One of the many thrills SEMA has to offer is the chance to meet some of your automotive heroes. They can be car designers, builders, race car drivers, or car show hosts. But to meet them, you pay a fairly steep price - a long wait, in some cases, up to an hour and a half. Now that may not seem like a lot for you to get a couple of moments to chat, congratulate, and snap a picture with your favorite automotive personality (plus get an autograph), but in SEMA, every moment counts. I think I spent a total of 6 hours - over half a day's worth of show time in total - waiting in line to meet some of my heroes. But at the end of the day, it was worth it.
One of the greatest thrills, for me, was meeting Mario Andretti - that living legend of motorsport. As most petrolheads can tell you off the top of their heads, Mr. Andretti is the only man in history to win an F1 Driver's Championship, the Indianapolis 500, and the Daytona 500. He was just as successful in an open-wheel (F1, IndyCar) and street/stock cars (NASCAR, IROC - International Race of Champions). So meeting him was an amazing experience, and though he didn't engage much, just standing with automotive royalty was awesome.
Chip Foose is one of those personalities that you tend to have a pre-concieved notion on. Not only because of his distinct style (two-tine paints separated by pinstriping or other paint effects, large chrome wheels with deep lips, etc.), but also because he is on so many motoring programs that you can't help but pick up on his down-to-earth, upbeat, but workaholic personality. And in person, it's refreshing to see that he is the exact same guy that the shows portray. To wit, he was easily the hardest-working guy in SEMA, doing autograph signings 3 to 5 times every day. In each session, he spends a little time to talk and converse with his fans, which is why despite the dozens of sessions, his queue can go for hours and each one who waited will tell you it was worth it.
Meeting Ken Block and Vaughn Gittin were great treats. Ken Block, of course, was made famous by his Gymkhana videos on youtube, performing awesome stunts of precision and control. After tasting success in the X-Games and Rally America, Ken is now competing in the World Rally Championship, where he hopes to do even better. Vaughn Gittin, Jr. may be the most under-appreciated driver in Formula D (the biggest US drift competition). He won the championship last year, and his drift style is consistent with his personality - brash, aggressive, and eager to please.
I also got to meet two thirds of Top Gear America's cast - Tanner Foust and Rutledge Wood. The two are natural foils, having totally different backgrounds. Tanner is a Californian back-to-back Formula D champ, X-Games rally champ, and has represented the USA in the IROC several times. Alabaman Rutledge, on the other hand, has no racing credentials, but his gearhead (American translation of petrolhead) passion has landed him a NASCAR reporting gig and later his stint in Top Gear. Interestingly enough, these two were the most engaging and conversational of the people I met in SEMA. Tanner mentioned he was going to the Philippines sometime in 2012, and hopefully he does come to visit. Rutledge, on the other hand, spoke briefly about the chemistry of the TG:A cast, and, when he made a slight spelling error in the small poster the signed for me, insisted that he throw it away and sign a new, spelling-correct one. Of course, after some slight persuasion, he corrected the first one and gave me both.
The most unexpected meet was with Filipino-American comic book inker/car tuner Jon Sibal. I saw him hanging around his Scion iQ, which just won first place for the Scion Tuner Challenge. It amazed me that so many guys, including a middle-eastern visitor, knew who he was! I first heard of Jon in Performance BMW, where his ever-changing BMW e36 M3 was featured in the magazine several times. As a fellow Filipino (and a fellow comic book guy), it was natural for me to follow his progress. I literally just walked up to him, introduced myself, and started talking about cars. He hopes to visit the Philippines soon, and I promised to introduce him to the BMW crowd locally.
I had already met Barry Meguiar -founder of the Meguiar's line of car care products and host of the TV show Car Crazy - in this year's Concourse d'Elegance in SMX, albeit briefly. I had a second chance to meet him, and though he was gracious in saying that he remembered me, I'm pretty sure he was just being nice. The lineup to meet him was just as long as Chip Foose's, and though he had a lot of people waiting on him, he was kind enough to spend just a little extra time with me, signing a couple of extra autographs and chatting about his visit.
