SRT Motorsports - Travis Pastrana Open Interview - New Hampshire

Travis Pastrana (No. 199 Red Bull/Discount Tire Dodge Dart)
TALK ABOUT THE CHALLENGE OF DOING DOUBLE-DUTY THIS WEEKEND WITH RALLYCROSS AND NATIONWIDE.  “I think that the biggest challenge there is going to be qualifying because I have practice in this car (Nationwide) and then directly to qualifying for the GRC car and then directly into qualifying for Nationwide car.  After a lap, you know, any driver that you pick up and you realize what you’re in and what the difference are.  It’s just that initial lap trying to find the speed because qualifying, really you get two laps and you have to have your fastest lap of the weekend.  It was challenging at Charlotte.  It was not ideal.  I do the best when I’m not really thinking about stuff and just get out there and drive.  It kind of puts everything else aside and just let me drive this weekend.”

COMMENT ON THE VIDEO WITH KEN BLOCK.  “Well Ken Block is my boss with DC Shoes, founder and part owner of DC Shoes, but Ken has been a great friend and actually it was pretty funny because when I signed with DC back like 10 years ago I was just getting into Rally.  He said ‘Look, I’ll sign you if you help me get into Rally.  I really want to do this’ and turns out the man can drive.  I mean, Ken, not just as a business guy, but he’s a great skater, he’s a great motocrosser, he’s an awesome snowboarder.  The guy obviously is an amazing car driver.  He finished second at the X Games this year.  He’s just a really good person and marketing genius and he’s a great driver so when he asked me if I was able to do it I said heck yeah I’d love to come watch.  He puts so much into ‘em.  It’s a full year of planning, a full year of just thinking of what the craziest, the thing that people are going to want to see the most.  He challenges himself and he’s not afraid to put himself or the car on the line. For them to be able to shut down San Francisco I was like I’ve got to see this.  He was just launching everything.  That was the first time I’d been on a motorcycle since X Games last year so I was little wobbly.  He actually ran me over one time which was pretty funny.”

DID YOU HELP HIM WITH THE CHOREOGRAPHY?  “He always has a running gag where there’s always someone that goes kind of slow and get a segway into the first video and everything.  He goes ‘Look, let’s see how you can wheelie.’  I was like ‘What if I nose wheelie?’  We kind of choreographed that part.  It was fun.  I didn’t have much time.  It was actually the day before Darlington so I had to fly out directly after that that morning.  Just really fun watching him drive and watching some of the stuff.  It was fun.” 

WAS THERE ANY SPONSOR CONFLICT PROBLEMS?  “Ken cares a lot but with the sponsor stuff, he just wants to make the best movie.  Action sports, people get very judgmental if you’re not real, if you don’t put the best person in.  Like Red Bull has the Red Bull X Fighters and a lot of times someone with a different energy drink will win and Red Bull will pay for the top guys to come over to compete against the Red Bull Athletes.  It’s just that they don’t do it like they do in a lot of other sports.  It has to be genuine, it has to be real and they do a good job of trying to get the best guys the best spots.”    
 
--30--