Derek Trent, master fabricator and owner of Trent Fab joins us on Episode 224. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app.

9:11 – a couple of times I got in some trouble with the law and was told to push my motorcycle home 

16:16– I was 21 years old and I hit a point where I had to make a “What am I going to do?” decision             

24:31 – out of the box, a YJ was pretty damn tough

31:49 – Jason Berger was driving my car and eneded up breaking the TH400 case, I was really disappointed because all I was looking at was all the things that went wrong, that I didn’t do right 

38:18 – I was working a job after college and woke up one day and realized that if I didn’t get out then, that was all I was going to do with the rest of my life.

49:03 – I got the invitation to go the very first King of the Hammers, but I really wanted to take my new car and it wasn’t ready. So I missed the very first one, it would have been 14 instead of OG13

58:25 – that’s when the Top Shelf chassis was born

Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast.

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All Automotive with Matt Clawson
Automotive related topics. Anything from owning an repair facility to racing. Anything...

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Bart Jacobs hails from Utah and has participated in every extreme sport the state offers – from skiing to mountain biking to OG rockcrawling. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app.

3:41 – I decided, as stupid 16-year-olds do, that drag racing would be fun. 

10:40 – I was still ski-jumping and ended up hurting my leg, for rehab, I started mountain biking, and doing longer and longer rides             

18:46 – XJ’s didn’t have a great reputation, and still don’t for the people who like frames and such

29:43 – …we watched a lot of other teams, and there was nothing in the back…and the light bulb went on and I thought “OH, maybe if we took some weight out of this thing, it might do a little bit better!” 

40:21 – In my first six events, I broke on the first or second obstacle on every event, it was frustrating

48:31 – I got so much from this sport, I feel blessed. The friends I’ve met, the relationships I have and the fun we’ve had doing it – I felt like I needed to give back to the sport

59:19 – I had the midnight to 2 am shift, we had just passed Bimini and started heading in a more Southerly direction…

Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast.

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All Automotive with Matt Clawson
Automotive related topics. Anything from owning an repair facility to racing. Anything...

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Diesel mechanic – because he had to be – Logan Backus shares life in the trenches, the rockcrawling trenches, with all of us. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app.

4:48 – We were known for the kids in the neighborhood to build the biggest, baddest jumps out there. 

14:43 – my dad’s like, “I don’t know why you want a truck like that? They’re expensive and they break.”             

25:47 – this is the dumbest thing I’ve ever done – but the owner took me under his wing and showed me the ins and outs of all things diesel

31:38 – my first trip to Moab, you either have to go far right and get really sketchy or take the big undercuts – I’m sitting there thinking what did I get myself into? 

41:46 – that YJ progressed me so much in wheeling that it scared the sh*t out of me

49:20 – why would I spend money to go beat the crap our of my own vehicle – why does that sound like it’s not that fun?

1:01:38 – I hate Cedar City, it’s like 30 minutes from where I live, but I have this vendetta with Cedar

Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast.

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All Automotive with Matt Clawson
Automotive related topics. Anything from owning an repair facility to racing. Anything...

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Meet the Desert Rat in his Desert Toy, John James, D-Toy in the old Pirate days shares his history in rock-crawling. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app.

3:57 – We learned how to fight early, and we were little guys, so if one us got in a fight, both of us got in a fight. 

15:09 – one of the best things I did, not just going to school in Phoenix, but just moving to Phoenix, it was literally the biggest city I’d ever seen, and living there on my own with my parents six hours away, life lessons!             

21:05 – the most awesome part about Pirate 4x4 was the diverse amount of people I met

29:28 – my brother still talks about Lion’s Pride Park, holding on to a ski rope and being lawn darted over the top of this rise 

38:20 – it was an off-road race with these clapped out Toyotas all the way to Wrecking Ball

49:42 – Marlin was good at a lot of things, but competing in rock crawling wasn’t one of them, I think his mind just went too fast – I thought, I could drive that rig for him!

58:49 – Back then it was such a foreign thing to do all the Hammer trails in a day, I had an advantage, I knew where they all were.

Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast.

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All Automotive with Matt Clawson
Automotive related topics. Anything from owning an repair facility to racing. Anything...

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Cal Wells III on Episode 220. Such a privilege to interview Cal Wells. We talk about all the racing, racing, racing that Cal has been a part of. Cal was inducted in the Off Road Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2020. Cal is why we say; legends live at ORMHOF.org.  Be sure to tune in on your favorite podcast app.

5:13 – I could get from Westminster to downtown LA in 35 minutes, and now it takes 3 hours 

10:43 – I rode up there, it was like going to heaven; here’s this line on both sides lined with red, white, and blue off-road vehicles             

20:23 – my first trip to Baja… 

29:07 – That was the first time we raced, we were running down the highway and the engine blew up

43:24 – And if I had a do-over, I would have done things very differently

48:00 – I’m going to go hire Ivan Stewart or Malcolm Smith

1:03:22 – We got the deal for 180 grand, and that first year, I spent 360

1:23:44 – Everything was our own, our own shocks, our own everything.

Special thanks to ORMHOF.org for support and sponsorship of this podcast.

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All Automotive with Matt Clawson
Automotive related topics. Anything from owning an repair facility to racing. Anything...

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From multiple subscriptions to multiple books – Sean P. Holman, writer, editor, businessman, dad. Follow his journey through the media. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app.

