Latest / Kenny Wallace Media / 3x DIRTcar UMP Champion Nick Hoffman | Kenny Conversation #13

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3x DIRTcar UMP Champion Nick Hoffman | Kenny Conversation #13 · Kenny Wallace Media

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Hello everyone and welcome to Kenny conversation sponsored by
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Well we're trying to cover all the bases in dirt race and we
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did Jonathan Davenport and super late models with done.
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Brad sweet in the World of Outlaw winged, sprint cars.
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And finally the best it's ever been in the world of dirt ump
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modifieds, Nick, Hoffman, Nick. How you doing buddy?
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I'm pretty good. Thanks for having me.
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I really appreciate it. Well, you're the last piece to
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the puzzle and I wanted to do it the way that they do it in
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racing. You know, we seems like the
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winged sprint. Cars are number one, I jumped
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ahead and put Davenport under but I'm so we got 12 million
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dollars last year. I mean come on.
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That's what I was thinking. Anybody wants to million
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dollars. That's unheard of, so Nick.
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You've watched any conversation. We go forward and backwards a
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little bit. I'm not a journalist, we just
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love talking racing so let me start out like this.
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You're Nick Hoffman, you're from st.
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Louis, but you're right across River and Illinois.
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So, where are you from? Yeah.
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Belleville Illinois would be my hometown.
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But yeah. So basically where I lived was
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just a double-wide trailer and I could almost see the arch from
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where I live. So, I claim st.
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Louis, you know, just as I was so close, I was almost basically
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East st. Louis, my dad's shop was in East
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st. Louis, which was only like a
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half, a mile down the road, so I'll claim st.
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Louis, he, and I like that, because when we look at your
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race car, you got the number two, You got the arch in there
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is that 618 or three more singles area, the Illinois side
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of st. Louis area code.
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So I like a lot of people give me crap for that because they
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say, it's 314, but on 1618 side, that's hey man.
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You stay your lane, you do your own deals.
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So 31 years old and you're living in Mooresville, North
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Carolina now, is that right? Yeah.
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Yeah. And kind of same deal.
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Is you just came down here, trying to be an asphalt racer
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and ended up being a new razor. Hey, you just really touched on
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something. Now just like the rest.
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I done my due diligence, I don't want to be an idiot.
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I feel like I know you as good as anybody but I still wanted to
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check up with you. You just said you had an asphalt
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dream and I I went to Mike Miller's, mittler Brothers
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Machine Shop over in Wentzville Missouri and we all know the
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Mike Miller. We lost Mike but he was
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legendary and I walked into his building and I looked up and I
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just I guess I lost track. I was so focused on my NASCAR
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career. There you are.
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Tell me about the start of your asphalt career.
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Yeah so I grew up you know watching dad raised around St,
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Louis racing modifieds and stuff and then We moved to North
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Carolina was only 10 years old and there wasn't a whole lot of
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dirt racing. It all down here so I raised a
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lot of asphalt grew up doing like the Bandoleros, the legend
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Karzai. Also, lazy cars.
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All the stuff that, you know, normal kid would do to try and
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make it to NASCAR at that time, you know, racing against Matt
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Martin and Brandon McReynolds and you know Corey LaJoie.
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And a lot of them guys at that time.
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So grew up doing that and then kind of moved over to the dirt
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side. Probably when I was 13 14 range
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but at the same time was still racing my ass fall a lot.
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Yeah, the whole deal with Mike Miller.
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Dad worked for him when we live in St.
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Louis build. A lot of the motors that you
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know, Carl Edwards wrote Jane, MacMurray.
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Lot of them guys. And so he worked for him and it
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was always a joke. And I'm 8 years old at this time
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and joke joked around, saying whenever you turn 18, we're
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going to put you in this truck. Well, Mike was a man of his word
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and whenever I turned 18 I got to rank 3 starts in the truck
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series with him and it's just really cool experience for me
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and you know at the time And that's where I was trying to do
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is trying to make it to NASCAR and was able to, you know,
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achieve that of run a couple truck races and run pretty well.
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So I enjoyed doing that. Then whenever he got diagnosed
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with cancer he wanted me to come back and do Eldora.
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So that was his big deal. Wanted to put me in a truck for
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El Toro, so I was able to do that.
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And I got Mike Miller as last top-10 finish and that was
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pretty cool. Very nice.
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Yeah, you know, your I listened intently to the guests because I
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want to respond. It's a conversation and up, you
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sound almost like Jonathan Davenport were Bandoleros,
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Legends cars, whatever it is, the desire of the dream, you
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know? Cuz you're smart enough to know
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that asphalt, NASCAR is where you going to make it and what
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we're going to dive deeper into that in a little bit.
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Your work ethic is something that I really want to Zone in
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on. I saw you really for the first
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time. I mean, I we raced each other in
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2012 but it was Eldora where I realized you and your family
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it's kind of something rusty would say.
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We you work your guts out. It just means to the maximum
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Peak melchior only down, bend the tubing weld your own cars
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together. When I look at your dad Darrell
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and your Uncle Dean it seems like that is is in bread.
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It's like it comes with being a Hoffman, like, you do everything
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the hard way. And am I off on this know, for
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sure? I mean, I I've heard stories of
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my dad when you know, when he was trying to race and, you
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know, doing what no money and basically building cars in the
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basement of my Grandma and Grandpa's house and Grandpa all
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sponsored some race cars, but he never raised himself.
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And I mean, he basically Them guys have at it like build the
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cars in the shop down in the basement and he wasn't even
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really check on him or anything. Dad said, like, they be down
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there well and stuff up. And they didn't know how to
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weld, really. They just learn the hard way.
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So I grew up with that kind of mentality.
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Like, we didn't have a whole lot of money, so I just got to do
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whatever it takes to make it work.
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And dad was an engine builder. And I hated the engine side of
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like, I don't know. He got me into like tearing
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Motors down and all that stuff and I've never really got
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fascinated by that. I was more fascinated by the
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trial and error like building stuff and seeing if it works and
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if it Sucks and it's your fault. So I got kind of fascinated with
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that and he kind of let me run on the chassis side and doing
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the setup stuff. So, we suck for a long time, I
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mean I he did the right thing with me though.
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I felt like is like stuck me out in Illinois which is the hotbed
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for modified racing you know that just as well as anybody and
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stuck me out there and I got laughed and everything else, you
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know? And but you're only going to be
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as good as the guys race against and so he you know made me Chase
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the toughest guys in the country and it worked out for me.
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So yeah, I just We got into the engine side and just had to
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hustle to, you know, try and go racing.
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We couldn't really afford to do it the way we're doing it, but
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luckily him and building Motors and then eventually, I started
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building chassis and it made it where it was really cost
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effective for us, and was able to actually go and try and make
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some money. So, I want to lay a little bit
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of a platform here, because at the end of my list, I want to
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die deep into you, upsetting the modified world and creating this
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fast race car. And Pleat domination, but I want
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to be patient until we get there.
