- 2 months ago
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:00Now it's time to crush some cars.
00:06Yeah.
00:07Let's do it.
00:09Woo!
00:11So what's the biggest vehicle you've driven?
00:12This.
00:13This?
00:13This is the biggest one.
00:15That's the first time I ever did this.
00:18So we're going to pull up until you kind of feel it,
00:20get ready to go, and give it a bump.
00:22Go for it.
00:25Oh!
00:28Let's try it again.
00:30Straight?
00:31Yep.
00:32Once it starts to move up, just kind of follow through with it.
00:35Can we do it?
00:37We can do it!
00:42All right.
00:43We're going to give it a bump.
00:44Yep.
00:45Oh!
00:46Come on, baby!
00:48Oh, yeah!
00:49You got it!
00:50You got it!
00:51You got it!
00:52Yeah!
00:53Oh!
00:54Yeah!
00:55Yes!
00:56I did it!
00:57Wow!
00:58Easy peasy!
00:59Wow!
01:00What a feeling!
01:01That is awesome.
01:02Now here's the hard part, getting back down.
01:05Ready?
01:06Oh!
01:07Woo!
01:08Woo!
01:09I'm Sung Kang.
01:10You may know me from the Fast and Furious.
01:12I'm Sung Kang, you may know me from The Fast and Furious.
01:19I'm passionate about cars in real life too.
01:22And it's not just the thrill of driving.
01:26Cars are a gateway into diverse and often overlooked cultures, connecting exciting communities
01:31and people.
01:32Sounds like a jet engine!
01:34So this is my dream job, taking you on a global road trip to see how cars are changing
01:40our world and making all of us a little better.
01:45This is The Ride Life.
01:49It's pretty cool to be able to drive a Grand National around Chicago, I mean, come on, man.
02:09This is the definition of American muscle.
02:16This is a guttural car, huh?
02:21Woohoohoo!
02:22No finesse, no handling, just tough.
02:27This was the fastest production car when this came out.
02:31So it beat the Corvette.
02:32It beat the Lamborghini Countach.
02:35When you look at it from the outside, you go, damn, that's a sexy-ass car, right?
02:39So I spent very little time here.
02:43I just know that Chicago is the third largest city in America.
02:47And they have great sports history.
02:51It's also known for a couple of less attractive traits.
02:55Chicago is one of the worst cities in America for violent crime and carjackings.
03:00And the winter weather doesn't make for fun driving conditions.
03:03It's really cold.
03:04It's a very cold state, Illinois.
03:06And it's so different from my sunny hometown, L.A. I've come to see how Chicago's colder
03:12and darker sides have shaped his car culture.
03:16We're going to go meet Alex from Automotive Mentoring Group.
03:20This guy actually sounds like a movie character.
03:24Alex Vivek uses car restoration to help young men and women break away from the gains that
03:29run rife in parts of the city.
03:32How often do you get to use cars and your love affair for cars to make real life change?
03:38So I'm excited.
03:40The Automotive Mentoring Group is based in a sprawling former aircraft workshop.
03:44How you doing?
03:46Hey, Alex.
03:47Nice to meet you.
03:48Man, my brother.
03:49How are you, man?
03:50Let me show you around.
03:51Show you what we got going, man.
03:52What?
03:53This is my whole big operation.
03:54What are all these 914s?
03:55You know, I have a love for these 914s.
03:56No, I didn't know that.
03:57I have a couple.
03:58Really?
03:59Oh.
04:00Oh, man.
04:01I love some 914s.
04:02What?
04:03I love the name AMG.
04:04Yeah.
04:05Yeah.
04:06I mean, how did you start this, Alex?
04:07I was just really sick of the violence.
04:08Chicago has, like a lot of other cities, has a big carjacking problem, right?
04:13You know, it's like a runaway train, right?
04:16Then I was thinking, well, what about you?
04:19Why don't you do something about it?
04:21Then I went back to school, studied automobile restorations, and then I started going out,
04:26trying to get these gang members off the street to come in and to restore classic cars, right?
04:32I know that getting them in the cars, that that stops all of that.
04:37Because once you get in the cars, that's all you think about.
04:43Some of the older guys in the program have come to tell me what AMG has meant to them.
04:48I don't want to be here than out in the streets, of course.
04:50It's too, it's rough.
04:52I mean, I have friends that have died, you know.
04:55It's either here or out there, so I'd rather choose here.
04:58Yeah, man.
04:59I lost a brother back in 2009.
05:03Very dark, very dark place in life.
