Shaun Carlson
Nuformz / www.mopar.com
Responsible for: helping to build the first front-wheel drive, tube frame chassis drag car that also broke 9's
In the span of 10 years, it seems like Shaun Carlson's done it all. Starting from an editorial position during Turbo's early years, the blonde, mohawked, fabricator/racer from the 909 has crafted innovations in more ways than one. During the mid-90's, he founded Nuformz, a fabrication shop where he produced the first Honda cylinder wall sleeve, which helped strengthen the D and B-series motors that were pumping out big horsepower. In '99, he teamed up with Stephan Papadakis to build the first FWD tube chassis racecar, a Civic that was the first to complete 9, then 8-second passes. His mechanical talent led him to a sponsorship with Ford and Meguiar's where he raced a Focus ZX3 in numerous sport compact drag series. BJ Birtwell, formerly of Meguiar's who moved onto Mopar/Daimler Chrysler, brought Shaun into Mopar late in '03 where he raced a FWD Dodge SRT-4. Last year Nuformz took on the responsibility of working as Sam Hubinette's technical crew, aiding in improving the current SRT-10 Viper and the upcoming SRT-8 Charger. However, the highlight of Shaun's career is happening as we speak: a big-time ride in NHRA's premier Powerade series as a Pro Stock driver for powerhouse Schumacher Racing.
Mike Munar and John Russell
Vision Entertainment / www.hotimportnights.com
Responsible for: taking the car show idea and turningit into an entertainment extravaganza with Hot Import Nights
It took only 30 minutes for the Long Beach PD to come in and tell Vision Entertainment that ticket sales had to stop; the first Hot Import Nights in '97 had reached full capacity. But why make a show at night? "So much of the culture was happening at night," John says. "The club scene and the cars; it just made logical sense to combine the two." By giving younger enthusiasts an avenue to check out cars and hot women, and attracting big name musical groups and DJs all in one place, their formula for success has been proven time and time again with lines stretching outside convention centers well into the night. Mike adds, "from the very first show to now, one thing has remained constant: we're providing great entertainment. We want to see people have fun the second they walk through those doors. Cars and the lifestyle that incorporates it-as long as there are kids, cars and cool things to go with it, this thing is going to continue to grow." HIN continues to tour around the country and plans to add drifting exhibitions in the near future.Totally useless fact: Disappointed that the first HIN had sold out before the night had even taken off, a young Jonny Wong and friends snuck in through a side gate and proceeded to holler at girls all night.
Javier Gutierrez
JG Engine Dynamics / www.jgenginedynamics.com
Responsible for: building record breaking Honda engines when the top racers were just getting their careers started
Javier Gutierrez got his fix as a teen by racing on the streets of So Cal. He then started road racing, along with building and tuning engines under the guise of JG Engine Dynamics. During the Honda drag phenomenon of the early '90s, one thing was clear: JG was the place to go to when you needed horsepower and a lot of it. Youngsters like Steph Papadakis, Viet Lam and countless other draggers relied on his expertise in engine building to help break records on the 1320. JG eventually began to produce its own line of engine bolt-ons, including cam gears and, to this day, continues to do quality machine work and complete, turn-key engine packages. But it wasn't an easy road to travel, as Javier explains: "Overall, the industry went up and nosedived down. Now it's back to where it was during the late '90s. We now find ourselves back at the roots, which is good for a lot of people. We build roughly 115 engines per year, but 60 percent of those are used in road racing applications. It's a direction we chose to go with; I'm a road racer at heart and the drag racing is really just a piggyback to everything else we do. I love competing where horsepower makes a difference and that's where we shine the most."Little known fact: Javier's wife Carrie was the first paid subscriber to Super Street. We're not sure who bribed her, but we are sure that it had something to do with a tall, unkempt gentleman by the name of Matt Pearson.
Frank Choi
IDRA / www.battleoftheimports.com
Responsible for: creating the first import drag racing series, dubbed the Battle of the Imports
Like many of his friends, Frank Choi was a street racer. Shunned by the LACR (Los Angeles County Raceway) because his car wasn't a domestic, Frank left without any options; he couldn't even race for a time-only run. He was told by track officials that if he didn't like it, he could rent the track on his own. In July of '90, he finally got the chance, and had the satisfaction of turning away a V8 as he threw the first Battle of the Imports-the first ever import drag racing series. What started off as a small local event with 70 cars nearly tripled in competing cars by the following year. Even with little support from the aftermarket, Frank pushed on, and, by its third year, Battle began to pull crowds in excess of 14,000 at a track that wasn't even NHRA sanctioned. From then on, the cars started to go faster and faster. The sponsoring companies followed suit and import drag racing took off to unprecedented heights. For many lucky So Cal residents, being at any Battle from its humble beginnings to the late '90s was an unexpected chance to witness history in the making. Little known fact: Battle of the Imports issued Super Street's first media credentials. "I thought the staff seemed like nice guys," says Frank, "That's when John Cobb (former publisher) and Matt Pearson (first editor) were running around with cameras."