Monday 23rd July 2012

PH Blog: Ken Block responds (sort of)

"I'm NOT a stunt driver, I'm a rally driver who does some fun stuff on the side!"

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Last week I questioned whether Ken Block's Gymkhana thing had run its course and maybe it was time to try something new. And it provoked a lot of discussion, not least among those who thought I was having a go at him. Who must have missed the bit where I said "he's clearly hugely talented at the wheel, a very smart businessman and, by all accounts, a very nice chap to boot with a genuine passion for rallying."

Parente's chat with Block reveals much

Don't take my word for it though - you can hear it from the man himself in this really, really interesting interview put up on Friday on the YouTube Drive channel. It's just a straightforward chat twixt Block and ... excitable ... Drive presenter Leo Parente. But all the better for it. No flashy edits, no footage, just a few stills and Block demonstrating both how smart he is and how deeply his passion for rallying runs with thoroughly disarming honesty and humility.

You almost get the impression that he too could happily watch in-car videos of WRC stars at the limit on 'real' rally stages all day long. But he knows that's not going to score tens of millions of YouTube hits.

I do stand by my original point though and I think he needs to channel that talent and creativity into doing something more than Gymkhana Six, Seven, Eight and Nine. I'd just love to see what that might be! Our friends over at Axis Of Oversteer have suggested maybe a change of footwear would be a good start. Could be something in that...

Dan

 

 

[mat777]

No Ken, you're not a rally driver. Rally drivers have skill. The only reason you look remotely skilled on your stunt shows I'd because you practice them hundreds of times. When you actually try and do proper men's rallying you always crash because you cant deal with an unpredictable route. Now shut up and go have another can of Monster, you annoying little
adrenaline junkie

[Baryonyx]

He'd be better selling himself as a stunt driver, he is a pretty poor rally driver and only competes at the top because of his funding, not his skill.

[Mini1275]

mat777 said:

No Ken, you're not a rally driver. Rally drivers have skill. The only reason you look remotely skilled on your stunt shows I'd because you practice them hundreds of times. When you actually try and do proper men's rallying you always crash because you cant deal with an unpredictable route. Now shut up and go have another can of Monster, you annoying little
adrenaline junkie

Jealous much?.

[Antj]

"I'm a Rally driver"

Really???

Hey Ken, if the stunt driving job falls flat you can always be a comedian with lines like that!

[Captain Muppet]

I don't understand all the hatred. If I had his money I'd have a go at my dream motorsport and muck about in cars in my spare time too. That's all he's doing.

[Dan Trent]

Watch the interview when you get time - he makes no claims of being at the level of Loeb and co and goes into some detail about what he'd have to do (move to Europe, spend a ton more money, do it full time, etc) to even get close. Interesting stuff.

[Captain Muppet]

Mini1275 said:

mat777 said:

No Ken, you're not a rally driver. Rally drivers have skill. The only reason you look remotely skilled on your stunt shows I'd because you practice them hundreds of times. When you actually try and do proper men's rallying you always crash because you cant deal with an unpredictable route. Now shut up and go have another can of Monster, you annoying little
adrenaline junkie

Jealous much?.

Look at his profile. It made me take him a lot less seriously.

[Robb F]

The amount of abuse thrown at this guy is unreal. If I had the money I would be doing exactly the same thing. I think people hurling insults at him need to take a step back and think about why they are so angry about someone living the petrolhead dream.

[anonymous-user]

He is the best rally driver from the states.
Stop complaining.

[300bhp/ton]

doogz said:

He's not been hugely successful in WRC.

But for some floppy haired wannabe-cowboy student to say he has no skill is pretty funny.

Kimi wasn't great in the WRC either. Does he have no skill?

+1

[AllyBee]

Robb F said:

The amount of abuse thrown at this guy is unreal. If I had the money I would be doing exactly the same thing. I think people hurling insults at him need to take a step back and think about why they are so angry about someone living the petrolhead dream.

Haters gonna hate.