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Maybe Uncle Dean or Darryl. Tell me a story where your dad's
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racing or Dean's racing eight cylinders in a motor and
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something happens early that night and somehow your dad or
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your uncle. And I don't know if you know
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this story but they told me the story they got rid of two
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cylinders. And raced on six cylinders at
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night and won the, a main. Do you remember this story or
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not? I don't know that story, but
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that doesn't surprise me at all because it's like if there's a
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will there's a way with my old man like I'm telling you,
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there's been a lot of situations where 90% of the people racing
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would have loaded up, but he made it work some way or the
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other you know. Like I remember the first time I
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won the mayoral Downey Memorial which is a 4001 modified race it
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Lawrenceburg they run a dash. I think I On second, the dash,
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whatever second or third and the front seal of the motor blew out
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of the crank. So it's pouring oil everywhere
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and we got a 44 lap feature coming up.
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And so he's like, he does mixes up some epoxy gets in there with
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a screwdriver and prize that front seal back in there with a
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screwdriver and an epoxy that deal up and then put an extra
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two quarts of oil and it was like I don't know if it's gonna
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make it or not, but just see. And I was able to win the race
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and I think when he drained the oil, I think it had a quarter.
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Left in it so it made it, but it was her, you know, at the end
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but it was like, you know, we just gotta try and, you know,
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make make do with what we got to try and win the race and it
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worked out. Yeah.
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I hear these stories from the great Dick Trickle or my family
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but I think your family wins, I think you guys are kind of tied
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with the great Dick Trickle. You know it you your family
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falls under the new one that I've got out there that I
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started firing up over the last month is gotta wanna dick was
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North had that Northern verbiage, you know, no yah and
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and but God, I wanna, that means you're not giving up and you got
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to want it. And I will never forget eight
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cylinders. We blowed up, let's find the two
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cylinders that are destroyed. Let's get rid of him and somehow
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the rod piston kept going up and down.
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But the the valves quit work and but I just I just want to lay
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that out there. He has for a long time.
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Yeah. Yeah, it's no surprise to me
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because I mean that's just the way he's always race and I mean
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it they had multiple times or guys, come over and tell you
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can't do that, there's no way that's going to work.
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And it's like, it made it, you know, there's just there's so
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many situations that's happened at just different things that
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he'll find a way to make it work.
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Yeah. So we're gonna get two Elite but
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I want to I'd like to go about things a little different way,
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you know, kind of like a movie where you go to the end and you
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start then. Yeah.
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So right now your In your dream you are in the highest form of
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dirt late models which is the World of Outlaws, the World of
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Outlaw dirt, super late models. You just got done running 13th
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in one of the biggest races of the year, the dream and now
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you're a World of Outlaw late-model racer.
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You won shockingly already North Carolina's state line, Speedway.
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Your style slippery is an ice rink, tell me what that you
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know, I know Nick tell me what that meant to you when you were
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drunk, you got on the hauler and you're driving by yourself when
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you thought about it. How big was that win for you?
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Yeah, man. Like, sitting here before it
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ever happened. I kind of like, thought about
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like what do I even do? Like, you know, how I react or
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anything and I Don't even know what I did, you know.
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So I just like it all happened. So quick, and the way the race
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played out is pretty cool for me and Gordie the lineup on the
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front row together. You know, one of my best friends
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were grew up racing together and for me to won my first.
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I'll erase that night and was really cool.
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So basically passed him for the lead was the only pass I made
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all night so that was kind of neat.
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But yeah so after just reflecting back on it.
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It's like it just a huge sigh of relief you know of like now you
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think You know, I can get this done, I can do it every night.
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I feel like and so we've been super close since to that Farmer
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City and Tri-City. So right now, just everything's
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kind of firing Oli, Oli cylinders and just confidence is
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high. And I just at this point now I
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know I can get it done. And pretty, pretty fortunate
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with the Rye diamond So we all know that I haven't created a
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firestorm, but I broached the subject of, you know, how do
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people make it and dirt racing? So we've all we've always known,
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you know, what else you also started?
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We had to have John child's, who owns child's Tire?
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That was the guy that helped us. We had to have free Motors and
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we got those from Don Kern current Racing Engines way that
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free shocks, you know, we got them from Pro George, Gillespie,
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you and down the line. Us Wallace has big balls stove.
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So, what that type of mentality Tell me about the car owner.
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Okay. So I know Nick Hoffman just
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doesn't go bam. He's sitting in a million-dollar
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truck and trailer. Everybody needs somebody.
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Yep, tell me about your Carter and how you got to the World of
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Outlaw late models? Yeah so basically that ride
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became open because Devin Moran was driving for him last year
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and Devon got the call to go drive what Hudson O'Neill drove
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last year which was as for the Lazydays RV ride for Roger
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sellers. So So tight or egg becomes a
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free agent at this point if you know his Right is open.
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So he's kind of going down the list called a couple guys.
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And so basically I was at my good friend Ricky Stenhouse is
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wedding and I was the first time that I called me.
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And at first, Steve arpan called me and arpan had kind of been
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pushing to try and get me a ride and a couple different deals.
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And so Steve our band called me. I was like, you know, would you
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be interested in talking to tie this and that the owner?
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Longhorn. Yes, yeah, own along, which our
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of long one, so he's been pushing for that and then so Ty
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calls me up that night and we talked for a little while and
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then basically it all happened pretty quick because then, you
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know, this is think they got married in November so
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january/february. We're racing Outlaws.
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So it all spiraled really quick and the biggest thing.
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Everything's always been held at his shop and for him.
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He kind of, you know, I feel like wanted it to stay there,
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but then now looking back at it. I think he's happy, it's down at
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my place just because everything's going smooth.
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He doesn't have to babysit us. I basically take care of all,
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you know, all this stuff like it's my own.
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So it worked out really well, and it just spiral really quick.
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But yeah, he's got a great operation.
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He just works a regular, you know, Water Treatment Plant,
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he's no, you know, millionaire or anything.
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He's got a government job doing that and then he's got his Parts
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business with tight or Farts and they deal a longhorn chassis.
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So, you know, Kenny Wallace V wanted to go late mile race and
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he called tight, or I can order a longhorn from Thai so he does
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a lot of different things. He's got his hands in a lot of,
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you know, different areas to try and make money and go racing and
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just what he enjoys doing and it's kind of you know it's a
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family deal. Just like my deal was so it kind
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of fit me really well. I think what interests me most
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is a racer and I know his if any Racers ever thought about you
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going, super late model racing is here, we are in the mods but
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I noticed you know we all have peripheral vision and that came
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from my days in the NASCAR garage area, right?
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You got this car right here, you're on a creeper, you know
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you're underneath your car but you're looking over here at this
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guy's trailing arms, you always had good peripheral vision with
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your dirt. Super late model guys I saw I've
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watched you hold casual conversations with Kevin Rumley.
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You've always been up to speed on the late models.
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Yeah, I think a lot of that helps my modified side.
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You know I've raced enough late mile races before this deal I've
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got a relationship and I feel like I got some respect for a
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lot of drivers through my modified career than this the
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handful of starts that I made in late my racing before but so I
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just talked all them guys and at the end of the day learning
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about what they're doing the late model side.
