Ken Block/Stunt Junkies

Did anyone see the stunt junkies episode? I will admit the actual jump itself was pretty sick. But his car costing $250k? i dont think so. One thing they dont say is that there are only a handful of competitive rally cars in america, available only to those who can afford it. Now I May be new to this phorum, and only be able to afford to build a 20 year old car, but I'm pretty sure that I could get behind the wheel of a well prepped open class STI and be competitive. theres not much i can do about it right now except bitch to you all, but I have a feeling many of you feel the same way. Why is it that it almost feels as though this sport is regressing, I know that there are more corporate sponsors right now than ever, but taking WRC off of american TV? I think that those goofballs out in MN have no idea about the potential of this sport. I guess the only thing we can do is hope they get their heads out of their asses and get someone in their marketing department (if they have one), that will build the sport and ensure its future in the US.

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Ted DeInnocentis
MK2 Jetta Coupe Rally Car
BMW E46 323i daily driver
Toyota Tacoma Sweep vehicle

I didn't see the show..

About WRC not being on TV.. eh.. it's not like it was on at good times before.. and it's only 1049124104x more convenient just to download it. Besides we're in the twilight years of broadcast TV.

I can't speak about the US, but there's a Grp F series in Quebec and their arn't that many 4wd cars in Canada at all really. So that's not such a big deal unless you want to see near WRC competition at the National level in North America.. which I don't think will ever happen for many reasons (nascar and to be a spectator, you have to actually walk and stuff.. scary).

At any rate the lawyers and the effeminization of our societies will spoil it eventually.

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Andrew M
Onterrible
30ish

hudson Wrote:
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> I didn't see the show..
>
>
You didn't spend 30 minutes of your time to see a staged jump which lasted 1.4 seconds??
Some fan you are ! Harumph!
>

>
> At any rate the lawyers and the effeminization of
> our societies will spoil it eventually.
>
I haver had lots of expericence dealing with and working with "Femmes" and with boyts all excitied about their little sports.
I take exception to your use of the word "effeminazation" with the negative connoctation you're giving it.

What I see in the US society anyway, (I can't really speak for you Canajian evil-doers being Socialist Atheist Secular Humanists) is not the effeninization but the "infantilization" of every persuit.
The jump, with the half hour of build up for a 1.5 second jump, was an excellent example.
The whole utterly stupid "freestyle moto-ex", a styliztion of one timy aspect of riding a moto-cross bike decended from "Super-cross" which was itself a stylization of outdoor traditional moto-cross illustrates the change in the sport from a HARD CHALLENGE with 3 heats at 30 to 35 minutes each for 90 to 100 minutes of HARD physically demanding racing at speeds from 5-75mph, to little supercross indoor tracks with 39 second laps and nearly everything in second gear, to the foo-fooo "Free-style" crap with 30 minutes of hype for a 1/5 to 3 second stunt.

That's not "feminine" its childish.
And skateboard nonsense, pointless bizarre 'tricks" which have no connection with anything in the "real world" are practiced again and again and again. Hand rail riding? Wht stupid shit.

And yet, MOST of the "taget demograohic" doesn't give the ultimae pointlessness of this kind of "stunt" a second thought.

Indeed Mr Block seems to have made a big business catering just to this target market.
Yo, dud! Like Ragin dud!



> Andrew McNally
> Hamilton ON
> 27

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John Vanlandingham
Sleezattle, WA, USA

Vive le Prole-le-ralliat

www.rallyrace.net/jvab
CALL +1 206 431-9696
Remember! Pacific Standard Time
is 3 hours behind Eastern Standard Time.

I knoew you would have some good insight on this thread. Fortunately I had TIVO-ed the show and fast forwarded through most of the crap.
Its just nice to know that if youre a "millionaire" and have never driven competitively before, you have the opportunity to be competitive in a sport where being competitive at the top level doesnt have much to do with skill or experience, but deep pockets. From what I have noticed Most of the skill (and knowledge) is held by G2 drivers spending $10-15k anually. (except of course the Polish/Irish contingent we have here on the East Coast, a very talented bunch of blokes, who have rallying in their blood and can legally import EVO IV's). Travis, of course, is a natural. I remember him blowing away the competition at the southwick nationals when he was 17 (he wheelied through about 150yds of whoops). Even so he himself has said publicly that he is not comfortable on Asphalt, which in my opinion is pretty important if he wants to move on to the "world".

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Ted DeInnocentis
MK2 Jetta Coupe Rally Car
BMW E46 323i daily driver
Toyota Tacoma Sweep vehicle

More crap brough to you by the Marketing Department, it isn't just Moto-Blah being warped into the marketing view; having just finished a course in that BS. It is quite obvious that the dumber the American Public is the better off Marketing is.

Edit: I've been looking for a place for this.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/20/2007 02:03PM by Duffster.

Duffster Wrote:
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> More crap brough to you by the Marketing
> Department, it isn't just Moto-Blah being warped
> into the marketing view; having just finished a
> course in that BS. It is quite obvious that the
> dumber the American Public is the better off
> Marketing is.

