What does it take to build a car that can legitimately compete for the Ridler Award? Street Rod Royalty.. Numero Uno…The Nobel Prize of hot rodding? Well, in the case of the Bresnahan family and their 1955 Nomad dubbed Gray Madder, it takes a solid roller, an extremely talented fab shop, a decade of meticulous work, and surviving cancer to complete the project.

The Don Ridler Memorial Award

Named for the first professional promoter of the Detroit Autorama, the Ridler Award is considered one of the most prestigious honors in the classic car hobby. Along with America’s Most Beautiful Roadster, bestowed at California’s Grand National Roadster Show, the Ridler is the trophy EVERYONE is competing for. Throughout the 61 years the Ridler has been awarded, the roster lists a virtual who’s who of the classic car hobby, including Chip Foose, Dave Kindig, Troy Trepanier, and Boyd Coddington. Bestowed in the heart of the Motor City, the Ridler first narrows all competitors into a class known as The Great 8. From The Great 8, judges pick an annual winner based on style, design, and mechanical prowess. For 2025, that winner was Gray Madder, the exceptional Chevy you see gracing this webpage.  

All photos by Austin Philpott

The Chance To Fulfill A Dream

Tom and Christy Bresnahan and their son Josh had always wanted to create a build that was good enough to compete for the prestigious Ridler Award. And we say “build” because that’s exactly what these cars are: artistic creations that leave virtually no imagination or craft on the drawing board. Like many enthusiasts, the family had been playing with hot rods for quite some time, but when they stumbled upon a clean 1955 Nomad in Texas, they recognized the chance to fulfill a dream. A solid, mostly original classic, the Chevy had been undergoing a full restoration at a small shop in El Paso. Unfortunately, someone stole the car’s original drivetrain, which caused its owner to lose interest. Tom swooped in and purchased the Nomad in 2014, and it wasn’t long before the Chevy was on its way to Ramseur, North Carolina’s Southern Comfort Customs & Interiors. 

Tom had worked with Southern Comfort Customs & Interiors before, but this would be a culture-defining build. According to Tom, he was sort of tired of hearing “There’s not much left to do to a tri-five Chevy.”, so he and the guys at Southern Comfort set out to prove that sentiment wrong. Tom eventually located and purchased a bunch of used CNC equipment. To house that equipment, Southern Comfort built an addition onto their shop. After both Tom and the pros at the shop began collaborating on CAD design, the build was well underway. Throughout the decade it took for Gray Madder to come together, Tom would take as much vacation time as he could to travel to North Carolina and help the guys turn wrenches, including a 40-day sprint up to the 2025 Detroit Autorama. Today, the result of all that hard work has benefited everyone, as Tom received his dream car, the Bresnahans achieved the major goal, and Southern Comfort Customs & Interiors was given the support and canvas to showcase their amazing talents.

A decade in the making, the Gray Madder Nomad claimed the prestigious Ridler Award at the 2025 Detroit Autorama.

What Is Gray Madder?

While this Nomad might look fairly stock at first glance, there isn’t one surface on the car that hasn’t been altered in some way aside from maybe its roof. Despite the appearance of a lower roofline, Gray Madder retains its factory roof height, with fully custom glass and reimagined A, B, and C-pillars creating the illusion of a chop. A narrowed B-pillar works with a reangled windshield, which was cut, laid back two inches, and ground at Southern Comfort’s shop, to add a bit of style. The rest of the greenhouse, bespoke glass that was created from wood bucks and plexiglass mocked up at Southern Comfort, has been moved out to the edges of the car to cap a fully redesigned beltline. That narrowed B-pillar and custom glass play well above fenders that were lengthened three inches, and doors that have been moved back three inches.

Naturally, three-inch longer fenders mean an extended hood, which shades a custom billet grille with a bespoke Chevy Jet Bird that was created by EVOD Industries. That grille was widened and relieved of two bars, which were seamlessly incorporated into the bodywork beneath the car’s unique front bumper. Custom 9-inch headlights, assembled by Optimized Design, mimic the car’s custom EVOD wheels above hand-built LED parking lamps. Trim is minimal, with custom CNC-ed and painted Speed Spears recessed into the sides of the car’s body below fully functional windshield wipers that are tucked under the car’s roof. Bespoke taillights frame a hand-fabricated tailgate, which incorporates custom, fully hidden hinges beneath roll-down glass and unique, CNC-machined bows. And a sectioned and lengthened bumper, fashioned around custom exhaust tips, caps the car’s hand-fabricated unibody.