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It all trickles down to what we're doing on the modified.
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So you know, you can't learn enough anything.
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So I just take as much of that, you know advice and knowledge
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and everything and trying to regulate into my business or
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whatever so it all helps at the end of the day.
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But yeah it is. The biggest thing is I try to
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stay in my Lane. I don't really like parking side
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people. I have you know a handful of
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guys that I talk to and then I just feel like there's so many
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erasers that screw their self up because they talked to
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everybody. Buddy, I called the setup survey
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they go from one trailer to the next trailer and they take one
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thing from this guy. And take one thing from him and
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try and put it together and then they end up going even slower.
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So I tried a biggest thing is trying to stay in my own lane
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and just worry about my own program versus worried about
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everybody else. I'm a little bit into philosophy
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in Psychology, I can't help but just the way I am, I would say
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99.8% of the racers, want to buy a car, they want you to tell
17:13
them everything to do short of driving it.
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And if your information does not help them, then they get mad at
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you. Like if you just tell me what to
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do, I could win. What's going on?
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Are in racing. Yeah, I think everybody thinks
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there's a big secret out there, you know, especially, you know,
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I see it every day in the modified side people like, you
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know, think that you're holding back on this or that or you know
17:38
whatever. But you know what I won.
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The last three years I modified racing on is all pretty much
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standard stuff, you know, I mean you've seen under my car and
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there's nothing you're probably going to my shop on jack stands.
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Yeah. Yeah son.
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It's like Has to be balance.
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You have to be able to maneuver and you can't be too tied to
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lose whatever. So I just I see it all the time
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that everybody thinks is there's something out there that I could
18:15
just go out and buy. That's going to make my race car
18:17
faster, and it just doesn't work that way.
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So we're not the modified yet, we're in late model and yeah, I
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was I want to give you your credit where you know, You're
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where you want to be now in life.
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But you got it going on because I preach and we talked about
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this, okay, you know, you're not going to go to 60 years old
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running dirt, late model right now and you got Elite chassis,
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your your moneymaker and we'll talk about that in a minute but
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as you run the dirt, super late models, it seems like Everybody
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gets on the roles. You know, JD's like, you know,
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Davenport we're not running real good right now.
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I'm like, really? I thought you were, yeah, but
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you're not. So can you shed light on what
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that is about? Especially 100% in dirt racing,
19:09
your you win win win, then your way down here and you can't do
19:13
nothing what's that about. Yeah, I think, you know,
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everybody's gonna blame it on confidence and stuff, and which
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a lot of that is confidence. But I think the biggest thing is
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the late model trends, Change so fast, you know, whether it's
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everybody the last two years like we got to have a longhorn
19:28
car and then you know, Longhorn I still feel like is the best.
19:31
I would say, but rocket has made a surge obviously and are
19:35
winning a lot of races and are really good.
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So then you got guys that are jumping off the longhorn
19:38
bandwagon to jump on the rocket bandwagon.
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And so I think it goes and surges of like you know, maybe
19:43
they found something. So then you got a guy like JD,
19:46
they got very smart people working for them and so they
19:49
start testing and trying different stuff and they might
19:52
get off and then After like go back and regroup and start back
19:56
over. I think that's kind of what they
19:57
did at the dream because JD was parked right beside me.
20:00
And we would talk pretty much every time he got off the
20:02
racetrack and the first two days.
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He was like weird terrible, like, I don't know why.
20:07
And so I think the last day, they kind of went back to their
20:10
old notebook, like, all right, you know, this is what we did.
20:13
This is what's want us races here in the past and he was able
20:15
to get it done for 129 Grand. So fan, looking back at it.
20:21
Like they didn't realize that he was struggling.
20:23
As bad as it was because he still wants.
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He traces still run, you know, the top three or four but he's
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like, I don't know what it is like.
20:28
I feel terrible. So it's a lot of things that
20:31
race fans might not see. But yeah, I mean as a driver you
20:35
know, you kind of look at it like JD, you know, these
20:39
typically went in all the prelim nights and everything and he
20:41
just felt like he wasn't very good.
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So Billy Moore, you're the great Billy Moyer.
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He once said to me, he stops here to house because he lives
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south of me in Bates. Ville Arkansas and you've been
20:55
here. But Billy Moore said to me, when
20:59
I was talking chassis with him, he said he said what you just
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said. He says, you know, when we try
21:04
things we're going to go backwards.
21:08
Because we're in unknown territory.
21:10
And if you do six things, you're open to find to.
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Yep. What is and I listen too early.
21:17
You said how do you trial and error?
21:19
When you were building Elite? Is that the right philosophy?
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Yeah I mean there's no better time to try something as as it
21:28
is like during a race or a scenario you can go test all you
21:31
want and you'll feel like a hero and then you get out there in
21:34
the race and you suck, you know, so I I test very minimal and I
21:38
test during races a lot and it might set you back and like when
21:42
you're on a tour like the Outlaws, you can't really test
21:44
the whole lot. You kind of got to know what,
21:46
you know, run what, you know all the time.
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But there is some situations where we're not run Outlaws and
21:51
that's your time to try something.
21:53
So the biggest thing on, I drove for Scott Bloomquist last year,
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I got to test with him. One time, people kind of had
22:00
told me how he tests but how he tested, I think was probably the
22:04
smartest way of testing I've ever been around.
22:08
God, basically, I got in the car and we'd make an adjustment.
22:12
I pull out on the racetrack, run down in turn one and two wide
22:15
open through three and four and then I'd run through one and two
22:17
fast again and then shut her down on the back.
22:20
So I make a lap and a half and if you ain't got it figured out
22:22
what that car feels like and a lap and a half.
22:24
You're probably not going to figure it out.
22:25
So he's like a laugh and a half and that's all you got and then
22:28
pull back into making another adjustment of go back out.
22:31
So that way you're not laughing Motors out, you're not killing
22:33
tires. Your tires don't get too hot or
22:36
anything like that but that was a To me that was a wild way to
22:40
test, but I feel like it was, you know, you learn the most and
22:43
you were able to get the most runs in and try the most things
22:46
at one period of time for a test session.
22:49
Let's talk about that. Just for a minute.
22:50
Scott Bloomquist. Now my disclaimer is he's weird,
22:55
he's different blah, blah blah, but you know, and I've said this
23:01
before, Einstein all the greatest are different rumbly.
23:06
It is Bloomquist, is he fall? That category is a brilliant
23:12
weird man. Yeah, he definitely.
23:15
The way he thinks about anything in life is way different than
23:18
anybody I've ever been around. I think a lot of people have
23:22
seen that through his podcast and everything he's done, but at
23:26
the end of the day, he's like, he's a super nice guy.
23:29
And he's, you know, people would kind of look at him as like hard
23:32
to approach and that type of stuff, but he's very nice guy to
23:35
talk to anybody, he's great with my kids.
23:38
Is and stuff. Like he's just a really good
23:39
guy. He did a lot for me.
