VIDEO> The Spirit of Formula D Las Vegas
My recent trip to Las Vegas for round 5 of Formula Drift was one of minimal luxuries. Joe Ayala and I could only afford one night in a hotel and a rental car was out of the question. Day one, we got up around noon, grabbed some “breakfast” at the Blueberry Hill next to the hotel, and began our journey to the track at around two. The trek consisted of roughly 2-3 miles, on foot, in 108 degree weather. Luckily for us, we found a shopping cart to carry our backpacks, camera cases, laptop bags, and of course my skateboard. Before long, we had covered the cart in MotorMavens cards (gotta represent) and found fun stuff to do on the way, such as drifting and dirt dropping the cart on the side of Las Vegas Blvd. Joe and I had fun overall, but boy were we glad when an old woman (with a legit mustache) stopped and asked us if we needed a ride. She drove us about a quarter of a mile to the gift shop of Las Vegas Motor Speedway, complaining the whole time about how she would be late to work. Haha!
Anyone will tell you that there’s really no way to describe a trip to FD Vegas other than “hot.” I had a great time making new acquaintances, like when my buddy Josh Herron took us by Forrest Wang‘s shop to BS and look at all his rad cars. I also had fun catching up with friends, like when the amazing Drew Fishbein and Ross Fairfield from OMGDrift let Joe and I stay in their hotel room because 18andFamous Abbitt Wilkerson was too busy napping to answer his door. Haha!
Regarding the video, I apologize for taking so long to finish it. The song I chose has a small introduction that requires specific footage to go with the audio. Hobo and I had arranged beforehand to film what I needed while in Vegas. Unfortunately, the lovely security team at Las Vegas Motor Speedway was very strict about when and who could drive in or out of the gates, so we just couldn’t make it happen. That being said, I had to acquire the help of up-and-coming photographer, videographer, actor, and stunt driver Joe Ayala to finish the timeline.
Special thanks to Jason at ContourHD for hooking us up with the cameras. These things are a blast to use! Definitely one of the most fun moments of the trip was running around the grid, sticking cameras on cars. Thanks again!
Enjoy! 
:: Justin Shreeve
RANDOM DOPE> Drift Mechaniks on Top Gear?!
Browsing Facebook this morning, I saw a status update from our own Lieze Truter, saying that our good buddies, the mighty Drift Mechaniks from Atlanta have been featured on Top Gear! I clicked the link to see what she was talking about, and apparently Top Gear featured a video that was produced by the dynamic bearded video duo of Roegge and Herron! Congratulations, guys!
When I clicked through to watch the video, it looked like a great mash up of footage from both video shooters, featuring one of the secret Drift Mechaniks drifting practice days at Nashville Super Speedway! Very cool! It even features some footy of our own art director Andy Sapp, who looks like his face is being overrun by a forest of facial hair, haha! It was pretty cool to see MotorMavens stickers on the Drift Mechaniks cars in the video! So make sure to watch all the Drift Mechaniks in this video and see how Andy gets down when he’s not designing stuff on his Mac! I just lovvvvve the way his E46 BMW looks with those ultra baller steez Racing Dynamics wheels!
Big ups to Drift Mechaniks, and big ups to Will and Josh! I’m sure you might already know this, but the dynamic bearded duo of Roegge and Herron are now traveling cross country in a van, filming videos (No, not THOSE types of videos. Although I’m sure our boy Josh is super down. He even has POV equipment.) for the newest video project they’re working on!
So enjoy the re-run of this video on our site, and in the immortal words of Andy Sapp, “Keep Drifting Fun! …Or Else.”
:: Antonio Alvendia
COVERAGE> More Scenes From Irwindale Pro Am
CARSPOTTING> Josh Herron's S14
Enter Josh Herron. This young and talented videographer has made some of the most creative drift videos I've ever seen, while also averaging 200,000 views on each video, and reaching the acclaimed Internet celebrity status all before the age of 21. And I thought I was a media prodigy. :D Read more...
VIDEO> Herron's Breaking Point
Joshua Herron just dropped his edit from one of my favorite stops on the Formula Drift tour: Seattle’s Evergreen Speedway. Josh’s videos are getting better and better with each drop. Keep an eye out for some Mavens up in the mix!
Great work Josh!!!
:: Andy Sapp
COVERAGE> Formula D Seattle, Part 3
It's a long story, but in a nutshell, the Formula D/SCCA guy Randy Hembrey got pissed off at me and pulled my hard card on Saturday (competition day), which allows me to get track access for shooting photos. This was definitely a problem, as I was expected to produce good images that weekend (I was shooting the event for clients, who helped pay my way to get up to Seattle). I had a hell of a time trying to get photos for the rest of the day, especially without access to the hot areas, but I still managed to get some photos somehow.
So here it is... Formula D Seattle through my eyes. Read more...
VIDEO> Millen's Hyundai HillClimb
Just got a text message from Will Roegge about his new video, which is undoubtedly being posted RIGHT NOW to every blog site on the planet, and being posted to everyone’s Facebook and Twitter feeds…
Great job Will and Josh. And CONGRATULATIONS for taking the new record, RHYS!!!
:: Antonio Alvendia
COVERAGE> Formula D Brings Heat to Vegas, Part 3
In the pit area right before qualifying, the Apex'i crew was busy at work - either their differential or ring and pinion seized up, because the rear wheels on Ryuji Miki's FD3s wouldn't spin at all - they were completely locked up! The Apex'i crew always seems to be working tirelessly, as we always see them working on their cars on the side of the track.
In this photo, we see Jeren Walker from DSPORT Magazine offering to lend a helping hand, so that the Apex'i crew could get the car back on track and Miki could qualify. Jeren works for a magazine - he wasn't hired to help Apex'i; he had nothing to gain from getting down and dirty, helping to get Miki's car back on track. Yet he willingly volunteered to help, because that's what people do from the grassroots drifting scene. Wait... Apex'i..? Grassroots? Read more...
COVERAGE> Megan Racing Drift Competition Pt.1
You don't have to say it; we know what you're thinking. Megan Racing? Yes, we're talking about THAT Megan Racing. Working with Naoki from Drift Day, Megan Racing has decided to show its support of grassroots drifters, by throwing a fully catered drifting competition (thanks for the tacos, Megan Racing!), complete with a two thousand dollar purse for the winners. (Although, we didn't stick around til the end, so we weren't sure if they actually gave out money to the winners, or just a really expensive handbag.) Either way, we think it's great that a company with products catering to the grassroots drifting community would actually give back to the grassroots drifting community by putting together an event like this! Read more...
