World's cheesiest car unveiled

Tuesday, May 6, 2003 Posted: 11:57 AM EDT (1557 GMT)
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(CNN) -- He may not have won Saturday's Pontiac Excitement 400, but race car driver Terry Labonte has a distinction no other competitor can tout -- a replica of his car made entirely out of cheese.

The American Dairy Association unveiled a large scale model car made out of cheese at Richmond International Raceway on Friday in Virginia.

It was modeled after Labonte's No. 5 Chevrolet and carved from 3,500 pounds of yellow cheddar cheese.

The car, which measures 5 feet high, 12 feet long and 6 feet wide, was made to support the new and cheesy paint scheme on Labonte's No. 5 Kellogg's-"Got Milk?" auto.

Experienced food sculptor Jim Victor cut the cheese, so to speak.

"I am used to sculpting large objects out of butter, chocolate and cheese -- such as celebrities and farm-related figures -- but I've never carved a race car," said Victor.

Celebrities Victor has been commissioned to depict in food sculptures include Mickey Rooney, Anne Miller and Robin Williams.

NASCAR and cheese fans alike can visit www.ilovecheese.com or www.kelloggsracing.com to see photos of the "World's Cheesiest Car" as well as the cheese paint scheme on Labonte's car.

The massive amount of cheese was provided by Vermont-based Cabot Creamery.