa Segal pays homage to a unique, lesser-known name in the world of NASCAR.
