Advertise on podcast: Conversations with Big Rich

TV Personality, Brendon Thompson, enlightens on us on the finer points of being on American Chopper – the builds, the craziness; but that’s not all, we get insight into his early life and his parenting, throw in a little 5150 racing and you’ve got the full meal deal. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. 3:24 – my older brother was always the helping hand for me, picking me back up when I was doing wrong; he kept me on track  8:47 – I almost got fired because I didn’t know fractions, couldn’t read a tape measure       18:47 – My boss wanted to semi-retire so he passed off the gas tanks to me, I just started doing my own thing.  22:19 – in 2010, that’s when I got that phone call to see if I wanted to come build a bike with Paul Jr. on television 36:13 – you don’t need to create the drama, the drama was there, it was craziness. 48:41 – We did a lot of cool stuff, I’ve had a lot of cool experiences with the show, with Paul. 51:47 – it was a big deal because we parked in Tracy Jordan’s spot, they’re like, you gotta move, Tracy’s here – we were like, okay, whatever. Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. Support the show

FigSpeed honcho, Les Figueroa dishes about drag racing, off-road, and being at “that” level with the big boys. It’s a great listen, plenty of stories to keep you entertained. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. 5:17 – I still have the car that my dad raced and bought in 1970  16:59 – knowing I always loved drag racing, I took the position at Mallory Ignition making minimum wage; about $4.25 an hour              20:32 – all the events I was able to work at, I was also able to race at. The people on the West Coast thought I was an East Coast racer…I never told anyone I was new.  23:48 – so leaving the starting line as close to perfect as possible was the name of the game 28:17 – being there for Speed Week was awesome, we stayed at the Speedway Motel by the Brickyard, Mario Andretti’s room was down the hall, and Jeff was next to him, once you were in at that level, it was one big, huge family. 34:28 – Our company Fig Speed had a great relationship with Lucas Oil 42:51 – I got kicked out for one of the Pedagon Brothers, the thing is, nobody told me I was kicked out, I had to read it in National Dragster Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. Support the show

All American racing family, we’d like to introduce you to Andy DeVercelly – numbers, 2,3,4, and 5.  #2 is 93 years young and raced in the first Baja 1000; #5 just graduated to go-karts from mini-dwarf cars.  It’s a fun listen of four generations of racers. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. 3:14 – Andy 2 – the bullfighter is my car, I hit a bull on the highway just before LaPaz  12:48 – Andy 2 – I had no idea at all where I was, there were like three street signs down there              19:00 – Andy 3 – my grandpa was an Ironman kind of guy, no one else could drive the car  25:06 – Andy 3 – Now that I’ve retired, I get the pleasure and fun of it all to go work with my son 31:36 – Andy 4 – so as far as 4 wheels, he’s still a few years out – he’s just tall enough now to start learning 39:26 – Andy 2 – the big thing was the energy, the energy that the people have down there for the 1000 is next level Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. Support the show

Our favorite pirate, Todd Young, shares life in the hood, work, rockcrawling, and unexpected life changes. This is a great one, if you’ve ever had a chance to be around Todd, you’ll appreciate that he tells it like it is. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. 3:57 – My dad was always a brawler, So I was born with the expectation that you solved everything with a good fistfight.  10:58 – I kind of fell into the weld shop, they had us welding right away              19:20 – I don’t do rules and politics very well, at I stage I got fed up and wallpapered the whole back wall of the shop with all those memos and stuff  30:12 – I got into a six-foot snowbank and slid off the edge, and that 4Runner wasn’t nearly as capable as I thought it was 38:42 – So off we go to Goldendale, and sure enough, Big Rich and Little Rich are throwing the biggest rock crawling soiree…and I’m like, that’s my kind of people right there 45:59 – Next thing I know, we’re rounding up rocks and culverts and throwing some fun crawls in our backyard for our local rockcrawling club 53:27– Well, ditch the bike and I’m going to shoulder roll this wreck out; I hit a lot harder than I thought 59:33 – My whole world was shrinking, the doctor goes, I’m just going to throw this out there, not to alarm you, but we can cut it off and I’ll have you back to work in six, eight weeks. Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. Support the show

Mary McGee is a legend in off-road racing; solo’d the Baja 500 on a bike as the first person to do so; a woman who never learned to quit and always said yes to everything offered. She thinks she’s the luckiest woman ever, her history is a great story. Mary was inducted in the Off Road Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2023. Mary is why we say; legends live at ORMHOF.org.  Be sure to tune in on your favorite podcast app. 3:31 – My 9-year-old brother and myself (age 5), by ourselves went on the steamship from Juneau to Seattle 19:29 – Vashak said to Dan, Mary, she should road race the motorcycles, make even smoother than the car.                                 24:45 – Women couldn’t have credit cards in their name, they couldn’t have anything in their own name.  29:41 – “Are you motorcycle people?” yes, “You have to leave” 34:24 – my friend, Steve McQueen, said, “Mary, you have got to get off that pansy road racing bike and come out to the desert.”  Will I have to get dirty? 55:48 – We only made it to El Arco and it was freezing; I went around and around that fire and got myself nice and hot and went right over to those two guys sleeping on cardboard and slithered right in between them 1:10:34 – Once you start something, you should see it through to the end, however it goes. Special thanks to ORMHOF.org for support and sponsorship of this podcast. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. Support the show