05:06It's like, man, I gotta change.
05:08Spoke with Alex.
05:09He offered me a spot here.
05:11Here I am.
05:13Us?
05:14Changing lives.
05:15During high school, I was pretty lost.
05:18All the friends that I grew up with doing music,
05:20most of them, like, started to, like, pass away.
05:22Like, overdose and, like, different things and stuff.
05:24Then I met Alex, and ever since then,
05:26I'll honestly say my life has changed for the better.
05:29Awesome. Awesome.
05:32Come on, let me show you some other things.
05:35What is the what? What is this?
05:36Yeah, this is the alley, man.
05:38We know we're dealing with gang members from across the city, right?
05:40Uh-huh.
05:41Some people are looking for them, right?
05:42So we don't want them to come here looking for them,
05:44and we don't want to have no drive-by shootings,
05:46or we don't want to have no murders or anything like that.
05:49So we just try to keep them out of sight.
05:51So everybody travels from one building to the next,
05:54and they just travel through this hallway.
05:55Oh, I see. It's like safe sanctuary.
05:57It's a safe space.
05:58Yeah, it is. Absolutely that.
06:04This is our automotive design studio.
06:07What? There's a design center?
06:08Yeah, man.
06:09So they come here, and they do the automotive drawings.
06:12Wow.
06:13Usually within the first or second day,
06:15I have a one-on-one conversation.
06:17So you just think we're talking to somebody 19 years old,
06:20and then they tell me,
06:21oh, you know, I got molested by my dad when I was young,
06:25or, you know, I saw my dad get shot in the face
06:28and killed on the front steps of our house.
06:30You know, these guys have some really horrific stories, right?
06:35I says, it's done, and we can't change any of that.
06:39All I'm concerned about is what we're going to do from today, right now.
06:43How are we going to find that greatness?
06:45AMG aims to provide an escape from gang life
06:49by teaching skills that will launch careers
06:51in the repair and restoration trades.
06:53This is where they cut up all the cars
06:56and take them all apart
06:57and learn how to put them back together.
07:00Look at all these cars.
07:02Yeah.
07:03These are real popular right now.
07:04You know that.
07:05Yeah.
07:06These Volkswagen pop-up campers.
07:07Wow.
07:08So now the guys are grinding off all of these panels
07:10where it's all rusted,
07:11and then wrap these panels on here.
07:15Another 914 the boys are working on, huh?
07:17Another 914, yeah.
07:18So we did all-new paint work on it.
07:20Wow.
07:21I'm going to show you these seats that we made for the car, too.
07:24We did upholstery, too?
07:25Yeah.
07:26Yeah, we did these in the house.
07:28Wow, that looks like it came out of a factory.
07:30Yeah.
07:31This is a 1965 Chevy Suburban.
07:34Wow.
07:35And, you know, when we show up to these neighborhood events
07:37and try to attract guys into the program,
07:39you know, we got to go in there looking cool.
07:41Looking sharp.
07:42This is like a SEMA build.
07:43To get a better feeling for the program,
07:45I'm going to work alongside Bill.
07:47He's one of AMG's nine mentors
07:49who are mostly retired automotive tradesmen.
07:52My background's a little different than everybody here.
07:56I was in law enforcement,
07:57so I was a federal agent
07:58with Drug Enforcement Administration for my career.
08:01So drugs and guns,
08:03and saw a lot of bad things with young people.
08:08Like Alex, Bill went back to school after he retired
08:11to learn automotive trades,
08:13and now is sharing his knowledge at AMG.
08:16What we have here, there was, like, rust in this area.
08:20And so we cut it out,
08:22and then fitted another piece of metal,
08:24and then we did what's called tack welding with the welder.
08:27So the grinder here.
08:29We're going to try just to have it smooth.
08:33Let's smooth it out.
08:34Okay.
08:35And this just teaches you to be patient.
08:39Yeah!
08:40Good stuff.
08:41Just keep, I mean, you could just go up and down.
08:44It doesn't have to be completely flat,
08:45but we just want to get as smooth as we can.
08:47Okay.
08:48Yeah, you're getting there.
08:59Feel that.
09:00Oh, yeah.
09:01This is nice.
09:02See, you're getting rid of your scene.
09:03Yeah.
09:04That's what we want.
09:05That's awesome.
09:10You can't rush this at all.
09:12Because if you do, you're going to...
09:13Mess it up.
09:14You're going to mess it up.
09:15So you just take your time.
09:17Let me ask you something.
09:18Just in a short time, what have you learned about it?