23:42
So I was, you know, travel up and down the road with him for
23:44
basically six months was some that probably very few have ever
23:49
done but to drive his race car. It was you know you know big
23:53
accomplishment for me to even have that honor to do it but
23:56
yeah I mean just very smart guy. Thanks about things way
24:00
different than we do and I think that's what made him.
24:02
So successful for a long time as like when you're thinking about
24:05
the little things, there's so far.
24:08
In death, that he would go into the smallest things, whether
24:12
it's house brings travel and the hysteresis and Springs to.
24:16
We were pulling rear ends out almost every other week to check
24:19
the straightness of rear ends and mess with that.
24:21
I mean there was just so many little Minor Details that he
24:24
just crossed that nobody else. I don't even think thinks about
24:28
you, you went to school in. Sometimes it's not even about
24:33
tricks of the trade, is about The way you work, pulling runs
24:38
out. That would be something.
24:39
Somebody at a local trade might do once a year.
24:42
Maybe never take their rear end out.
24:44
So his work ethic is pretty hardcore.
24:46
Yeah. And you know, there's no
24:51
shortage of work, but like it's always late at night.
24:53
I think, everybody kind of knows that how Scott, you know, works
24:56
is like, will get, you know, home from a race or whatever.
24:58
And it doesn't mean nothing for him to work till 4:00 or 5:00 in
25:01
the morning. So, you know, he just says
25:04
Center sits on his Crown Royal. Oh, and just works, you know?
25:07
So yeah, it's pretty impressive, he's just very smart with tires.
25:12
Grooving Tire siping tires, he had ways to side tires, and
25:16
groove tires per race track. And I mean, he has a wall at his
25:20
shop that is just full of, you know, tires that he won races
25:23
on. So he could and he's got them
25:25
label like this was a Batesville Tire.
25:26
This was a Tri-City Tire, he can pull it down and look at how it
25:29
war and be like, okay this how my group my stuff for when I go
25:32
back to Batesville or wherever so, Kind of crazy.
25:36
He had ways that like, he would teach me like how I need to hold
25:39
the grinder for different places.
25:41
We were going, like, just crazy stuff, you know, like, I'm
25:46
afraid. I might have messed up a lot of
25:47
my tires. I feel like I have ergonomics
25:53
the way I use my grinder. Yeah.
25:55
So he would round edges at some places.
25:57
He goes, and he make sure the edges are sharp other.
25:59
It's just pretty wild. He's just so in-depth on
26:02
everything. I might have to call you after
26:04
this and talk to you about the The way I grind my tires and
26:07
some of my race tracks. Well, look, Nick, we go Vis far
26:13
as we could in the dirt late model were look at you.
26:18
I mean, you you've done it, you got it going on, you took the
26:22
leap of faith. I like it, that we document it
26:26
at. You told the owner.
26:27
Hey, give me all your stuff so I can control it.
26:31
So you're doing it and that's all there is to it.
26:35
You're very start of your late model career and you're already
26:39
winning. You're up there in the points.
26:41
You're racing. These guys.
26:42
So that's just that. So let's let's go back a little
26:48
bit now. Your dad builds Motors, your dad
26:52
works for NASCAR Tech and he builds those motors for your
26:56
dirt modified. So right now I want to clean the
27:00
slate and I want to go to you as a dirt modified guy.
27:05
You're a dirt modified guy right now in this interview although
27:08
we know your your late model die.
27:11
So your dad build your Motors. But he'll eat elite chassis.
27:17
How the hell did that start? Yeah, so going back to the
27:21
saying I was trial and error doing this and that and try to a
27:24
couple different chassis. There was a guy down here that
27:27
work for ganassi during the day and he would build some modified
27:30
tonight. Back in the 90s Dirt Works was
27:33
massive dork chassis. They build 300 cars, a year,
27:36
massive company here in Missouri.
27:38
Yep, somani your eyes was the guy's name.
27:40
He was the head fabricator at dirt works and then move South
27:44
to work in. NASCAR.
27:45
Just like all of us did they wanted to work in NASCAR and try
27:49
and make a living there? So he did he was a you know
27:51
building frames at going to ask you during the day and they come
27:54
home he would probably only build two to three modifieds a
27:57
year, just kind of a pride and joy.
27:59
Just wanted to do it at a shop at his house and so my was
28:03
building all my stuff, but his jig the way it was set up like
28:06
not any of his cars were the same, you know, like everything
28:09
was different and he would let me come in and I'd move some
28:13
brackets around do this and that Go out there and race and ended
28:17
up winning the 2012. Gatornationals in one of his
28:20
cars against me. Yeah, so last year, yeah, I
28:24
passed Austin Dillon that night to win.
28:26
So, that was really cool. So, that is what leaped my
28:29
whole, modified career right there, that night.
28:31
And then, at the end of 2012, he got diagnosed with cancer in the
28:36
middle. Rains are right there, 2012, and
28:39
wanting to be able to build cars again.
28:41
And so, I bought a lot of his equipment and decided I was
28:43
gonna start my own deal. Heel and ball out as equipment.
28:47
And then I went to the Allison Brothers which were the same
28:49
Allison's from Nascar. It was Donnie.
28:52
Allison's, boys are three of them and so they have a shop
28:56
that they used to build Legend, cars and stuff.
28:58
And they had never even really been to a dirt race.
29:01
So they knew nothing about what we're building.
29:04
So they decided they wanted to take this deal on and build the
29:07
first couple frames. So, you know, I basically had
29:11
all my chassis, brackets drawn. And cut out and Sheet Metal and
29:16
took them to Dale, Earnhardt. Incorporated was like here, can
29:18
you make this out of steel? You know, and that's kind of how
29:22
we got started and built that first car 17 days from the
29:27
tubing rack to the racetrack at Eldora for the fall Nationals at
29:30
Eldora 137 cars. They're a qualified QuickTime
29:34
overall, I won the heat, I won the fall Nationals.
29:37
So that was like, huge for my chassis company, but my career
29:41
my family went to the fall Nationals for 20 years.
29:44
My dad was never able to win it, and I was able to win in 2012
29:48
and that was what leap my whole chassis company that you know,
29:51
that first week I'm an 18 year old kid and that first week I
29:54
got phone calls and I, you know, I'm starting to get people.
29:58
Wanting buy cars will crop was my very first phone call, and it
30:02
was actually Willy Crum bones Willie's carburetors.
30:04
They were the first people to call me that we want to order a
30:06
car. So I'm an 18 year old kid.
30:08
He sends me a deposit for 20 grand and that's like more money
30:11
I've ever seen a senior like you're looking at the dive in
30:14
there. Yeah, yeah.
30:16
That's that's grown-up money. Yeah.
30:18
Like what am I gonna do with? You know, we ended up building
30:22
him his first car and took it to PRI and display.
30:25
Two cars that PRI and that was now me and were like best
30:28
friends. So it worked out really well.
30:30
But yeah from there it was like I had to grow up really quick
30:34
and learn how to run a business and then raise and try and
30:37
juggle everything at once. And yeah I was getting you know
30:39
a lot of deposits and cars and you know then I got a promise
30:43
these guys I'm going to have this car.
