Stunt Driver + Rally Fighter? Hell Yes. (w/ Video)

by Jonathon Klein

A few days ago, I went to a manufacturing and design expo in Chicago showcasing all sorts of new manufacturing techniques and tools on the cutting edge of technology. It was actually pretty cool to check out. However, while as interesting as it was, the reason I was there wasn’t because of manufacturing techniques. I was there because Local Motors was there.

Local Motors is the company originally behind the Rally Fighter, they have since expanded their operation and were there 3D printing a car from scratch and driving off with it after only 44hrs of production and assembly. A fairly monumental task, and one I was eager to cover.

The 3D printed car was incredibly fascinating; it used a Renault Twizy F1 motor and actually ran when it was supposed to, again after only 44hrs of construction. One other major reason I was so excited to cover the event was that the head of PR told me they were bringing a Rally Fighter and that I could get a ride in it!

For those that don’t know what the Rally Fighter is, it’s a crowd sourced design that is essentially a trophy truck rig that you can use on the street or the dirt. Or rocks. Or sand. Or pretty much anything you can think of that you need to go over. It is one of the most badass rides you can own. It has miles of suspension travel, and enough torque to restart the Earth’s core if need be via its LS power plant.

When I got to the Local Motors booth, I introduced myself and made some small talk first. Covered the 3D printed car, and filmed it leaving the building. Once outside, the 3D printed car met up with its big brother, the Rally Fighter; an imposing figure compared to the tiny concept. Everyone, including me, took pictures of the two together and it made for some great shots.

After all the fanfare was over, the PR lady came up to me and asked, “ready for your ride?” I couldn’t contain my excitement and blurted out “hell yes!” She took me over to a man near the car and introduced me to my driver. His name is Buddy Crisp. He’s a stunt driver. A proper stunt driver. He just came off doing the stunt driving for the new Transformers flick.

Now I consider myself a damn good driver. You need that sort of confidence to drive cars fast. But I’ve never been in a car where the driver is not only a goddamn lunatic, but a goddamn lunatic with the skills to put a car precisely where they want that car to go.

We started off going over the curb and him just showing me that the car, even with all the suspension travel, even with a Corvette crate motor, can still drive like a normal car. It’s fine in traffic, and can pootle along just like your Camry would. Then we turned off the main road… I’ll let the video take it from here.

HOLY SHIT, HOLY SHIT, HOLY SHIT!!! First off, props to Thad that he can keep the camera stable from the back seat all the time in the TST videos. I have no idea how the hell does he do that? Second, that was about as much fun as I’ve ever had. Buddy is a madman. Just the way he knows the cars capabilities is ridiculous. I don’t even know that much about my cars capabilities and I’ve owned it for a year!

Stunt drivers are a completely different breed of people. Seriously, for my last TST article I told you about my experience with a couple BMW pro racing drivers. They are very calm, very calculated. Not a hint of humor. And that’s how they need to be, very serious in order to execute the moves needed to be the fastest around a track. Buddy was the complete opposite. All humor, all agitation and a barrel of fun. And I feel that most stunt drivers are like that, especially after watching Musto learning stunt driving the other day.

He just grabbed the Rally Fighter by the balls, mashed the gas pedal, and laughed hysterically! It was pretty awesome. You might not be able to tell from me sloshing about and the somewhat foggy windshield, but at one point we were definitely heading more towards the wall than drifting by it. A fact I didn’t realize until after I review the footage.

Buddy, and Local Motors really gave me one of the most fun rides of my life. Sure it was short, but that was just due to time constraints, but I had a blast. Local Motors did invite me down to their facility to get a longer and more jumpy ride whenever I’m in their neighborhood though so maybe a redux is in order! However, if any of you ever gets the chance to ride along with a stunt driver, do it, you won’t be disappointed. You also won’t be disappointed with the Rally Fighter, man that’s an epic machine.

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