09:20What does that teach you so far?
09:22Patience.
09:23That's for sure.
09:24Patience, and it's about also not just looking, but feeling.
09:29Right.
09:30To me, it's like a metaphor.
09:32The same way that we restore this,
09:34that's the same thing we're doing with the people.
09:37They come in, they're all broken.
09:39You know, they feel like junk.
09:41A guy that comes in and does this,
09:43he walks away feeling a lot more confident today
09:46than he did yesterday because, you know,
09:49he accomplished something.
09:50You did wonderful.
09:52You're a natural.
09:53Yeah.
09:54This is going to be a great memory when this is done.
09:56Man, I appreciate you coming, man.
09:57You got the right heart.
09:58This car community is not just about
10:01rolling around in some cool car.
10:03Alex uses his passion to help young men and women find their greatness.
10:10And that's beautiful.
10:12And I'm just like a very ambitious person.
10:17I'm trying to change the world.
10:19And I'm trying to use cars to do it.
10:21And I'm trying to do it one person at a time.
10:24It's late November, not even winter.
10:31And it's minus five Celsius outside.
10:34And with the wind, it feels more like minus 15.
10:37This is not cold.
10:39This is what you call freezing.
10:42I've become a sun popsicle.
10:47So we are right at the beginning of winter hibernation for this city.
10:55This is when all the car guys are going to put their cars away in the garages
11:00and then start working on the cars, right?
11:04So it's like a bear.
11:06It's time to go into the cave and hibernate.
11:09Serious crime in Chicago that was a year-round problem.
11:12And after dark is when you get most of the street racing of stolen cars
11:16and street takeovers.
11:18Street takeovers are a big problem.
11:22I mean, it wasn't Chicago, but L.A., New York, you know, any, like, big city.
11:28Street takeovers have been in the news.
11:31It's really put a stain on the car community.
11:34And given drifting a bad name, what's interesting about this guy, Mike,
11:40that we're going to go meet is that he's using drifting
11:43and to dispel this association with the street takeovers.
11:48Because drifting has to be organized because it is a sport.
11:52It's a discipline.
11:53We're meeting at a location Mike asked me to keep secret.
11:57If word got out, it could become a magnet for the wrong crowd.
12:06What's up?
12:07What's up, man?
12:08Mike, good to meet you.
12:09Hey, Mike, nice to meet you.
12:10Nice to meet you.
12:11Hey, I'm Sung.
12:12I'm Lee.
12:13Hey, Lee, nice to meet you.
12:14Hey.
12:15Simba.
12:16Simba.
12:17Wow, look at this.
12:18A little Fast and Furious event.
12:19Yeah.
12:20Middle Chicago.
12:21What are you guys up to?
12:22Doing some driving.
12:23Yeah?
12:24Get one more drive in before the end of the year.
12:26Before it gets cold, the salt.
12:27Yeah, like with the snow, out here they salt a lot on the roads.
12:30Yeah.
12:31So that basically just like rusts the car and just destroys them.
12:34Yeah.
12:35So we just put them away.
12:36Now that we got nicer cars and we're not super young anymore,
12:39you know, we try to take care of them.
12:41I never really knew there was a drift culture out here.
12:43Chicago's like a weird place.
12:44We're in the center and nobody pays attention to us,
12:46but we always had a tight-knit community and we hounded the internet,
12:49looked at a bunch of Japanese stuff.
12:50Then we started street drifting and started just getting into it.
12:53With street takeovers and stuff, when drifting first started in Chicago,
12:58was it looked at like you guys were like hoonigans and like, you know, street thugs?
13:04It starts out as fun and games just doing donuts and being disrespectful,
13:08but when you learn that you can build your car how you want it,
13:11you can learn a new skill, there's so much more to it.
13:14That's actually super awesome.
13:16So the police tonight are totally cool with you guys doing this thing.
13:19We always had rules and street etiquette is what we call it.
13:23Always be safe.
13:24You don't want to impact the neighbors, cause any injury or anything like that.
13:28And with those rules, we didn't really get a lot of attention from police officers and all that.
13:33We pick like an industrial spot, late night, Sunday, something like that,
13:37when there's no foot traffic, no car traffic or anything like that.
13:41Safety is number one.
13:42Well, let's go.
13:43I want to ride on one of these cars.
13:45Let's go.
13:46Yeah. Let's do it.
13:47Who am I riding with?
13:48You're riding with me.
13:49Yeah?
13:50Yep.
13:51I love this car, man.
13:52This looks straight out of Japan.