5:06 – growing up, you could get yourself in as much trouble as you wanted to 

8:57 – what can I get away with before my mom would get mad at me for spending money on something I probably didn’t need?             

15:38 – offroading was like freedom, you were away from the road, no street signs or anyone telling you what to do

31:28 – At the end of my career, I had been there for 20 years, and I was overseeing all the truck and off-road magazines when they decided to dissolve that part of the business 

40:32 – The romanticism of off-roading started for me in the magazine; the problem is we used to be influencers before there were influencers

53:35 – My favorite is the Raptor story, it goes back to 2007, starting with “how did you know?”

Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast.

All Automotive with Matt Clawson
Automotive related topics. Anything from owning an repair facility to racing. Anything...

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Skyjacker President Lonnie McCurry, Jr. shares his faith, family, and future with us on Episode 218. A strong family man, he brings West Monroe, Louisiana, to life for us. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app.

2:45 – this area of Louisiana is all about hunting, fishing, and family 

9:14 – my parents were great about not forcing me into the business – y’all go make an education, get a college degree, and decide your own career path             

24:27 – I learned two things doing the competitive side of rockcrawling: 1. It is a lot of work, and two, it’s hard to be competitive if you don’t have the seat time

34:54 – the way my dad worded it 40 years ago, if he built a lift kit, he wanted to feel like he could hand his daughter the keys and her go drive it, knowing she’d be safe 

42:20 – We started working with Willy long before Duck Dynasty

54:15 – we focused on the marking side for many years, but we feel like we need to focus more on the manufacturing side for the next few years.

58:04 – let’s talk about family

Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast.

All Automotive with Matt Clawson
Automotive related topics. Anything from owning an repair facility to racing. Anything...

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Our very own people person, Alan Johnson, has spent a lifetime helping people. With good listening and great photography skills, Alan is a storyteller. I’m proud to call him my friend. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app.

4:03 – my dad took typing because that’s where the pretty girls were; he claims typing saved his life. 

10:32 – I really wanted to be on the radio, so I showed up at 16 with my FCC disc jockey license and played country music             

14:43 – I had my life all planned out, then I fell asleep driving home and broke my face

23:03 – Just because someone has a leadership role or not, doesn’t mean they’re better or worse than you. Every role is important. 

31:36 – That’s always my MO at work, start at entry level, work hard, prove who you are, and then move up rapidly.

39:59 – That’s when I discovered my first Jeep, it was basically a motorcycle, but with a roll cage.

48:01 – who’s the one person on your team who never puts their phone down, won’t shut up and can’t build anything?  They all laughed and pointed at me!

56:02 – I started working with promoters because my job was to help tell the story of something I was passionate about and loved.

1:07:47 – Imagine life as a piece of paper, most people fill it from top to bottom, left to right, there’s not a blank space anywhere – but life happens in the margins

Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast.

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All Automotive with Matt Clawson
Automotive related topics. Anything from owning an repair facility to racing. Anything...

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Rich Minga got his start in off-road racing, then turned it into a career in the movie business.  Stuntman to the stars, winners do daily what losers do occasionally. Rich is a winner. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app.

9:57 – I thought I’d learn from the school of hard knocks. I was a better student of the universe than the school system 

12:43 – It’s not O-N-E, it’s W-O-N; it means WE won the race!             

17:24 – he got me across Diablo Dry Lake by Morse Code with a horn, it was crazy

25:10 – It was life-changing; I ran out of gas and had to walk out of Baja, it was horrific 

36:28 – The people, the culture, there’s something magical about the people of Baja; I think we’re always celebrated, never tolerated

48:05 – I’ve been k*lled a bunch and k*lled a few people as well. That’s what I do; I work as a stuntman in the movie business

52:53 – I was the stunt coordinator for a TV show with no stunts – it makes me a lifeguard at the car wash

1:02:26 – You got to be in the FBI – friends, brothers, or in-laws! It’s the way it works

Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast.

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All Automotive with Matt Clawson
Automotive related topics. Anything from owning an repair facility to racing. Anything...

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World champion speed skier turned rockcrawler, John Hembel, shares techniques in improving all skills on Episode 215. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app.

9:48 – I worked ski rentals, at the end of the day there’d be a huge pile in the middle of the ski shop; my job was to pair them all up together and put them awayl 

17:30 – I actually got a soccer scholarship to a school in Mississippi, but I didn’t like the school             

22:40 – the fortunate part is the auto detailing end of things gives you the ability to bring in day-to-day business without knocking on doors

28:57 – It’s the south, so really all you’re wheeling is mud, which is terrible. I hate mud. 

36:11 – We’re fortunate in the people we know that we have a lot of really responsible friends who want to save the lands

48:44 – I always knew I wanted to be a pro skier, I loved it so much.

58:01 – when they brought a speed skiing competition to Snowmass, I was like, I got to go out and do that

1:01:55 – I yelled down to the kid, in French, I think I have mad cow disease…then I took my run.

1:08:27 – 2002, I set my record, 2003, I was world champion

1:18:28 – Almost every time we go out rockcrawling, even three and a half years later, I’m learning something new.

Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast.

Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app.

 

All Automotive with Matt Clawson
Automotive related topics. Anything from owning an repair facility to racing. Anything...

Listen on: Apple Podcasts   Spotify

Support the show