2nd in L2WD at Lake Superior Performance Rally 2025!
First podium in ARA Nationals! It's been a year of ups and downs for sure, but finishing it out with this feels great. Lot of things had to go right for this to happen, but here's hoping to even better performances in 2026. Massive thanks to my co-driver for this event, Michael Hordijk - helped me get through some important issues after the crash at Southern Ohio earlier this year. The team at River City Rally also builds an amazing car! Big congrats to Henry Tabor and Dylan Hooker on 1st place, and to Nick and David Tippman on 3rd! Fantastic competitors who were a blast to race against. Finally, thanks to MeLe Media for the photo - they seem to know how to be in the right place at the right time.
Exhausted, but: mission accomplished
Been chasing the National podium for a year now. Started off just missing it, then rolled a car off a cliff, then an engine failure leading to a DNF. Was starting to think it couldn’t happen this year. LSPR wound up going in my favor though! We managed to put in a reliable drive through tricky conditions, and the team (mechanic pictured with me here) built a hell of a car. Tanked more than I thought possible. Here’s to next year!
Deception Island Landscape
A photo of myself that I wound up liking. It feels somewhat trippy to look at: the texture of the ground, the rusting remains of the old whaling station, and the two penguins to the left (one is not beheaded, it’s just scratching itself).
Iceberg ahoy
Crossing the seas from the Falklands to South Georgia, encountered an iceberg about ~100 miles off the coast. Supposedly not common to find them this far up but it may have broken off a significantly larger iceberg that is floating around the area. Staggering to see in person, and mind blowing when you consider just how deep they go under the surface!
End of the Pan-American Highway
While I haven’t driven the whole route, this was one of those things I’ve always wanted to see. The route has been romanticized throughout the modern history of the Americas and I love the legend of it. Maybe I’ll do the full thing when I’m older and have more free time…
Luna Luna exhibit
A showcase of an amazing art experience from the 80s was on display in NYC while we were passing through. “Luna Luna” was an amusement park art experiment that included artists such as Basquiat, Haring, Dalí and more. This particular bit made for a cool photo.
Penguin watching
The penguin tour in Akaroa is worth going to! They do an incredible job with the conservation aspect due to the particular breed that's in the area. The drive to the habitat is also absolutely stunning - and made me wish I could take a rally car on the roads...
Climbing a glacier
Got all the way here and almost didn't get to climb due to weather - crazy storms rolled through for a day leading up to it! Luckily we knew to keep a flexible schedule and were able to adjust to ensure we could climb. Super fun experience with absolutely incredible views, highly recommend.
Cruising the Milford Sound
This spot is fairly deep on the south island of New Zealand - and the road to and from gets clogged due to it being only two lanes - but if you time it right it's one of the more stunning locales I've gotten to see.
Hello from 13k feet
Getting all the way to the top of Breckenridge is a bit of a hike... and even then, we got turned away due to a bad lift near the true very top. Nonetheless, the ride down was one of the most memorable snowboarding experiences I've ever had. My buddy Patrick and I were pushing through a bit of exhaustion here - so I appreciate him grabbing the photo.
Sandboarding
This is a bit tourist-y, but ever since I was a kid I've wanted to do this. It's both a lot like snowboarding and nothing like snowboarding: your basic skills transfer over fine, but sand doesn't shift like powder does and it's not easy to get speed back if you waste it. You also do this in socks, not boots. Greatest bit was just sending it off a massive dune - pretty sure I have a video floating around somewhere.
Black Hat 2022
Growing up, I was always enamored with the hacking, infosec and general computer security scene. Wound up checking off a bucket list item in 2022 when I got to help teach at Black Hat. DEF CON afterwards was even better.