13:55It's from Japan.
13:56Yeah.
13:58That's cool you have a pink car.
14:00It's pretty sassy of you.
14:01I love it.
14:02I like the bright colors.
14:06So it's an S turn here, and then, yeah, we'll just do runs back and forth.
14:09Wow.
14:10Look at these guys.
14:11Do you guys huddle up for warmth, or is that like a huddle?
14:14It is warmth.
14:15It is warmth.
14:16Or is it like a game plan?
14:17Like, hey, uh...
14:18It's like, all right, hand warmers and everything.
14:20We're ready.
14:23Let's go.
14:24Some of the crew are stationed at either end at the run.
14:27And they radio in when the road is clear.
14:29This is Mike.
14:30Uh, we're good to go.
14:31Whenever you say.
14:32Can you confirm lockdown?
14:34Yeah, lockdown.
14:35All right, we're going.
14:45Woo!
14:46Yeah!
14:47It's so slippery.
14:49It's like ice skating.
14:51It's crazy.
14:54You have great control, though.
15:03Not enough.
15:04We'll go here and turn around.
15:05There's a little more room.
15:07Blue flashing lights would scatter the crowd at an illegal street takeover.
15:11But thanks to the trust that's been built by Mike's crew,
15:14the police are just keeping an eye on safety.
15:17Hey, man.
15:18Just want to say thanks for coming out here and letting us do this.
15:20Yeah, no problem.
15:21You're doing great out here.
15:22Thanks, officer.
15:24All right.
15:25This is Mike.
15:26We're good to drive.
15:27Yep.
15:28Ready.
15:33Whoa!
15:34Hey, it's more fun with the icy road.
15:36Yeah?
15:37Yeah.
15:38Yeah, I was watching you guys.
15:51It looks like a bunch of cool Skittles, like, drifting.
15:55Oh, yeah.
15:56I was like, these guys cannot be, like, hoonigans because they're very colorful guys.
16:03Tonight, I'm impressed by the example Chicago is setting for other cities.
16:09Look at these guys.
16:10This is like freezing out here and they're just hanging out.
16:13They're huddled and they're happy.
16:15They have such a beautiful spirit and ethos about doing it right so it can grow and they
16:22can be safe and it can continue to foster this community.
16:26I mean, that's what car culture is about.
16:29The Chicago guys are doing it right.
16:38I didn't know they had a car culture here in Chicago.
16:41But I'm realizing it's pretty deep.
16:43You know, it's, like, pretty amazing.
16:45So we're going to meet this gentleman, Alex.
16:48There's a high chance that anyone here who's ever worked on a car has watched the video
16:54of Alex Palmieri.
16:55His YouTube channel has built a community of over one million followers.
17:00All right.
17:01I think this is the place.
17:03Legit street cars.
17:04It's cold.
17:06Oh.
17:07Hello.
17:08Hey.
17:09What's going on?
17:10How are you doing?
17:11Hey, how are you?
17:12Good to see you.
17:13Wow, look at this.
17:14Yeah.
17:15Back to the Future.
17:16That's right.
17:17Oh, my God.
17:18Every time I see one of these, it just, like, just pops at you.
17:23The Lorians found fame as the four-wheel time machine in the 1985 film Back to the Future.
17:29I've wanted one ever since the movies.
17:31I was a kid when Back to the Future was coming out.
17:34Wow.
17:35Dream car, definitely.
17:36Wow.
17:37Like all of Alex's projects.
17:39Get out of town.
17:41The restoration of this once abandoned car became content on this channel, clocking up
17:46over five million views.
17:48So beautiful.
17:49It's so cool.
17:50So this is all restored.
17:51Yeah, I did everything.
17:53The big intricate job on this was re-graining the stainless.
17:56That was hard, huh?
17:57Because it's got a grain.
17:58Yeah.
17:59When they made these in Northern Ireland, they used horse hair on a wheel to re-grain the
18:03car.
18:04Wow.
18:05Yeah.
18:06So now it looks like a brand new DeLorean.
18:07It makes me want one of these.
18:08Can I sit in this car?
18:09Yeah, yeah.
18:10I've actually never sat in one.
18:11I think I could fit.
18:13Oh!
18:14Yeah.
18:15Wow.
18:16What a treat.
18:17Once you're in there, it's comfy.
18:18What a treat.
18:19Wow.
18:20Dude, this is pretty sick.
18:23I got the Back to the Future.
18:25You got the hoverboard?
18:26Yeah, I got the...
18:27Check it out.
18:28I got the...
