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120: Paul "Scooter" Brothers shares his experience at Comp Performance Group, the SEMA board, and how they look for companies to acquire Dec 11, 2017

Show notes

Scooter grew up as a mechanic and got his first job right out of high school. He was drafted to the Navy during the Vietnam War where he served as an aircraft mechanic. When he came back home, he got a job at Racing Head Service around 1972. They were having trouble finding good camshafts for their market so they started Cam Dynamics (now Comp Cams) to fill the need.

Over the past few decades, Scooter and the team have built Comp Performance Group into a juggernaut in the aftermarket powertrain industry! Now, Scooter looks for possible acquisitions to expand their reach and offer superior products. They also recently underwent a large logistical overhaul of their company and implemented a new software system to help manage it all.

Scooter has also been very involved with SEMA. He spent 6 years on the Board of Directors and served 2 of those years as the Chief Executive Officer. He has helped the SEMA organization push the RPM Act in an effort to combat some detrimental EPA language that prohibits street cars be turned into race cars.

119: Larry Chen works every single day to capture stunning automotive pictures from all over the globe Dec 04, 2017

Show notes

Larry scraped and saved up $1000 to purchase his first Canon Rebel XT DSLR camera back in 2004. He had been taking pictures with a simple point-and-shoot but wanted to step up his professionalism. He had his own business fixing & building computers but also took pictures as a paparazzi. These jobs were a means to an end that allowed him to take automotive pictures. Over the last 13 years, he has traveled all over the world and been to hundreds of events to pursue his passion.

As a testament to his dedication, Larry funded many of his photography trips by justifying them as investments. He would take a chance to travel to an event with the intent of selling his pictures, but it was never a guarantee. This drive and passion resonated with the owners and drivers of the cars and Larry became a world-renowned automotive photographer and editor.

Michelin has sent Larry to Austria to do a shoot with a Ford GT, Ken Block and the Hoonigan crew hired Larry to take pictures during Climbkhana, he took aerial pictures during the Baja 1000 for Monster Energy, and he is the official photographer for the GridLife series. Needless to say, Larry isn't joking when he claims to take an average of 750 pictures each day!

118: Chris Stewart took his knowledge of marketing & design and combined it with his love of music & racing to create the GridLife festivals Nov 27, 2017

Show notes

Chris went to college at an art school in Michigan and focused on graphic design. After graduating, he worked at several design firms and worked his way up the corporate ladder. He was also running a forum called EFHonda to pursue his passion of the EF Honda chassis. He even started his own parking lot meet up called the EF Honda Meet to hang out with fellow enthusiasts. In 2004, they stepped it up and rented Gingerman Raceway on a Monday and took their cars out on to the track. They called it Westminster Honda Meet 4 (for 2004).

As the years went by, the Honda Meet grew and turned into a tight-nit community where people would look forward to the meet every year. Chris focused on making it a very professional event and created new designs and marketing material for each event. But cars weren't the only thing he was interested in. Chris had been attending a lot of music festivals and was meeting a lot of artists all over the country.

So, he decided to blend the two hobbies and create GridLife. Taking what he learned from Honda Meet, he wanted to create an event that appealed to more than just the car culture. To do this, he devised an experience-oriented track weekend that also included live music. He encouraged people to camp at the event, grill out, and watch the racing. He also incorporated a car show segment and drifting to make it even more appealing to all the different car segments.

117: John Whalen of Whalen Speed R&D details how he has built up his business over the years Nov 20, 2017

Show notes

John bought his first Eagle Talon when he was in high school and upgraded to a turbo Eclipse when he got to college. He did quite a few mods and ran it a lot at the drag strip. Then, John and some buddies got together and rented a small shop to modify their cars and others for customers. After a few years, John separated off and took his fabrication equipment to work at another shop. That second shop began to shift to more domestic cars so John decided to go out on his own.

He bought an 8500 sqft building to house a few lifts, the dyno, engine assembly room, and an area for his fabrication. He has grown to having 4 employees and working on several different import cars. He has been focusing on only working on stuff that makes him money and has grown the business steadily over the years.

116: Trevor Doelling of Texas Speed quit installing parts to focus on online sales. Now, they are machining and manufacturing their own parts. Nov 13, 2017

Show notes

Trevor raced cars all through high school and he progressed over the years with more powerful and faster cars. When he turned 21, he bought a Trans Am that came with the new LS V8. At that same time, his now business partner Jason Mangum also had a Trans Am and they raced against each other any chance they got! Trevor graduated college in 2000 and moved to Dallas, TX to look for a job. It was at this time that Trevor and Jason really considered starting a real business.

When they pulled the trigger, Trevor moved back home to Lubbock, TX to open up Texas Speed. Their main focus was parts sales and they were early adopters to sell parts on a website. They also installed parts on cars but eventually stopped that to focus on selling parts. In July of 2014, they relocated to Georgetown, a suburb north of Austin, TX to get access to more employees.

Since the move, Texas Speed has grown to almost 50 employees and has transitioned to manufacturing parts as well as selling them online. They now machine and assemble all of their engines, port their cylinder heads, and grind camshafts all in house.