30:44
Done and try and get it done and everything.
30:46
So I grew up really quick and I think at first everybody kind of
30:49
thought it was going to be a fad and then you know I was gonna do
30:52
it for one or two years and be out real quick and now I've been
30:55
around for 11 years and you know, made a staple.
30:59
I'm very impressed that you do all this in your father and your
31:06
mom's two-car garage. I tell people I said before you
31:10
talk crap about Nick Hoffman, you need to go see how he does.
31:14
This you are you shocked America?
31:20
I mean literally I know that sounds big time when people see
31:23
where you do all this it's a shocking blow to a lot of
31:26
people's Eagle because they feel like the reason surmise got
31:30
something is because they got more.
31:33
You don't have anything. I got the little bitty garage
31:37
and how the hell you do it? Yeah.
31:39
They all, you know, through the years have all had the mentality
31:43
that I have NASCAR money. A lot which you see that all the
31:47
time on your side too. But like, yeah, we just do it
31:50
out of a small. Small two-car garage.
31:52
That's where all my Chassis. Works done.
31:54
Ricky Stenhouse houses. All my late model setup, which
31:57
is just a small shop at his Ranch here now.
32:01
Yeah, so that's where all my late-model stuff is at but all
32:04
my mods self still at my parents.
32:06
And within the next six months, I'm actually going to have a
32:09
shop built to house everything. So I finally feel like I've made
32:12
it where everything can go into Job, my dad's engine engine
32:16
stopped everything. All in one building my chassis
32:18
shop and then I leave my house now.
32:19
So I'm really looking forward to that.
32:21
That's going to be huge as far as helping my chassis business.
32:24
You know, become more manageable for me to try and oversee
32:29
everything and then have my guys that are working on my late
32:32
model side too. So I feel like it's just going
32:33
to help me out a bunch and then I'll be activating my kids to
32:37
did, you say your dad's motor shop is going to come in your
32:40
building? Yeah.
32:41
So I'm gonna do everything all in one building.
32:43
So that'd be a 1. Stop shop for everything.
32:46
Yeah. So maybe your dad, take that old
32:47
car? He's been working on for 10
32:49
years and push it in the. Yeah, he's pumped up to get his
32:52
garage back, so you can actually work on his hot rod.
32:54
So, do you think with your new building?
32:58
So in other words, you're building this beautiful new
33:01
building. Do you think you're still gonna
33:04
use that mentality? Where your condensed or you?
33:07
Are you finally going to spread your drink wings and use your
33:11
whole shop? Yeah, I just I feel like I'm so
33:15
organized now because I have to be have no choice that I have it
33:19
all drawn up on paper. I mean like it's all sitting
33:22
right here like the floor plan, you know, and love it.
33:25
Yeah. Everything's completely drawn
33:27
up. A like how everything should be
33:30
where everything should be placed and all that stuff just
33:32
because I'm I am so condensed right now that I don't want to
33:35
use up a bunch of floor space for nothing and also I'll still
33:39
do it that way. But the biggest thing for me is
33:41
like right now I have cars over in storage a trick.
33:44
He's like modifies just in the barn.
33:46
This is my house. Yeah.
33:48
And his shop because I ain't got room for my my shop.
33:51
If I had a shop big enough that I can have all these cars laid
33:54
out. I have enough parts that I could
33:55
work on this one or that one, but right now I can only work on
33:57
one car because, you know, that's the only thing I got to
34:00
shop space for, but then I might be missing a set of brake pedals
34:04
or something. So then I can't finish the whole
34:06
cockpit and it just gets real frustrating real quick.
34:09
I have people that, you know, there's this phenomenon that if
34:13
he's poor I like him more and you know, open trailers and and
34:19
I'm like, calm down. You know, what I'm getting to is
34:25
you work with so little that I've watched you come back from
34:30
Volusia in February and the car that you dominated with would
34:34
stay in your hauler for months, because you have nowhere to put
34:38
it. Yep, that's the type of stuff
34:41
you do. Yeah, I've done that a lot.
34:43
There's a lot. Of times where my car never got
34:45
unloaded for, you know, weeks or months at a time, depending on
34:48
whatever the next big race was gonna be just because I didn't
34:52
have space and I was busy on customer cars or whatever, you
34:56
know? So and I'm not ever using that
34:58
as an excuse or just the way it was.
35:00
Yeah, there was a lot of times where I got home from Florida
35:04
and I didn't really plan on racing you know we in Florida
35:06
say in the middle of February, I didn't plan on racing intro,
35:08
probably April really so that thing would just sit in the
35:10
trailer. It was just another storage
35:13
trailer for me. So Yeah, I mean, down in a
35:16
bunch. I've showed up at race tracks
35:18
with my stuff till still dirty. I just hate to say it that way
35:20
but it's like, you know, it sucks.
35:22
I any of my customers they do that.
35:24
I really well. Listen, you're running back as
35:26
you don't clean your shit. So from hanging it's like I've
35:29
done that before. So it is what it is.
35:31
You know what you got to do. You get it done and I bring
35:35
these things up because there is this thing that if people got a
35:38
little hauler and it's the people that don't matter.
35:42
B lb, boasts a look, put your Put your stuff on open trailers,
35:46
somebody steal your quick change gears.
35:48
You know, we got this thing now called, you know, modern world.
35:53
And you can buy a Hallmark close trailer and use it all year
35:58
long. Let your wide Parker, you know,
36:00
car in your garage for the winter, but I wanted to bring
36:03
that up for so many reasons because I've always admired you
36:07
using your enclosed trailer as a storage space and yeah, you
36:13
know, Charlie my YouTube manager, he doesn't like me
36:16
cussing but You make chicken salad out of chicken.
36:22
Yeah, you're very good at it and I just wanted to draw that to
36:26
everybody's attention. So I want to, I want to call an
36:30
audible here. And then I want to talk about
36:33
the controversy. First of all, your family, your
36:39
sister asked sleep, Ashley. I think when I drink coffee,
36:43
every one swab, my mouth tightens up, but your sister
36:47
Ashley. In your brother-in-law.
36:49
Jeremy, they own Mill Bridge. We've got to acknowledge that
36:54
your family. Does it all your dad, builds
36:56
Motors, you build race cars. Just a little bit about
37:01
acknowledging this incredible phenomenon million loan by your
37:06
sister and brother-in-law. For me, it's really cool to just
37:09
I see every side of Motorsports, you know, from them track prep
37:14
wise all the way through running the show and getting people in
37:17
and out and everything else. So they do a great job.
37:21
I think they've had no bridge now for almost 10 years and when
37:26
we got it, when we first got it, it was terrible.
37:28
I'm it was run down. Just look like we would call it
37:31
a shithole, but that's basically what it was.
37:35
So now, it's became a massive thing across the country.
37:40
It's no Nationwide now. It's not so just really cool
37:45
what it's turned into but they work really hard.
37:48
They live on the property, they've expanded it, they're
37:52
fighting with the county now because they expanded it and
37:54
this and that it's just become a big ordeal.