18:29This is sick.
18:30I got the hoverboard.
18:31They sell this?
18:32Yeah.
18:33Amazon, like 75 bucks.
18:34Oh, wow.
18:35You got the hat?
18:36The hat that Marty wore in Back to the Future.
18:37Yeah, too.
18:38How did the YouTube stuff start?
18:41So I was big on the forums back in the day.
18:44I was mostly in the LS world with my Trans Am.
18:46Ooh.
18:47That's my baby right there.
18:48What?
18:49And this was the inspiration for my channel named Legit Street Cars.
18:52It actually started because I wanted to put big brakes on this car.
18:55And I'm like, you know what?
18:56Let me show everybody how to do this for like 90% less than what the dealer's charging.
19:00So they can save money and actually make these cars that they want a reality.
19:05That's a great concept.
19:06Yeah.
19:07Because you're educating, you're making these cars accessible.
19:11He developed his workshop skills over 10 years servicing cars at a dealership.
19:15And the salting of roads during Chicago's long, cold winter creates a captive audience for his content.
19:21There's the guys that don't drive it in the salt.
19:23So they just laid down the first salt a couple days ago.
19:26So now it's over for a little section of guys.
19:28But what's kind of cool is now this turns into car build time.
19:33All right.
19:34This looks like a monster.
19:42Older Corvettes make great project cars because they can be bought fairly cheap.
19:46And it doesn't take too much money or experience to get them going faster.
19:50It's pretty quick.
19:51It's a 93, 40th anniversary.
19:53It's got an old school like period correct body kit.
19:56Alex bought the car from a scrap yard without even knowing if it could run.
20:01Wake up, fuel pump, wake up.
20:03But I made it here and then I fixed everything.
20:06Wow.
20:07There's one last repair needed before Alex plans to show the restored car to its previous owner.
20:12So we got Max.
20:13Max, the camera.
20:14Max Sung.
20:15Max Sung.
20:16And as always, this will become content for his channel.
20:19So let's have Sung out of the frame and then I'll ask him for the intake manifold gasket or something.
20:25So we have three hours to get this LT4 intake on.
20:29So luckily I called in a friend of mine to help with this job.
20:33Sung, can I get that intake manifold gasket from you?
20:37Oh, yeah, yeah.
20:38It's right there.
20:39Yeah, yeah.
20:40You got the right side up though?
20:41What?
20:42Snack?
20:43Yeah.
20:44We're surprising Marlon, who is the long time owner of this car.
20:51It was his baby.
20:52He named it Ruby.
20:53How far is it?
20:54I think it's going to be like 30 miles.
20:55But we might get stuck in traffic depending on how fast we work.
20:58You want to put that one out though?
20:59Yeah, sure.
21:00I can do that.
21:01They fit in these little holes right here.
21:02Oh.
21:03All right.
21:04Look at that.
21:05It's so simple.
21:06You got it going on.
21:07Wow.
21:08Alex and his enthusiasm is so infectious.
21:12He uses his passion and his knowledge for cars to teach other people.
21:17There's service there.
21:19I didn't get the best grades in high school because I didn't pay attention.
21:22But when I went to tech school, I was like, I like this stuff.
21:25And you cared.
21:26You were passionate.
21:27I loved it.
21:28And I did good.
21:29After an hour or so on the tools, the car is up and running.
21:32And we're on our way to surprise the Corvette's previous owner.
21:35Whoa.
21:36It's got some pep.
21:37Whoa.
21:38Yeah.
21:39This one's fun, man.
21:40Wow.
21:41Back in the day.
21:42Yeah.
21:43Like this thing was kind of serious.
21:44Our route will take us through Chicago's notorious South Side.
21:48If anything happens, we'll have the power to get away.
21:52So is it really dangerous where we're going to the South Side?
21:55Yeah.
21:56They get a bad rep, you know, because everything on the news that happens a lot of times is
22:00on the South or West Side.
22:01And it's unfortunate, but it's always that small portion of people that kind of ruin it
22:06for all the good.
22:07This will be the first time Alex has met Marlin, the Corvette's original owner.
22:12I spoke to him on the phone in one of the videos.
22:14He was like so emotional about the car.
22:17And, you know, and then he got to see the story and like the rebuild online.
22:21You can tell he really loved the car.
22:23Yeah, man.
22:24Something that I'll be able to take away from you, Alex, is that as long as you are truthful
22:32with what you are doing and you're passionate about it.
22:36That's right.
22:37You can make great content.
22:38I do what I love and all the cars I buy have a story.