[JVaughan]

very talented, love the control he has over the car... but I remember being entertained watching the origional Audi Quattro with Stig Blomqvist in 1984 .. who, lets face it was the Daddy..

.. then there was the likes of Juha Kankkunen, Ari Vatternan & Carlos Saints (basically the old school WRC "Masters") .. all of who I rank above Mr Block when it comes to skill & car control in my book

[Antj]

doogz said:

He's not been hugely successful in WRC.

But for some floppy haired wannabe-cowboy student to say he has no skill is pretty funny.

Kimi wasn't great in the WRC either. Does he have no skill?

kimi is a circuit driver who has tried Rallying, if you ask Kimi what he is ( he;ll probabbly say feck off i want a beer) he will say he is a circuit racer. which is a different to being a rally driver. In fact Kimi

Ken Block is saying "I'm a rally driver" yet he is poop at it.

also Kimi did have a stage win not sure how many Block achieved in his WRC rallys.

[StottyZr]

mat777 said:

No Ken, you're not a rally driver. Rally drivers have skill. The only reason you look remotely skilled on your stunt shows I'd because you practice them hundreds of times. When you actually try and do proper men's rallying you always crash because you cant deal with an unpredictable route. Now shut up and go have another can of Monster, you annoying little
adrenaline junkie

Ken block has no skill?

Comedy gold

[Captain Muppet]

Antj said:

doogz said:

He's not been hugely successful in WRC.

But for some floppy haired wannabe-cowboy student to say he has no skill is pretty funny.

Kimi wasn't great in the WRC either. Does he have no skill?

kimi is a circuit driver who has tried Rallying, if you ask Kimi what he is ( he;ll probabbly say feck off i want a beer) he will say he is a circuit racer. which is a different to being a rally driver. In fact Kimi

Ken Block is saying "I'm a rally driver" yet he is poop at it.

also Kimi did have a stage win not sure how many Block achieved in his WRC rallys.

You don't have to be good at your job to have your job title, you just have to do that job.

I've been a photographer. I was rubbish at it, but it was still my job. I'd have been happier if I was really good at it, but however good or bad I was at it nothing would have changed my job title.

HTH.

[Skater12]

300bhp/ton said:

doogz said:

He's not been hugely successful in WRC.

But for some floppy haired wannabe-cowboy student to say he has no skill is pretty funny.

Kimi wasn't great in the WRC either. Does he have no skill?

+1

+ 2

[robmlufc]

He is a Rally driver, in the same way that Giovanni Lavaggi can be described as an F1 driver.

[DanDC5]

mat777 said:

No Ken, you're not a rally driver. Rally drivers have skill. The only reason you look remotely skilled on your stunt shows I'd because you practice them hundreds of times. When you actually try and do proper men's rallying you always crash because you cant deal with an unpredictable route. Now shut up and go have another can of Monster, you annoying little
adrenaline junkie

I think the word fktard sums it up nicely.

[tbtstt]

mat777 said:

No Ken, you're not a rally driver. Rally drivers have skill. The only reason you look remotely skilled on your stunt shows I'd because you practice them hundreds of times. When you actually try and do proper men's rallying you always crash because you cant deal with an unpredictable route. Now shut up and go have another can of Monster, you annoying little
adrenaline junkie

So all his wins taken in the Rally America championship have been a fluke have they?

He is a rally driver who is clealy competent at a National level. However he isn't quite at WRC level and, when he competes there, he obviously struggles to keep up. If you watch/read any interviews with him though, he doesn't claim to be the greatest in the world. He was a rally driver who was offered a WRC seat and he took it.

[Fluffsri]

Captain Muppet said:

Mini1275 said:

mat777 said:

No Ken, you're not a rally driver. Rally drivers have skill. The only reason you look remotely skilled on your stunt shows I'd because you practice them hundreds of times. When you actually try and do proper men's rallying you always crash because you cant deal with an unpredictable route. Now shut up and go have another can of Monster, you annoying little
adrenaline junkie

Jealous much?.

Look at his profile. It made me take him a lot less seriously.

Look at the pic in his profile even funnier LOL