37:56
But I mean now that's where all the NASCAR guys.
37:59
Hang out on Wednesday night, or Tuesday night, or whatever their
38:02
kids race on Tuesday or they might race on Wednesday.
38:04
Kyle Busch is racing on Wednesday is kids racing on
38:06
Tuesday so there's so many of those guys that come out and
38:10
they can go there and not be bothered.
38:12
You know all the fans or people walk around they don't bother
38:15
him you know so just really cool that what it's turned into.
38:18
I've made millions of laughs. They're racing whether it's an
38:21
outlaw card or micros or I've even made will have some I
38:25
modified there. So I think that's why you were
38:27
able to get an open-wheel. At the Dome.
38:30
And, you know, I mean you should because of Mill Bridge a little
38:34
bit. Like I got to know them guys
38:36
that I was I'm racing for their from Kansas.
38:39
I've got to know more through Facebook than anything but they
38:42
see me. Run a lot of Open Wheel stuff
38:43
through the outlaw carts and micros and stuff like that.
38:47
So that leads me into midget racing and I really enjoyed
38:52
around the image. I feel like for me that's
38:54
probably the toughest race and I do I know like late my racing
38:58
and super tough as far as the competitive level and everything
39:00
but the midget side. So second nature to me that it
39:06
it's way different. So it's tough for me and I
39:08
really enjoy doing it. So I've got to run the midget
39:11
race at Mill, Bridge twice and run good there.
39:14
So I think a lot of those just experienced a racing on the
39:17
racetrack and that place is just turned into a really cool place
39:21
to go on Tuesday or Wednesday night.
39:22
Take your kids and it's really neat.
39:25
Well, you're the ultimate racing family.
39:27
So okay. We're going to dive into this
39:30
one, and it's near and dear to my heart.
39:36
You created a firestorm you just destroyed the world with your
39:43
domination. We're going all modified.
39:46
Now which I said 15 minutes ago, you you build your own race
39:52
cars, you were headed for a fourth championship.
39:58
We need to talk about your automobile accident, going
40:00
through Louisville later, Nick. Why do you think so many people
40:07
were mad at you for winning so much?
40:11
I don't know. I mean, I would say everybody
40:13
first thing they go to is you're cheating this and that but to me
40:17
like my car's been tacked or check so many times that, you
40:21
know, that's out of the equation.
40:22
But yeah, I don't know. I just I had everything rolling
40:27
confidence is super hot. I felt like I could never lose
40:29
and I think I showed that was it.
40:32
Two years ago at Summer Nationals.
40:33
I want 16 straight you know and ended up one in 19 of the 20 or
40:38
whatever it was. So yeah.
40:40
I just, I don't know. I just got to the point where I
40:43
felt like I could win every single night and there was no
40:45
way they could beat me, and I just got super confident and,
40:48
you know, some people think that's cocky or whatever, but
40:51
it's just being confident in yourself more than anything and
40:54
your program and everything you've built.
40:56
So it was really fun for the last couple of years to win, but
40:59
it got to the point where like, if I didn't win I was pissed.
41:02
Like, I just want to load up and get the hell out of there, you
41:05
know? So yeah, you know, I got to the
41:07
point where like I was expected to win and if I And I just, I
41:11
took it on myself pretty hard. So I hate losing more than I
41:15
love winning. Yeah, so there was a time.
41:18
I think I don't know where we were, but we were racing a lot
41:22
last year, year before, and you looked at me and I was like,
41:28
give me the left rear shock off your car and you win in the
41:32
trailer, you pulled it off the wall and you gave it to me and I
41:35
put it on my car and about spun out.
41:37
I said take this damn thing back.
41:40
At that time, I realized that you're driving technique.
41:44
And every time you got my car, you would run to tense quicker
41:49
than me your you know we play the piano in there, we got the
41:55
gas, we got the break, we got the wheel, we got like yours, a
41:58
string connected all of it, right?
42:01
We got the steering wheel down to the gas pedal down at the
42:04
break. I think you've got a great
42:07
talent and I think people don't want to give you an attaboy, but
42:13
I know better because I'm a racer.
42:16
I recognize your driving Talent. I got in a conversation with you
42:21
one time and you said, Kenny, look, I built this car for me to
42:26
shoot my driving style and I sell it tell me about everything
42:31
I just said right there. Yeah so same deal or if we're
42:34
talking about late model side or you know rocket built that car
42:37
on Josh Richards and Brandon Shepherd how they race and
42:40
Brandon's done good now. But I feel like it's a whole
42:42
transition to go to Longhorn for him.
42:44
So in that same sense on the modified side built this car
42:47
around me and I drive Grew up like you run an asphalt.
42:51
So I drive very straight. When I let off the gas you know,
42:55
run my foot on a lot of break and then there's a lot of times,
42:58
they're saying the center of the corner, I'll run my feet, both
43:00
on the gas and the brake at the same time, you know, depending
43:02
on, if I need to make the corner like, turn or whatever.
43:05
So yeah, there's a lot to that modifieds.
43:08
You can do way more with how your car reacts with, what you
43:12
do with your feet. So I've learned that and I kind
43:16
of really focus on that and I think we're The lame all sides
43:21
different. It's a lot more aggressive
43:22
racing. You're on the gas, a lot harder
43:24
and I think that's the only place that I struggle or the
43:26
modified side. There's so many times people
43:29
think that I got traction control this or that because
43:31
I'm, you know, I come by in the track slick and it sounds like
43:34
my cars idling. Like I barely even run water
43:36
bottle. Yeah, I'm barely on the gas but
43:39
the biggest thing is I just carry as much speed as I can.
43:43
So many people make the mistake of thinking they need traction
43:46
anymore drive off name or drive off.
43:48
This is what I hear the most INE.
43:50
Buddy, I need more retraction or drywall and it's not what they
43:53
did on Entry to center of the corner.
43:55
You know, they don't they don't know that they might have
43:57
screwed up back there and that's what killed their drive off.
44:00
So I focus so much on Just What I Call roll speed is try and
44:05
roll speed through the center of the corner faster and anybody
44:07
then you don't need the traction down the straightaway.
44:09
You know. Like you've already five mile an
44:11
hour by faster back here so that just makes you five.
44:14
My are faster down the straightaway.
44:16
Yeah, I This would be the picture of Mark are going in the
44:21
corner in the corner, right? It's always worth.
44:24
It's always where they take the picture, right?
44:27
And but, and then this would be middle.
44:32
Okay, and then and then it gets ugly.
44:36
This will be coming off now. So, you know, like three years
44:40
ago, four years ago, everybody is trying to seal everything up,
44:43
trying to get the noses down this and that, and I started
44:45
running with my left front back up and just trying to make grip
44:49
and that became a whole storm of like, you know.
44:53
Now, everybody's carrying the left front again and it was
44:56
like, I've called the club, so much heat, your will eat up.
44:59
I'm like and I want, what do you want me to do?
45:01
Yeah, it's fast again. Like everybody's always just
45:05
searching for traction looking for grip, you know.