22:42But like at one point, will people just stop tuning in maybe?
22:45I don't know.
22:46Right now I'm just having a blast.
22:54Marlin's house is two houses over.
22:56Okay.
22:57I'm going to go knock on the door.
22:58I'll be like, I got something to show you.
22:59Okay.
23:00Oh!
23:01Mar- Marlin?
23:02I see.
23:03I don't even know what Marlin looks like.
23:04He's popping out.
23:05Marlin's here.
23:06Marlin!
23:07What's up?
23:08I'm like, I'm setting up a surprise for you, man.
23:11How you doing?
23:12Good to see you too.
23:13This is my friend, Sung.
23:14How you doing?
23:15Hello.
23:16Marlin, Sung.
23:17Sung, help me a little with this today, putting the intake manifold back on and a few things.
23:22I have been dying to come show you the car and reunite you with Ruby.
23:26Yes.
23:27Yes.
23:28You look emotional, Marlin.
23:29Hey, man.
23:30You don't know how many months I spent in that garage.
23:34Look at this, man.
23:35Sweet, man.
23:36This brings back to old memories.
23:37You want to go for a ride?
23:38Yes.
23:39Yes, sir.
23:40All right.
23:41It's a great feeling when you see someone that loves cars, that is reunited with one of
23:55his old cars.
23:56I mean, this is pretty awesome.
23:57What an awesome experience to be a part of.
24:07For my next stop, I'm going against my instincts by visiting a supercar workshop.
24:12What do I mean?
24:14I'm not a big fan of supercars, Ferraris, McLarens, Lamborghinis.
24:19The engineering that goes behind them is something that I truly respect.
24:24But I gravitate towards older cars and maybe just more underdog cars, less flashy cars.
24:32Yet, as I experience car cultures across the world, I'm learning to put aside my expectations
24:38and biases.
24:39So, we're going to go meet Arnie, who works on McLarens.
24:43And hopefully, he'll give me a window into what he sees that is beautiful within this
24:49supercar community because I personally never really had that great of an experience with
24:54these folks.
24:58Hi.
24:59Hey, Sang, welcome.
25:00You must be Arnie.
25:01Thanks for coming out.
25:02Oh, wow.
25:03Look at this place.
25:04Whoa!
25:07McLaren's always been known for their wild colors.
25:10Who would have guessed that in Chicago, this McLaren hub would be here?
25:16I mean, McLaren, it's a British supercar.
25:18So, they're a little quirky.
25:19We do modifications, service, repair.
25:22We're one of the few people in the world that have an engine program.
25:25So, we can do anything you need on a McLaren right here in-house.
25:28Wow.
25:29Very cool.
25:30Some of these McLarens cost more than a million US dollars.
25:33But I have eyes for something else.
25:35What is this, baby?
25:36Yeah.
25:37This is the Bluesmobile.
25:39There's nothing more Chicago than the Bluesmobile.
25:42Are you familiar with the movie The Blues Brothers?
25:44Of course.
25:45Building Chicago.
25:46Absolutely, yeah.
25:47So, this is a replica of the car from the movie.
25:49Wow.
25:50This is a 1974 Dodge Monaco.
25:53That was my first car.
25:54Really?
25:55Wow.
25:56Brings back memories, man.
25:58So, I did this because I'm a kid of the 80s.
26:03And the movie The Blues Brothers filmed here in Chicago.
26:06I'm from Chicago.
26:08I just, I had to recreate the Bluesmobile.
26:11I think I like this more than these supercars.
26:14I'll be honest with you, me too.
26:16So, I do like McLarens, but my heart really lies with weird stuff.
26:22What's this thing?
26:23We've got a 1700 wheel horsepower GTR that we built here.
26:261700?
26:27We're in the middle of tuning, yeah.
26:29Wow, that's really beautiful.
26:31We designed that intake manifold.
26:33We developed a Turbo Kid intercooler for drag racing.
26:36This car would probably run a high seven.
26:38God.
26:39And this is a full street car.
26:40This has got air conditioning and everything.
26:41Wow.
26:42When I see something like this, there has to be something special about you.
26:47So, what is your life philosophy that you apply to your work?
26:53My underlying thing is, if it's worth doing, it's worth overdoing.
26:57Like, I always strive to be the best, and I'm hyper-focused.
27:02I just set my sights on a goal, and I wouldn't stop until I got there.
27:05I like that, if it's worth doing, overdo it.
27:10You know what?
27:11Chicago is known for great food.
27:13Which is what?