Meeting John Hennessy was something of a bonus, if I'm honest. Though I knew of the man through his work with muscle cars (including my favorite, the Boss 302 Mustang), I wasn't really planning to meet him. I'm glad, however, that I did. Not only was he friendly and knowledgeable, he took the time to autograph another poster and make a dedication for a friend of mine whose dad is battling cancer. That just shows the character of a person, and it was great to meet him.
Another bonus was meeting Vinnie DiMartino, Paul Jr's right hand man in the Discovery series American Chopper. Originally, the meet and greet was scheduled for Paul Jr, but due to a scheduling conflict, he wasn't able to make it (if you're a follower of the show, you can imagine Senior making a comment like "typical Junior to miss an engagement," but I don't know the circumstances behind his no-show, so I can't pass judgement). Still, Vinnie was always one of my favorite guys on the show due to his personality and dedication to his craft.
Despite spending all four days at SEMA, there were several people who I would have loved to meet that I didn't get a chance to, simply because I didn't plan ahead. Not coming prepared will cost you, as it cost me. I was fortunate to meet some great guys, but I was hoping to meet a few more people, like NASCAR great Richard Petty, drift champ Sam Hubinette, engine guru Vic Edelbrock, West Coast Customs founder Ryan Friedlinghaus, UFC's (and A-Team's) Rampage Jackson, and car building legend Carol Shelby. If I can do anther SEMA, hopefully I get a chance to make up for these missed opportunities.
Still, I came away with a great prize: a SEMA 2011 shirt autographed by everyone I met at the event. Thanks to those guys who took the time to meet their fans and make SEMA week even more special!
Today's list: My Top 5 Japanese Cars from SEMA 2011
5. Matthew Desormeaux's Mazda RX-7 FD3S
Winner of the Meguiar's Car Crazy Canada contest, Quebec-based Matthew Desormeaux's FD was chosen to travel to Las Vegas to participate in the Car Crazy Showcase at SEMA. And it's well-deserved, too with, among many mods, a sinister-looking Veilside body kit, D2 air suspension, 20" Forgeline rims, and over 460 rwhp coming from the tuned 1.3L wankel engine. Sacre bleu! (Sorry, couldn't help myself...)
4. Five Axis Lexus GS F Sport
Lexus (aside from the wild LF-A) has never been known for eye-catching cars. Even the IS-F isn't a pretty car. But this GS concept by Five Axis looks like it can change all that. The best part of this design is that it's distinct, aggressive, but completely OEM-looking, with design language that seems to be perfectly in harmony with the car's original appearance.
3. Jon Sibal's Scion iQ-RX
If the Five Axis Lexus was designed to look factory, then Jon Sibal's Scion goes in the complete opposite direction. With a Veilside body kit, a matte grey paint job with matching matte grey head- and taillights, and more gadgets than Best Buy (or for us Pinoys, Greenhills Shoping Center), this iQ is a stunner from all angles. And if the in-dash integrated iPad 2 isn't enough for you, then pop the trunk for a motorized, hide-away 32" Samsung LCD TV!
2. AMS Alpha 12 Nissan GTR
Featuring a gorgeous V-weave carbon hood, roof, and trunk, a lerge rear wing, and big black wheels, you might think the AMS Alpha 12 is just a show car. But this GTR gives justice to the nickname "Godzilla," packing over 1300rwhp and clocking a 9.05sec quarter mile. By comparison, the Bugatti Veyron does the same distance in 9.8 seconds! Good looks and power, what more can you ask for?
1. Chris Rado's 1994 Toyota Supra
From the outside, this car doesn't look like much. I mean, it has the usual tuner goodies. Wide body kit: check. Deep dish chrome rims on super-fat rubber: check. Big-ass rear wing: check. Slammed stance: check. Carbon fiber body panels: check. 2,500 rwhp (that's not a typo) twin turbo 6.2L V8: ch-WTF?! It packs a Toyota V8 from a Sequoia SUV, bored out and stacked with two giant titanium turbos that can handle up to 50psi of boost and can hit 10,000rpm at redline. How extreme is this car? His 15" brake rotors might be bigger than your WHEELS.
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