45:07
So you just put, put the grip to the rear tires, you know,
45:10
they'll figure out a way to get it around the corner I guess,
45:12
but it's so much of a balance thing.
45:14
I like what you do with your feet.
45:16
Like, I know that if I floor this thing down the straight
45:19
away, I'm going to wheelie way worse than if I just run half
45:23
hour down the show you away and just make my speed up back
45:25
through the corner, you know. So there's a lot of times where,
45:28
like, if I'm not having to hustle too hard, Hard.
45:32
I'll run on the show you a half-hour.
45:33
Make sure my nose kind of stays down versus.
45:36
If somebody gets beside me, I just gasps on that thing.
45:38
It really is up even more, but I go faster, you know.
45:40
So it just kind of depends. So I wanted to bring this up
45:44
because I know this but I can't assume V Burleson and know this.
45:50
You built that race car for yourself.
45:53
I've already told people that every time you got in my car,
45:57
you ran too tense quicker and me, and you want, when I let a I
46:01
drop the car, it's just I'm only don't ya?
46:04
I tell people you run a stiffer left for a shock than probably
46:07
anybody that I got right now. Yeah.
46:09
So, You're good at the way. You drive your race car, you got
46:15
your confidence, you're doing good.
46:17
I'm a customer of yours. I love your race car.
46:21
It's very easy for an old man to work on.
46:23
I'm winning against Great race car drivers, you were so rare,
46:29
you came along and you changed the modified racing.
46:34
Would it be fair to say that? They were mean to you.
46:38
So now you're going to mess with them and you put in the little
46:41
mail slot into c-pillar, you took, they abused you.
46:46
They were ignorant to you. They were mean to you.
46:50
Is it at this time, you just said screw them.
46:52
I'm gonna Jack with them. It got that way for a long time,
46:56
like pretty much Florida, every year.
46:58
I would have something on my car is like they're going to tell
47:01
me, I can't run this but I'm going to do it.
47:03
Just just ask. Of the more than anything.
47:05
You know. It might not be
47:06
performance-enhancing at all, but it's just like this or that.
47:09
I know, I can't get away with this, but they're going to see
47:11
it. They're going to tell you to
47:12
take it off. I tell everybody like The Tech
47:15
Guys, they're going to find something.
47:17
No matter what. None of that a rough you up,
47:19
they want. They want the whole pit area to
47:21
see. Look the rough and Nick Hoffman
47:23
up. Yeah.
47:24
So no matter who it is like at some point, they're gonna make
47:27
you change something. So I always, there's just been
47:29
so many things I've done throughout the past like I ran
47:32
my exhaust through the decking one year of Shh.
47:34
And I was more or less. Just a screw of Everybody, by
47:37
the end of the week. They made me take it off and the
47:39
sale panel deal this past year was.
47:42
Yes, I mean, I looked at it as a deal to try and get air to the
47:45
spoiler and then are that's going out to left side is
47:49
basically blocked by your body. So I look at a lot of areas of,
47:54
you know, how to make are better and downforce and everything.
47:57
So for one, it was for that too. It was just to be totally
48:01
different and to see how many guys would copy me.
48:04
And I think we're seeing that now.
48:05
A lot of guys starting to open their sail panels up, we call
48:08
mail slots because that's where I deposit all my checks.
48:11
I love it. I love it so.
48:13
Well you were roughed up, brutally people were vicious.
48:21
I'm a guy. I'm a tough guy, but I kind of
48:23
felt bad for you because I know, I know why you're winning and I
48:28
just explained all that you, and I just explained all that your
48:31
conferences. I, you build your race car, you
48:34
drive, right? And you were just on a roll, I
48:39
think that's, that's what I really wanted to get across and,
48:42
you know, we're not going to write a novel here.
48:45
Yeah. And I mean, like, any of those
48:46
Tech guys, I've told them for years, I, if you don't like
48:49
something, literally, just tell me.
48:50
I will change it and I think everybody all The Tech Guys,
48:53
appreciate me for that because I would never go in there.
48:56
Pissed off like, you know, yelling at them.
48:59
Like, you know, I don't want to do this.
49:00
I don't want to be that. Like, literally they tell me
49:01
like, hey you can't do this or hey, we want you to change this.
49:04
I do it every single time, and I think that that helps me at the
49:08
end of the day, like dumb guys are going to be near is hard on
49:11
me. If like you know they're still
49:13
going to check what they need to check if it's a legal they'll
49:15
throw me out. I got thrown out for not having
49:17
a right front brake two years ago, you know it Portsmouth.
49:19
So just do Bad things, but if I follow that robot and I know it,
49:25
I know that modified Roebuck, like the back of my hand, like
49:27
pretty much every single measurement where stuff needs to
49:29
be. And I just, you know, obviously,
49:32
like anybody find the gray areas and push the limits.
49:35
I want to put an exclamation part on that.
49:39
It's very sad that people want to find something wrong with
49:45
your car because you're winning so much.
49:47
I think it's sad that in society.
49:50
We have to dumb people down because they're good.
49:53
You know it's like saying oh the Pittsburgh Steelers should have
49:56
never along three or four, Super Bowls.
49:58
Let's make sure we take into the court.
50:01
It should Recognize greatness traitor.
50:05
Kenny Schrader told me. I said, man, I'm on a roll, he
50:08
goes, don't worry, buddy. It won't last, you know, so
50:12
that's that I enjoy watching any kind of dominance Jimmie Johnson
50:16
when he wanted seven championships this.
50:18
And that like dominance. I really enjoy it because I know
50:20
what it takes to get to that level.
50:22
And so, I appreciate all that right.
50:25
All right. Well Nick, we've we've already
50:28
gone longer than Jonathan Davenport.
50:30
He was 47 minutes. You're 51.
50:32
So let's wrap it up here with what I do with everybody
50:36
opinions. So once again, I'm not a, I'm
50:42
not disrespecting you, I've already give you your due on
50:45
late models, but we're going to go modifieds.
50:48
Okay, I want your opinion on the state of the UMP dirt car,
50:54
modifieds The totality. Yeah, I feel like you don't be
51:01
modified right now is great. I think a lot of people are
51:05
happy that I'm not out there racing with them so I feel like
51:08
the car counts are up with Summer Nationals.
51:11
All this stuff, the Carr counts or way up and for me my business
51:14
is really strong, everybody's buying cars and I'm super busy
51:17
on the business side. So I have no issue with the way,
51:21
the modified. All right, now, the rule
51:23
package, everything is really good.
51:26
Okay, so The rules. You like the rules?
51:30
What about the cost of the car? Yeah, you ain't going to buy a
51:37
20 thousand dollar roller anymore, you know, it's just the
51:40
way it goes. Everything in life is gone up,
51:43
but the cost of dirt modifieds us is steep for sure.
51:48
I mean, that's just what it costs.
51:49
I mean, when you're upwards of, you know, 40 plus thousand for a
51:53
roller nowadays, it sucks. But you know, it's just you can
51:57
find cheaper, cars out there, but there's a lot of things to
51:59
it's just the motors. I'm going to say Voters aren't
52:04
terrible because I'm racing late models right now.