Did You Say Unibody?

That’s right, the foundation of Gray Madder is a custom unibody with hand-fabricated floorpans that flow from the car’s rockers. In addition to allowing the builders at Southern Comfort to remove the car’s firewall and radiator support, that unibody construction also allowed them immense flexibility to alter the doors and fenders and how they mount to this Chevy’s body. In turn, that allowed a custom engine bay design that, in addition to making the car’s engine look more tailored, hides all cooling lines and affords larger inner fenders that contribute to a better turning radius for the car’s lowered stance. High-quality Art Morrison chassis components cradle hydraulic coil-over-shocks in front of a hand-fabricated 9-inch axle that has been so worked that only one side of the bolts are visible – heads that are uniquely machined to mimic the car’s one-off EVOD wheels. Speaking of wheels, that is a fifth EVOD unit you see mounted under this Chevy, except instead of acting as a spare, it houses the car’s fuel tank. Yes, that is a real tire, and yes, the fuel filler is still hidden behind the driver’s taillight in traditional ‘56 Nomad style.  

Gray Madder’s 700hp LS3 wears a custom billet air cleaner behind a custom serpentine drive.

Roughly 700 horsepower is supplied by a fully dressed LS3, which breathes through a custom billet air cleaner that fits into a hand-fabricated inner hood panel between bespoke hood hinges. A custom radiator, worked to match the arch of the car’s grille, is cooled by shrouded electric puller fans that, along with this Nomad’s bespoke serpentine drive, are cut to match its sweet EVOD wheels. One-off EVOD valve covers ride over a hand-fabricated exhaust system, which passes a custom billet oil pan on its way to a 6L90E 6-speed transmission that’s also complete with a custom billet fluid pan. And a nice finishing touch is an electronically actuated tag that’s lit by LEDs that are fully integrated into the car’s unibody.

As Without, So Within

Gray Madder’s custom cockpit is a mix of leather, wood, and hand-fabricated sheet metal.

As you’ve probably gleaned from their name, the Interiors part of Southern Comfort Customs & Interiors means they create exceptionally nice cockpits – and boy, did they for this world-class Nomad! Pop the doors and you’ll find a carefully tailored driving environment that’s adorned with bespoke, CNC-machined inserts that mimic the car’s custom Speed Spears. Most of that interior’s structure is hand-fabricated sheet metal laid under supple leather, stylish woodgrain, and hand-shaped seat foam. In front of the driver, a one-off steering column conceals pushbutton ignition and pushbutton transmission controls in a stationary panel that floats while the wheel spins. In front of the passengers, a reimagined dash houses a full suite of custom Dakota Digital telemetry. Radiused and machined pedal arms float next to controls for Vintage Air conditioning which, you guessed it, feature knobs that match the car’s EVOD wheels. That climate system funnels breeze through a hand-fabricated, double-panel transmission tunnel that features A/C vents for the rear passengers. A hand-rolled sheetmetal headliner is finished with tasteful LED lighting and CNC-machined bows that, like the inserts, match the car’s Speed Spears. And custom Diamond Back tires wear subtle stripes that have been perfectly color-matched to Gray Madder’s stylish leather hides.

Rear passengers enjoy custom air conditioning.

There’s Just One More Thing

Perhaps the ultimate triumph of this story isn’t the elite award won by this fantastic Chevy. Or the fact that the car’s build nurtured the immense talent of a small shop of outstanding fabricators and then placed them in the national spotlight. In the mid-stages of the project, both Tom and Christy were diagnosed with cancer. The diagnoses, occurring just six weeks apart, threatened a whole lot more than trick metal and Glasurit paint. Today, the Bresnahan’s are thankful to continue to enjoy the classic car hobby and, despite the risk, the family wants to actually drive their beloved Nomad on the street. In fact, they plan to take the car on the Hot Rod Power Tour after it spends some time on the show circuit.  

Gray Madder isn’t just a car – it’s a symbol of vision, resilience, and craftsmanship at the highest level. From a forgotten shell in Texas to a prestigious Ridler Award winner in Detroit, the project’s journey embodies the heart and soul of hot rodding. Every curve, bolt, and stitch reflects a decade of dedication, personal sacrifice, and relentless pursuit of perfection. With the help of Southern Comfort Customs & Interiors, the Bresnahans turned a classic Chevy Nomad into a rolling masterpiece that pushes the limits of custom car culture. Here’s to the innovators!