Cowboy Matt Deas, one of the OG rockcrawlers hails from North Carolina where he raises kids and horses. Matt shares with us some great stories about rockcrawling in the early days.. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. 5:16 – Man, I love my childhood going to school and stuff, there were 89 of us in my graduating  10:43 – Once I got healed, I started ordering parts and got me a trail rig              17:11 – from 02-03 the sport evolved more, more participants and stuff  22:07 – Jellico was always my favorite because that’s where it all started for me 29:44 – Probably the WE Rock in ’07 we ended up third, but I remember the level of competition was huge 38:56 – I want to say it was ’10 a lot of people were coming back, they caught their breath and was like, hey, we survived the storm 47:01 – I’m going to treat myself for a while, I’m going to treat myself for a while, I made it three weeks 57:44 – We ought to put a show on, get some sponsorship and really pump it up – you woulda been proud of me. Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. Support the show

Nicole Pitell brings her own brand of hype to every conversation, she shares the inside scoop of Total Chaos to the podcast. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. 6:12 – at the end of the day, it’s what makes each of us individually happy is what’s going to elevate you and take you to the next level 12:05 – I want noted for the record, I suck at driving in mud              19:47 – our product line comes from having to build better parts for our friends who were pitting for us  25:44 – I think you need good competition to elevate your innovation and your passion 32:50 – they just let me go full stupid down south of the border 41:33 – An all women’s? That sounds horrible was the first thing I said to her. 46:03 – I really like to have fun in life, no bad days 55:12 – I don’t hang around with people that aren’t motivated, inspired, and driven every day Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. Support the show

Glenn Classen made a big move from South Africa to the US to expand his market for shock absorbers – almost 20 years in, he’s continued to grow and develop Radflo for the off-road market. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. 3:46 – as a kid, being aware of anything socially or politically about how the country ran you weren’t aware of until much later 11:44 – let’s fire this thing back up, we made parts and started selling shocks              13:01 – in any business, there’s massive swings of good luck and bad  16:11 – that’s how I sold it to my wife, we’d come over to the US for two years and then go home 23:04 – I came over here and very quickly realized that this was a massive pond and I was a very small fish 33:23 – we are just a shock manufacturer 38:44 – we make shocks to suit the different lift kit manufacturers, we don’t do generic Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. Support the show

Stan Haynes has rock sports under his skin; a long-time supporter of both series and competitors, Stan shares life in a family-run business with us. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. 6:07 – I thought I was getting drafted to go die in Vietnam 11:24 – 57’  Chevy, I hot-rodded the heck out of it              15:52 – we still continue with Branik doing foundry work and ceating master tooling, molds, and dies making thousands of parts and a foundry and castings  19:50 – in starting a business you’re going to go through hard times, but be prepared and try to always have the attitude of don’t give up 28:49 – I started going to King of the Hammers in ’09 and two years later we’re racing 32:17 – I love free market, I love capitalism, it really enhances a business to be better. 41:52 – What a beautiful place of God’s Green Earth, everyone needs to experience the Rubicon, am I right? Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. Support the show

Steven Adams is a lighting master; one of the founders of Rigid Lights, he’s stepped up again with Nacho Offroad Technology. The world is brighter with Steve in it, be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. 5:33 – I’m sure he thought I would just throw my life away because I wasn’t being an airline pilot 17:16 – I pulled up Bender’s How to Bend Tech 101 and taught myself how to make a light bar              21:38 – Hey, if you’re going to do this, here’s what you need to do…   28:14 – We need to make this an American made light 38:38 – not that making money is a bad thing, but that was the only thing 48:24 – I didn’t realize you don’t have scientists growing week, you have stoners growing weed 57:18 – We’re not going to do anything if we don’t have fun doing it! Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. Support the show

YouTube star Nicole Johnson brings a load of experience to her channel, she’s on a mission to drive everything – but we shouldn’t be surprised she’s already mastered race cars, rockcrawlers, and Monster trucks! Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. 5:36 – Snow? People live in snow, that must suck! 16:20 – Frank would just…it was really cure, he would stand up and be like, “that’s my wife!”              23:25 – we’re just enthusiasts, we love to target shoot   29:04 – the buggy we bought was so capable, it out drove me every time 35:37 – that $400 is going to cost you how many hours to really get that relationship where it needs to be 45:48 – “when I lower my arm, floor it and go 20 feet.” when you floor it, it’s going to have some torque squat 1:00:51 – I was always telling my kids, you guys should appreciate me more, I’m super cool! Subscribe to Nicole’s Channel at https://www.youtube.com/@NicoleJohnsonsDetour Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. Support the show

Meet Emme Hall, off-road racer, Miata lover, cat herder, and freelance journalist. A woman of many talents and a bright personality, you’ll enjoy this one! Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. 6:30 – I was never the ingenue; I’m way too weird for that! 10:42 – because life is too short to drive something that isn’t fun              19:22 – I was in my late 30’s. That’s old to start racing, because you got fear.   31:11 – So you should see these straight lines, and there are people where it looks like spaghetti! 35:39 – I got to drive with Tanner Faust riding right seat for me 43:17 – At the Mint 400, Matt Martelli gave us a gambler class, they gave us 100 miles, one lap. 54:00 – That sounds good, let’s get a $400,000 Cullinan to take on an off-road rally Special thanks to 4low Magazine and Maxxis Tires for support and sponsorship of this podcast. Be sure to listen on your favorite podcast app. Support the show