115: Howard Anderson of AR Fabrication and Darton East believes that slow and steady growth is the best way to ensure success Nov 06, 2017

Show notes

Howard began his focus in the sport compact performance market building roll cages and engines for customers. He bought his first CNC machine way back in 2005 because he wasn't able to reliably get sleeved blocks. Things were going good until the economic downturn in 2008 when they had to sell off all the assets to stay out of bankruptcy. In 2010, he started Howard's Hot Rods with his wife. This was kind of a side business and Howard went to work for another machine shop.

As time went on, Howard decided to build a building on his property to handle his Howard's Hot Rods business. In 2013, he decided to get back into the machining business and bought another CNC machine. He took things he learned over the years and implemented processes to ensure that everything is done correctly the first time. This organization also allows them to know exactly how many of each machining process they complete to better determine ways to save money or attract more customers in the future.

114: Three friends - Jeremy, Ben, and John - teamed up with different skill sets to start Fathouse Fabrications Oct 23, 2017

Show notes

Jeremy and John met during high school and shared their love for turbocharged 4-cylinder cars. Jeremy (aka Fathouse) and John worked behind John's parent's house wrenching on their cars and other peoples' cars. They met Ben at a car meet and struck up a lasting friendship.

After a few years of doing car stuff on the side, they decided to have a go at creating a real performance shop. They all brought a different aspect to the table: Jeremy was an industrial welder and had been fabricating parts for Evo's and other cars for years, John was an excellent mechanic and had worked for racing teams, and Ben had a formal business education and worked alongside his dad at his business for many years. Together, they made a great team to run and operate a performance shop.

They jumped in feet first and purchased a set of buildings on a good size plot of land. It came with 2 buildings and a house which Jeremy actually lives in. They design and build products needed for their customer cars and then manufacture those products to sell on their website. They have expanded their offerings from Evo's and STI's to include Ford V8's as well. They invested in a car and then began making products for it. To promote their products, they recently hired a part-time videographer to create content and spread brand awareness.

113: Jason Whitfield of Whitfield Fab has built his business by doing everything he can in house, including manufacturing weld-ready cages for drag racing Oct 09, 2017

Show notes

Jason has been hustling to make money ever since he was a kid! He started by mowing lawns, washing cars, putting grip tape on skateboards, and painting other kid's bicycles. When he was 14, he bought a VW bug and immediately began working on it and modifying it. Then he bought a Mazda mini truck slammed it with hydraulics and did other modifications to it. During high school, he teamed up with an older friend to start working on other people's cars and trucks.

After a brief stint in college, Jason realized that wasn't for him. So, he got a full-time job but still did the side hustle of running his shop. He opened his own shop, employed 1 tech, and quickly expanded this side business to a larger location. As things got more and more busy, Jason decided to take the leap and run Rage Performance (now Whitfield Fab) for a living! He downsized his life to help prop up the business during this transition.

After he started working full time, the retail parts sales really took off. While this was great money, it took Jason away from what he loved – racing and making cool stuff. So, he pivoted his business model and focused his efforts to manufacturing parts, doing engine swaps, and building roll cages. Now, he is working hard to make roll cage kits for every car possible.

112: Chris Stephens, the co-host of Discovery Channel's Garage Rehab, helps shops improve operations and turn a profit Oct 02, 2017

Show notes

Chris Stephens started his automotive journey modifying and fixing Volkswagens. His family was big into cars and his brother set out to open up a shop called while Chris was in college. He joined the business and they began working on import cars. As time went on, the business continued to grow and their focus shifted to becoming an efficient service shop.

Fast forward to 2016 and Chris saw a casting call on Facebook looking for a host for a garage rehabilitation show. Both him and his brother applied, but Chris was ultimately chosen to host Garage Rehab on the Discovery Channel. This is a joint-venture spearheaded by Richard Rawlings of Fast & Loud.

The show airs each Wednesday night and can even be watched online. Chris' main focus is to go in, clean up the physical shop, figure out what they are good at (and not good at), and advise them on how to improve their operation. This comes from focusing on services that make the most money. While the show does do a makeover for the shop space, Chris wants to ensure that the shops will be more successful for years to come.

111: Tim Suddard of Grassroots Motorsports explains how the magazine got started and how it has changed over the years Sep 25, 2017

Show notes

Tim grew up in Massachusetts and got interested in cars early on as a teenager. He moved to Florida to go to college and find some better weather. After graduating, he worked at an ad agency and handled a lot of the automotive stuff. He bought a Datsun 240Z and began hosting SCCA Autocross events. He was hungry for automotive information, but all of the magazines were focused on new car specs and data, not modifying cars in your garage to go faster.

So, he told his wife they were going to start their own magazine and appeal to the weekend racer. He wanted to provide coverage of races and install guides for people for people who owned smaller and import sports cars. They got a bank loan to purchase a computer and begin assembling the magazine. Tim took his knowledge from his ad agency job to drum up advertisers and content. Then they were off to the printer!

He has stayed ahead of the technology curve over the years. He was the second company in the area to purchase a desktop publishing system which sped up the process to get the magazine printed. Their March 1989 issue was created completely digital and they have been doing it that way ever since. Their latest shift has been towards digital content. They created their website blog back in 1998. In 1999, they started the $1999 challenge (now the $20XX challenge) and their forum took off with information about this event. This forum following quickly transferred to their website information and then their social media accounts. They have done their best to provide unique content to both audiences as their viewing tendencies change. They have even started doing a Facebook live video every Wednesday night.

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