27:14And there's a great spot called Super Dog.
27:16Hot dog I can do.
27:17All right, let's grab a Chicago hot dog.
27:19Let's go, can I drive?
27:20You can.
27:21All right, let's go.
27:25I need to blow it in.
27:29That's some juice.
27:32Wow.
27:34This is super cool, man.
27:36I've owned this car for 12 years now.
27:3913 years.
27:40I've never washed it.
27:42Ever.
27:43Not once.
27:45I think you would ruin it if you did.
27:47Exactly.
27:48I would have loved to drive this around Chicago.
27:51This is a lot of fun.
27:52Look at his face.
27:53He's all happy.
27:54Yeah.
27:55Yeah, no, everyone's always smiling and happy with the Bluesmobiles around.
28:07Are we order here?
28:08I always go in.
28:09I don't know if this stuff works anymore, to be honest with you.
28:11Oh.
28:13Hello?
28:14Hello?
28:15Hello?
28:16Hello?
28:17No, it doesn't work, man.
28:19Oh, it works.
28:21Oh, yeah, it does work.
28:23What would you like?
28:24I'll do a plain hot dog and a fry.
28:26What should I order?
28:27The super dog?
28:28The super dog, most definitely.
28:29Okay, I'll have that and a fry, please.
28:32Wow, I've never...
28:33That's kind of a cool experience.
28:36It works.
28:37It actually works.
28:38Me.
28:39The one and only.
28:40Okay.
28:41There you go.
28:48Mmm.
28:49This is really good.
28:50It's probably the best hot dog I've ever had in my life.
28:53The Bluesmobile, Chicago, eat a delicious hot dog.
29:00So where are we off to, Arnie?
29:01So we're going to head to that Ultimate Road Rally toy drive,
29:04and that's at Iron Gate Motor Condos in Naperville.
29:08It's been great getting to know you, I guess.
29:10If you are a representation of the supercar community,
29:13I'm in, brother.
29:14All right.
29:16Well, hello.
29:17What's up?
29:18Good to see you.
29:19I brought a friend.
29:20Oh, awesome.
29:21Nice to see you.
29:22How are you doing?
29:23Good.
29:24Hey.
29:25Hey.
29:26Sung, this is Omar.
29:27Hey, Omar.
29:28Nice to finally meet you.
29:29Nice to meet you.
29:30Omar is kind of the kingpin of the supercar world here in Chicago.
29:32He holds an awesome event called Ultimate Road Rally.
29:35Uh-huh.
29:36He's the one that orchestrates it and puts it all together.
29:38The kingpin.
29:39Yeah.
29:40Oh.
29:41He's obviously hyping it up, but I just do what I love, you know?
29:44I get friends together, get cool cars together,
29:46and do good for other people.
29:48Mmm.
29:49Well, that definitely is a cool car.
29:51Ferrari F40.
29:52This is actually one of our members, uh, when we do our annual toy drives,
29:56he brings us out and gives kids rides on a racetrack in it.
29:59Wow.
30:00Wow, really?
30:01Yeah.
30:02Omar and his supercar-owning pals are putting on a toy run for a pediatric cancer charity.
30:07So these kids, unfortunately, are on a...
30:12This is kind of something that we want to do and make sure that we can grant our last wishes.
30:18But most of these kids that are going to be here today, they're not thinking about being sick or having cancer.
30:22They're here to have fun.
30:24That's awesome.
30:25Yeah.
30:26So why these kids, though?
30:27How are you connected with them?
30:28I feel like everybody's been touched by cancer.
30:30I mean, I don't know anybody who hasn't.
30:32I have.
30:33Have you?
30:34Yeah, my wife had cancer.
30:35Yeah, she went through chemo and had radiation, and, you know, it's like one of the reasons we don't have kids.
30:42So it was, like, really tough.
30:44You realize how precious life is and how short life is.
30:4726 exotic high-performance cars have assembled for today's event.
30:52Check out some cool stuff out here.
30:54What is this? Oh, it's an RA.
30:55This is an NSX.
30:56This is an NSX?
30:57Wow.
31:05This is Vagani Hira.
31:06It looks like a spaceship, yeah.
31:08So it's about $3 million.
31:09$3 million?
31:11Well, how about we go inside and look at some cars?
31:14It's getting really cold.
31:15Yeah.
31:16The vent's this way if you want to come check out the event.
31:18Okay.
31:19There's kids inside.
31:20Kids aged from young as five are taking a break from medical treatments and getting ready for a dream ride.