>
easily led
> Subaru, Opiate of the^ Masses

http://www.rallyanarchy.com/phorum/file.php?1,file=674

Oh! The Huge Manatee!

And somebody needs to say it:
30 minutes of hype for less than a second and a half jump on a pre made carefull constructed and calculated ramp..

Typical,. predictable blather from the man himself about "winning (or excelling) at everything I do"

How many thousand yards into Stage 1 at Mexico was it before the Hero flipped----not very Professional if you ask me.

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John Vanlandingham
Sleezattle, WA, USA

Vive le Prole-le-ralliat

www.rallyrace.net/jvab
CALL +1 206 431-9696
Remember! Pacific Standard Time
is 3 hours behind Eastern Standard Time.

john vanlandingham Wrote:
> Oh! The Huge Manatee!
>
> And somebody needs to say it:
> 30 minutes of hype for less than a second and a
> half jump on a pre made carefull constructed and
> calculated ramp..
>
> Typical,. predictable blather from the man himself
> about "winning (or excelling) at everything I do"
>
> How many thousand yards into Stage 1 at Mexico was
> it before the Hero flipped----not very
> Professional if you ask me.
>
>
>
>
> John Vanlandingham
> Sleezattle, WA, USA
>
> Vive le Prole-le-ralliat
>
> www.jvab.f4.ca

Yeah the jump was carefully calculated, yeah its not even close to a world record, yeah I have seen Mark2 Escorts jump longer distances in rallys than that. The unfortunate thing is, this is what people like to watch in the US (besides the few hundred rally fans); not 3 second clips of million different cars taking the same corner. RA and SRTUSA are doing a damn good job with marketing. I wouldnt be suprised if US will host MLR- Major League Rally and call it the World Championship on Fox or NascarTV.
I do realize that he flipped the car in the first stage at Mexico but lets not kid ourselves. In the US More than 95% of Rally racers are competing in cars 95% above their ability. KB can still kick almost everyones butt at any given US special stage. This just shows the level of US rallying. We have to realise that we dont have the technical stages or the ability like the euros do. In fact at most US rallys the average speeds are higher than most, if not all WRC events.
BTW, I do not buy the budget etc.. BS. Particularly when we are talking about open class cars...

Oscar
PS: I am not affiliated with RA, MLR, SRTUSA, KB or DCshoes.

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rally gods would turn in their graves if they ever knew Lada's were now part of EU rallying!!!

I think this is case of take it for what it is. It was a stunt, filmed to appeal the 18-24 masses who are not hardcore rally fans like ourselves.
You, me and all in the rally community know that in Finland, for example, even some of the lower class cars are getting this sort of air.

This was another show designed for the short attention span of the youth (Christ, I make myself sound like an old man at 32!), and the skateboard/bmx/motocross link sells product - that's it. Like someone else said it is an excellent marketing tool because it's extreme.
Our idea of extreme is sideways between the trees at silly speeds for multiple hours/days.
If this show gets the rally idea out to a few more people, gets them out to rallies as speccies or workers, nevermind drivers/co-drivers, or even just lookin for more info or the web, then cool.
If it doesn't, what have we lost? Nothing.
I haven't seen it by the way.

As for the talents of Ken Block. Well, he's a damn sight better than me right now. I think some of the comments are tainted with the green-eyed monster.
Yes, he's well off and that affords him the ability to buy the fancy car, the factory support and all that jazz. Fair do's to him. He started a company, built it up, made some cash and is spending it the way he wants to.
If I made/won/inherited a ton of dough I would do exactly the same thing and you'd all be bagging on me.
"Oh, Nick, he used to rally a POS Corolla, then spent a decade building a rally car...gets himself a windfall, buys a C4 and goes big time - wanker!"

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Nick Taylor.
Knobhead.
Los Angeles, CA.

nick the brit Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> If this show gets the rally idea out to a few more
> people, gets them out to rallies as speccies or
> workers, nevermind drivers/co-drivers, or even
> just lookin for more info or the web, then cool.
> If it doesn't, what have we lost? Nothing.

I think that's the important thing, Nick. I know this thread is a bit on the dusty side, but if we can get a couple more people to check out rally because of that fluff piece, then we benefit.

Sure, the American public is fast becoming a mindless herd of sheep, subject to whatever the mass media mindfuck tells it to do, but if that herd were into rally, would we be so non-conformist?

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Brian Driggs | KG7KCA | PHX, AZ | 89 Pajero
alterius non sit qui suus esse potest

Nick the maybe best example of how rich guys in general harm a small time sport is if you imagine there's a bunch of us, just the same spread aof age and skills we have here at Rallyanarchy and we're all having a friendly game of poker.
There some luck in poker, there's a fair deal of skill in what you do withy what you're dealt
And there's some RISK in what you do with what you're dealt.

So here we are all having some kinda affordable fun, kinda affordable cause we all are spending more or less what we need to spend to get the results we want in this friendly game.

