You have got to be shittin' me.

[explosive-cabbage]

Is this a guilty pleasure??

 

Because Gymkhana 5 is about as good as it gets.

 

 

Forget the fact this guy dresses like a clown, his driving skill is pretty epic.

[triumph1300]

Just wondering, have you been in a coma?

This vid has done the rounds already everywhere for weeks lol

[Spiny Norman]

He's good at the stuff he practises day in day out, but he came a cropper several times when he tried real motor sport.

 

[vulgalour]

Then there's this...

 

[Tayne]

Its not real you know.

As with Hollywood actors who don't have driving licenses staring in movie car chases, its amazing what a seven figure budget and a 100man crew with a few million worth of camera and lighting equipment can accomplish in four months.

 

Proper rally drivers can generate 10 minutes of footage in 10 minutes.

The marshall counts them down, they start the stage and drive flat out for 10-15miles following the directions of the man next to them on a winding dirt road that they may have driven once before if they're lucky.

They don't do each corner 100 times until they slide at just the right angle for the cameras, they don't move the scenery and they don't make their own gate posts.

 

If that jumped-up shoe salesman was half as good as he thinks he is he'd have had to extend his house to store all his WRC trophies.

His results table is is mostly DNFs and DNSUs (Did Not Show Up).

 

There's more talented mechanics, farmers, and plumbers in the amateur classes running caged up 205 GTIs with mismatched bucket seats being supported by a their (unpaid) mates driving old Transits running on cherry.

[willswitchengage]

Again though it's been ruined in that they let some media studies interns do the shoot's editing, same for the one at the port and on TG.

 

is the best imho - in your face, the best noises (it's actually worth turning your speakers up), absolute minimal use of slow motion, fast paced all the way through.

[vulgalour]

I believe Ken Block is what they used to call "one of those showboating yanks". A friend of mine has been into Rallying since forever, if I remember rightly he started out with a Nissan Cherry, then moved on to a Mk3 Escort hatch, a Mk3 escort estate, a Mk4 escort and currently, a Sierra 4x4. He loves his rallying, and he's pretty good if I do say so myself. His videos aren't the best but that's really down to budget and he doesn't have massive sponsorship but he MUST be a talented drive to get the old boat around the track quicker than some of the more expensive, better kitted out machines he competes against.

 

He's got a channel over on Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/user/WolfmotorSport

 

He desperately wants to go pro with his driving, it's his big passion in life, but for now and for the forseeable because of the insane budgets required, he's a mechanic in an MG garage.

[dollywobbler]

I got a bit bored with the San Fran video. Yes, he's got impressive car control - it is after all a Fiesta with a ridiculous amount of power that, given the chance, most of us would drive straight into the scenery - but it's more an advert for how bloody tough that car is.

 

I really did enjoy the one that was used on Top Gear. Loved the slo-mo scenes. It is nice to see a WRC car going sidewards too - having sat on a frozen hillside to watch the WRC boys in 2010, I can confirm that Block is far more entertaining to watch than Loeb et al. Sure, he's slower, but it's not always about that (well, ok, it is if you actually want to win!).

[Mr Lobster]

Seems to be a lot more hype than talent to me. Yeh he might be able to drive but from actual results he's not half as good as he'd like to think he is.

[explosive-cabbage]

Yeh I can see what you guys mean, he may not be great in WRC but he's pretty good at what he does IMHO. Wasting rubber.

His job is to entertain and advertise, and sell shoes to yobbos. This has to be the best advert I have seen in a while.

 

I think I was most impressed with Gymkhana 2 because of the way he drifted the car on the embankment of that autodrome. It must take hell of a lot of skill to drift a car like that on a bank. And San Fran is all hills like that, its pretty awe-inspiring.

 

Anyway that's my opinion, don't lynch me.

[garethj]

Here's the Autoshite version

 

[morris_ital_lover]

Each to his own but I quite like him, he might have been a cack WRC driver but he isn't too bad at Gymkhana and I for one would need all the Fiestas in the world to attempt the first minute of that footage and even then I'd have to use some Focii. I loved that Gymkhana 5 I thought they had lost their way a bit but the sheer scale of it is amazing.

[explosive-cabbage]

+1

[Spiny Norman]

Here's the Autoshite version

 

 

 

I remember that ad.

The think I love about Russ Swift is how "normal" he looks. Imagine getting in a Montego with someone who looks like "Photocopier toner salesman of the year 1987 (North west division)" and he does that to you..

[eddyramrod]

You do realise that Montego driver was an actor? Simon someone I think. Russ did the stuntwork but not the smiling-to-camera. However, yes, Russ does look totally normal and sensible and I can imagine how much of a surprise you'd get if you failed to recognise him... I've seen him work and he clearly enjoys himself!

 

In September 1989, when I had my Dolomite, I went to see a round of a rally at Albert Dock in Liverpool. Might have been the Avon Tour Of Britain, but I could be wrong. Anyway the round was supposed to be an autotest-type stage in one of the parking areas, great fun. Then this white Montego arrived and the commentator announced that Russ Swift, former multiple autotest champion and famous Montego stunt driver, was going to do a preview lap for us. Which he duly did, and it was a joy to watch. Then came the rally cars. After a while Russ came on and did another lap. Faster than the Group A rally cars, in a boggo 2.0 Montego. Good man Russ! I still have my VHS video of him from that era, "On Two Wheels."

[Tayne]

+ eleventy billion on the gent that is Russ Swift.

 

 

He does his stuff live in front of a big crowd over and over again rather the shoe salesman doing each bit over and over for the camera man and later the editor.

Has anyone seen Bloc live?

 

 

Click the picture for more details.

 

Two Wheels by Tayne, on Flickr

[cort16]

Ken Blocks got SKILLZ alright but he's more a drifter than a rally driver. When he came over and started to try to compete against the likes of Sébastien Loeb in the WRC he bottled it and shat a dirty pickle only managing 22nd place.

It a shame really as someone with a high profile like him would be really good for the WRC I recon. Although Loeb and the likes are amazing drivers they're about as exciting as an industrial carpet conference.

[ayd]

2penneth

 

I quite like him / his gymkhana videos and Ok he's no rally hero but I wouldn't say no to some of his skills.

 

On another note he's the co-founder of DC and entered the market pretty much when skateboarding and some extreme sports were at a low ebb, they stuck it out and fought hard to get to where they are and even with all the 'maybe not so likable' show and glamour of videos like this, DC have pumped tons and tons of money back in to extreme sports, so eve if I didn't like the videos I have to admire him for supporting my favourite past time.

Plus, despite the current fashion for DC, they are bloody good and hard wearing skate shoes .

 

OK back to cars......

[trigger]

That's not the Autoshite version, THIS is the Autoshite version!.

 

[Spiny Norman]

You do realise that Montego driver was an actor?

 

Yup.

It was RS I had in mind when I made the comment above. TBH I didn't even watch the whole vid so I couldn't even tell you what the bloke seen behind the wheel looks like.

 

Russ Swift - with assorted flange.

[pompei]

^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^

 

I'm off to get me a MINI

[Wilko220]

That's not the Autoshite version, THIS is the Autoshite version!.

 

 

That is brilliant - love the slow motion bits!

[vulgalour]

Trigger and I managed to find the same video then.

[Wilko220]

Not sure I've every forgiven Russ Swift for this though...

 

[barrett]

I'm off to get me a MINI

 

There's probably cheaper and less painful ways of attracting a bevy of 14 year old ladyboys tbh (I've heard VW Polo 'Breadvans' are pretty good)