52:05
I know what a late-model motor costs but yeah, just it sucks in
52:10
general, what it costs to go race and then we're only race
52:12
for 1500. I think that's the biggest thing
52:14
is we got its start paying more and pull on a little bit of that
52:18
money away from TV. The whether it's flowed or
52:22
Vision this and that like some of that money needs to come back
52:24
to the drivers. Yeah that all through your the
52:28
third and final driver to say the exact same thing.
52:31
Jonathan Davenport, Brad sweet yourself.
52:37
Everybody didn't see any of that.
52:39
But I mean, all of us we've talked about it the past and
52:42
like we just all see it at? How much money they're making.
52:44
And the drivers aren't saying it.
52:46
Yeah. And you are the show.
52:49
So your goal for the clown in the circus.
52:52
Yeah, right. Well my friend.
52:55
Listen. You know, you've overcome that,
52:59
you Cobra overcame that that horrible accident going through
53:02
Louisville, any effects. I mean, last year, you were on
53:07
your way to your fourth ump National Championship.
53:11
You had a horrible accident with your truck and trailer going
53:14
through Louisville. How is everybody doing?
53:18
Yeah, I get that question a lot. I mean, I, I'm good.
53:21
The only side effects really. I have a short term memory loss.
53:24
I felt like I struggle a little bit with that before.
53:27
We call CRS. But yeah, I just now they say
53:32
that could take a year to two years to really come back.
53:34
Just I had a skull fracture right in my temple area and they
53:38
said that's where your short-term memory is stored.
53:40
And that was where my brain bruising was and everything.
53:42
So just getting through that more than anything, but as far
53:47
as effects of driving everything I do daily no issues there.
53:51
So my dad he's good, he's definitely sore a Girls to get
53:57
up and down sometimes so it probably took a harder toll on
54:02
him than anybody and then Mason's good.
54:05
I mean he he he had a lot of bruising and stuff on his head
54:09
and but he's he's good to go. So he still with me working
54:12
every day in the shop, they're trying to get everything ready
54:15
right now. We're getting ready to go to
54:16
Kansas today so they're trying to get all that finished up but
54:20
as far as the facts were all good, I appreciate everybody
54:24
man. Racing family was incredible
54:26
during that time. So many people did so much for
54:29
me. I still learn about things even
54:32
today, like, people that did stuff or did this in.
54:34
That was pretty cool to see everything that was done for us
54:40
and I can appreciate that enough and moving forward just you
54:44
know, right now I don't have a modified rig or anything still,
54:47
I'm still dealing with all the insurance and everything else.
54:50
As far as that was eight months ago, I still ain't got
54:52
everything figured out there so kind of sucks but it's just part
54:56
of it. Show.
54:59
It was a catastrophic event. I feel like you're still Nick.
55:04
Yeah. But are you different now
55:06
because of not so much of the wreck itself, but just a
55:09
catastrophic nature of it. Are you, are you different?
55:12
Yeah, for sure. I just it definitely changed my
55:16
outlook on life and, you know, I got two kids and stuff and I
55:19
want to be there for them and changed.
55:21
My outlook on a lot of things for sure.
55:23
Like that night, I tell people I was asleep and the passenger
55:27
seat when when we crash. And so, I don't remember any of
55:31
it. I woke up in a hospital and I
55:33
see you for three or four days later, or whatever.
55:35
I don't recall anything that happened in that, that whole
55:39
time, I tell people, like if I died that night, I would have
55:43
never knew the difference like what a never knew the, you know,
55:46
I just want to never woke up. So it was pretty crazy, you
55:51
know, just to sit back and think about that and everything that
55:54
could have happened. So there's just we got very
55:58
lucky Key for sure. And just even walk away from it,
56:02
all of us at some point. Dad broke his back and then me
56:05
was skull fracture and Mason was just bruised up.
56:07
So, I think a lot of people don't understand what happened.
56:10
I need to kind of touch on. This is like, basically nothing
56:14
happened. As far as like, Mason didn't
56:15
fall asleep. Nothing.
56:16
Stupid as far as that goes. We had a truck that was on the
56:20
shoulder and it was, it was a tractor trailer, wasn't pulling
56:23
a trailer. So it's just bobtailing.
56:25
And so you got the little 2 red lights on taillights, and he was
56:28
in, Let mode while running 10 miles an hour and he come out
56:33
into our lane to go out around, like a exit ramp or something.
56:38
And like I said, I was asleep so I don't know.
56:40
But he come out into our lane and we ended up hitting him.
56:43
And so that was what caused the crash.
56:47
And so it was just nothing that, you know, we did wrong or
56:50
anything. And this part of driving late at
56:53
night, I guess, you know, it's just something that all of us
56:56
Racers do and we're probably lucky.
56:57
It doesn't happen more often and And we got lucky that night,
57:00
right? We've had some tough things that
57:02
happen in the sport. You know, we lost Davey Allison
57:06
and a helicopter wreck. We lost Alan quickie and a plane
57:09
wreck. We lost Rob Moroso in a car
57:11
wreck. You know, Nick, God works in
57:14
mysterious ways, you know, you were on your way to the fourth
57:17
ump modified Championship, but months later you're calling her
57:22
calls you up and now you're living your dream.
57:24
So, everything happens for a reason.
57:28
Yeah. Positive mental attitude, got to
57:30
look forward and down. Listen, my friend.
57:33
You, you're young, you're only 31 years old.
57:38
Congratulations to all your success.
57:40
I appreciate you helping me live, my dirt modified dream.
57:46
You know, that I started late models.
57:48
I asked you, if I could buy a car, I don't rough you up
57:52
because I understand competition.
57:53
I do my own deal, as you know, and I'm happy to know that I I
57:59
run the stiffest left for your shock.
58:02
I did. Yeah I mean it's just an cool
58:07
working with you and like I've told people like having you in
58:09
the pit area whether you are my car or not it's just helps the
58:12
morale the whole pit area. Yeah, well thank you, buddy.
58:15
Okay, listen everybody, we are in podcast form, go to idec,
58:20
iTunes, Spotify, and his I tell everybody listen to Nick Hoffman
58:24
on your way to work, turn it back on when you go back home.
58:29
Until then please like And subscribe and Nick, thank you so
58:35
much for doing this. Yeah I appreciate you.
58:38
What's up next? You going out to Kansas World
58:40
about the? Yeah they got everything loaded
58:43
up over there so we're going to jump in the truck probably an
58:45
hour or two and 18 hour drive to Kansas and then we race seven
58:49
races and nine days. This next stretch as they say
58:52
eat your Wheaties, all right until then everybody that Kenny
58:56
conversation keeps on dig out the herb later.
58:59
Might take a break, I've done my job.
59:01
We've done it all with Davenport.
59:04
Brad sweet, Nick. And we got masks are coming
59:08
back. They took a week off and until
59:11
then, Might take a break, I've done my job.
59:01
We've done it all with Davenport.
59:04
Brad sweet, Nick. And we got masks are coming
59:08
back. They took a week off and until
59:11
then,