Now here comes some guy, rather than rag on Block, lets just say some punk Trustafarian/stoner dude from some NE state where people are called "Massholes".
TThis palook sits down and is dealt into the game.
Its clear he hasn't a clue what's in his hands, he's so stoned he can barlwey finish a sentance and keep his eyes open (so he's paid so skilled guys $32,000 to reach over his shoulder and point out which cards he should lay down---but all YOU guys don't know that).
Now you have a OK hand so you throw in your 50 cent ante and open with a $1.00 bet.
Yer mate antes up, see's you one buck raises you 50 cents, the the Trustafarian Kid, wipes the drool off (actually his handlers do the reach around for him), and sorta laugh like Beavis and Butthead and mumbles "see yer $1.50, and raise you
$10,000" and pulls up some sack with $$$ on it and crashes it down on the table.

Well naturally everybody else folds.

Then the new hand is dealt.
You got a better hand so you open with yer ante and immediately bet a whopping 2 bucks, then once again mumbles "see yer $2.00, and raise you
$10,000" and pulls up some sack with $$$ on it and crashes it down on the table.

Oddly enough, every else folds.

And again.
This time some of your mates say fuck this shit what the fuck is the point.

And then some more.

and they drop out, and then more, and they drop out.

This is bad enough, but now lets say there's a full blown machine which is soley about genereating hype, and Bullshit.

And the guy in questions starts saying "Yep i've always succeeeded in every endevor I've undertaken and I'm the........"

This is pretty much exactly what's happening here lately and that feeling some have isnt unusual.
It's the same feeling you have if you see somebody bullying somebody else, or a country using its power irresponsibly.

It ain't jealousy, its disgust.

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John Vanlandingham
Sleezattle, WA, USA

Vive le Prole-le-ralliat

www.rallyrace.net/jvab
CALL +1 206 431-9696
Remember! Pacific Standard Time
is 3 hours behind Eastern Standard Time.

John, I understand exactly what you mean, and not to get all Jens-like but this seems to be the cycle that comes around again. It happened when Mark Lovell and Prodrive came over - granted he was an already established talent but it was the massive spending that helped, even though I was really tickled when the privateer entry of Diggins beat them all (albeit in a team that was owned by a wealthy guy -AV Sports)

All we po' boys can do is our best. We are ALWAYS going to be outspent - no two ways about it. And we all know that in the lower echelons of rallying which the entire US is, cash is going to be the SINGLE best way of going faster. (I say lower echelons because even at the top end of motorsport $$ do not = wins. eg Toyota F1)

Fortunately, in rallying we have the X-factor that those that have the SuperCars that go SuperFast can crash just as easily, if not easier, than others since when I drive I have that voice in the back of my head telling me that if I break it, I fix it, which acts as a restrictor in its own right.
They have the money and team to fix it so maybe there is a "win it or bin it" mentality.

That's what I hope anyway!
YMMV,

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Nick Taylor.
Knobhead.
Los Angeles, CA.

It may just be me, but I'm leary of turning Rally into an EXTREME sport, or some of the follow-ons it attracts. I don't think we need roof tapping contests breaking out at spectator areas or a wet t-shirt conetst at the STPR water crossing(but the ladies are welcome to do that nearby, just not before the crossing). Maybe I'm just a young fart, but I got into Rally for the cars and the roads not back flips and fluff.(back fluffs?)

I think we need to embrace elements of the past, looking at what cause the growthback in the 80s and 90s (granted I wasn't really aware of much back then personally) and then look at the Spitznazi fiasco. My opinion as to the growth (with caveat included) is we had very few 4wd monsters and a more level field of competition as far as car choice went. I relish at pics of the Buzzard brothers, the Triumphs, and of course "Moby Dick II."

Yes we are getting some good exposure from talentd drivers such as Block. Just don't make me get off the ride I've been on for the last 8 years; just because I don't want a Subie (opiate of the masses) or an invite to the X-games.

Duffy B

Damn good metaphor, John.

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Brian Driggs | KG7KCA | PHX, AZ | 89 Pajero
alterius non sit qui suus esse potest

john vanlandingham Wrote:
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> And the guy in questions starts saying "Yep i've
> always succeeeded in every endevor I've undertaken
> and I'm the........"

HOLY FUCK, someone actually SAID that.

Nobody succeeds in every endeavor. Nobody. If they manage to not fuck up somehow, all that means is they tried something too easy. And if it's too easy, it's not really an endeavor then is it?

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Pete Remner
Cleveland, Ohio

1984 RX-7 (rallycross thing)
1978
Silence is golden, but duct tape is silver.

Grant it that I'm some head in the clouds punk.. who's got a house he can barely handle yadda yadda yadda..

That being said, I can't for the life of me figure out how someone can run a 4wd tricked out car in a rally that costs $$$ to enter, $$$ to run, --let's not mention that there is a real chance the car will get written off-- for how much money???

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Andrew M
Onterrible
30ish