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Ken Block, founder of Hoonigan, died in a sleigh crash


A photo of racer Ken Block in his racing suit

Ken Block at Portugal’s World Rallycross in April 2017.
picture: Paulo Oliveira / DPI / NurPhoto (beautiful pictures)

Ken Block, rally racer best known for co-founding Hoonigan Industries and starring in the hugely popular stunt driving video series Gymkhana, was killed in a sleigh crash on Monday, January 2nd, according to a statement posted to Instagram. He was 55 years old.

Block’s career has extended far beyond the worlds of racing and rallying — with Damon Way, Block co-founded the apparel company DC Shoes in 1994. He’s a skater, motocross and skater. competitive snow. But for car enthusiasts, Block is best known for rallying and founding Hoonigan Industries.

Block’s racing career began in Rally America. In 2005, he entered the national race as a member of the Vermont SportsCar team and won Rookie of the Year. The following year, Block participated in the first X Games racing event and in 2007 he began competing in the World Rally Championship. In 2010, Block formed the Monster World Rally Team, becoming the first American racer to compete in the WRC rally race. In 2012, he changed the team name to Hoonigan Racing Division, competing in The Global Rallycross Championship and then the FIA ​​World Rallycross.

Away from the racing world, Block is best known as a co-founder Hoonigan Industry, a media and apparel manufacturing company focused on young car enthusiasts. Hoonigan soon became famous thanks to Block .’s Gymkhana video series. The first video, published in 2008, seems almost tame compared to the ones that came after: An increasingly radical series of videos showcasing Block (and then a whole bunch of stuntmen) Move, jump and slide around in a masterclass of car control and courage. Early videos featured Block rally and car rallies, but more recent videos feature custom-built Hoonigan machines built specifically for Gymkhana. The most recent one, Gym 11There’s Block circling Las Vegas in an electric Audi race car.

Through his WRC competition and off-road racing, Block has become the face of long-distance racing in the US, taking the sport from an esoteric field to fame in the world. car enthusiasts. And Hoonigan rises to dominance in the automotive worldchat with the younger generation of car enthusiasts and create a buzzy, homemade image that has resonated with auto enthusiasts around the globe.

Block is survived by his wife, Lucy, and three children; his daughter, Liarecently participated in her own series of Hoonigan videos, and Lucy and Lia have both compete with Ken in the American Rally Association Championship. Jalopnik has reached out to a family representative for comment; We will update this article with any information we receive.

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