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There's no way this could be a NASCAR driver hiding behind a box of Raisin Bran cereal.

Then, just after the music starts, Scott Speed's face rises into view. With comedic timing and a few props, Speed and a friend lip-sync to the song "Milk and Cereal."

They use spoons as mics and choreograph moves to such lines as "cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs" and "Trix are for kids." Inspired by a similar YouTube video, Speed thought he and Colin Fleming could do it better. So they did. Their YouTube version has been viewed more than 60,000 times since it appeared last year.

"I take everything lightly," says Speed, a 25-year-old California native. "I like to have fun and goof around &ellipses; and that was a good one."

Speed doesn't act like a typical NASCAR driver. His tight-fitting and colorful European clothes stand out as much as his zebra-striped racing shoes. He didn't grow up idolizing Dale Earnhardt or Jeff Gordon but Tom Ford, the American fashion designer who turned around Gucci. When Speed won his first Craftsman Truck race in June at Dover, the first thing he talked about was having his toenails painted blue.

Now that he's a Sprint Cup driver -- he attempts to make his series debut this weekend at Martinsville Speedway -- Speed will start a trend. He'll only write his signature with a gold UniPaint Fine Line PX-21 marker. Why?

"Because I can," Speed says. "Who else signs in gold only?"

No one.

Then again, there isn't anyone like Speed.

He arrives at Red Bull Racing's shop in Mooresville dressed in shorts from Munich, a snug Dolce & Gabbana Italian soccer shirt and a fedora.

Speed admits he'd like to do a clothing line someday, but says he's not creative enough to design his own clothes. Not creative enough?

"I'm a guy," he explains, "and I don't smoke weed."

Speed stresses he doesn't drink and has never taken drugs. He's obsessive compulsive and even if he just experimented, he knows the consequences would be dire.

"I have a feeling I would like drugs and alcohol a lot," he says.

While Speed understands his limits, he also knows when to push his boundaries.

Few American racers aspire to Formula One, but Speed did. So, when he got the chance to race in Europe at age 20 and move closer to his dream, he left home.

It wasn't long after that he suffered health problems. He was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, a disease that causes inflammation and sores in the lining of the rectum and colon. The disease causes acute diarrhea. Medication controls the illness, but Speed wears a diaper when it attacks.

Overcoming those health problems and continuing to race, says Speed's dad, Mike, shows his son's dedication and should dispel beliefs that Speed is a flashy, brash driver with no substance.

Speed reached his goal in 2006 when he became the first American to race in Formula One since 1993, driving for Red Bull's B team. He was released midway through the following year. His best career finish was ninth for the back-of-the-pack team. After he lost his Formula One ride, Speed focused on NASCAR. IndyCar racing didn't excite him. He wanted a challenge. That was stock cars.

For those who question Speed's driving credentials, his performance in the ARCA series might change perceptions. Speed lost the title when he retaliated for being wrecked in the season finale.

Speed entered the finale leading the points with Ricky Stenhouse Jr., a development driver for Roush Fenway Racing, in second. During the race, Stenhouse hit the back of Speed's car and Speed crashed. Speed insists the contact was intentional.

He returned after a quick pit stop and sent Stenhouse into the wall. ARCA officials parked Speed for the rest of the race.

Speed offers no apologies.

"I went out there and made a point to everyone," he says. "That's not how you race. If I do nothing about that, all of a sudden I have a sign that says, 'OK, you can mess around with Scott Speed.' "

No you can't. Just because Speed does things differently -- "He doesn't really want to conform," his dad says -- doesn't mean he ignores the racer's code on paybacks.

"Every decision I make on the track, normally I have a reason for it,'' Speed says, "and, honestly, normally I'm right."

Can a NASCAR driver really be this outspoken? Just watch him.

Contact Dustin Long at 373-7062 or dustin.long@news-record.com