31:26Stacy Wahlberg is the co-founder of Cal's Angels, the charity hosting this event.
31:31She's paired me up with 15-year-old Parker.
31:34He's been battling brain cancer for three and a half years, right?
31:37Just about.
31:38Just about.
31:39And I know you as a mom.
31:42Yeah.
31:43Yeah.
31:44That's okay.
31:45That's okay.
31:46Did you go for a ride yet?
31:47No, not yet.
31:48When you're ready for a ride, we'll go.
31:49Okay.
31:50All right.
31:51These toy runs began after Omar had a chance encounter outside the hospital.
31:55At the time, I had a red 911 convertible and saw a child in front of the car.
32:00And the mom was sitting there taking pictures with like a flip phone.
32:04And I remember her saying, don't touch the car.
32:05Don't touch it.
32:06Don't touch it.
32:07And I just walked over, open up my door.
32:09And I said, jump on in.
32:11And I actually let the kid sit in the front seat of the car.
32:14And mom, she said, you don't realize how much that meant to him.
32:18This is something that he could only dream of.
32:21And I said, I got to figure a way how to get more kids in cool cars and give back.
32:26Parker and I have scored the outrageous Pagani Waira.
32:29It's designer Horatio Pagani left Lamborghini to build his own revolutionary hypercar after being told his ideas were way too expensive.
32:42So fast.
32:43It's so powerful.
32:44You can just tell how fast it is just by that.
32:47It's just nerve wracking because it's a $3 million car.
32:50Yeah.
32:51Whoa.
32:52Whoa.
32:53Whoa.
32:54Whoa.
32:55Whoa.
32:56Whoa.
32:57Whoa.
32:58Whoa.
32:59Whoa.
33:00Whoa.
33:01Whoa.
33:02Whoa.
33:03Whoa.
33:04Sounds like a jet engine.
33:05It is.
33:06Whoa.
33:07Did you hear that?
33:08Yeah.
33:09Shh.
33:10This is crazy, man.
33:11This is way too powerful, man.
33:13I'm glad I didn't gun it.
33:15Yeah.
33:16My first Pagani.
33:17Is this your first Pagani?
33:18Yeah.
33:19All right.
33:20They're the first together.
33:22You're like one of my heroes, man.
33:25I am?
33:26Yeah.
33:27Really?
33:28Tokyo Drift has been my favorite, and you were kind of the coolest in that one, you know?
33:35With the RX7.
33:36It's all in that, Parker.
33:37I'm not that cool.
33:38You're pretty cool.
33:39How do you think, like, you having cancer has, like, changed the way you think about life?
33:53Well, you've got to be grateful for everything you have, because, like, you could be removed from this earth at any point.
34:10There we go.
34:11That's so crazy.
34:13High five.
34:14All right.
34:16I've never went over 40, yet that's one of the best rides I've ever had in a supercar.
34:23These type of cars that exist here, you know, they're for the few and the privileged.
34:28But today, these cars represent inclusiveness.
34:32It's for everyone.
34:34It's like, look at all these kids here.
34:37Look at all these beautiful energies.
34:39People are here to share what we love with the cars and give back.
34:44I mean, this is what I'm starting to realize what Midwestern Chicago spirit is, what that means.
34:52It's to give service.
34:54Service to the community.
34:56To give back.
34:57It is quite beautiful, driving through Middle America, cornfields, country, fresh air.
35:14You start to realize how vast and big America actually is.
35:19I'm from a small town in Georgia, so, you know, I do kind of feel comfortable.
35:25On this My Last Morning in Chicago, we have a two hour drive out to the small village of
35:32Spartan for a mega truck mud jam.
35:35I do have a lot of respect for the folks behind the monster trucks and what it takes to put
35:42on a show for the fans of monster trucks.
35:46I'm looking forward to go see these guys who do it in a, you know, more of a amateur level.
35:53What's up, Danny?
35:54How's it going?
35:55How are you?
35:56Pretty good.
35:57Nice to meet you.
35:58What is this?
35:59This is what we commonly call a mega truck.
36:00Mega truck.
36:01A mega truck is kind of one step down from your monster truck.
36:02Kind of looks like a big old tractor.
36:03A lot of tractor parts.
36:04These are big combine tires.
36:05The axles are out of a big four-wheel drive tractor.
36:08A mega truck's going to be something that's more so built in someone's garage at home.
36:09Okay.
36:10It's a non-professional monster truck basically.
36:11Okay.
36:12Yeah, I like that.
36:13I like the sound of that.
36:14How'd you get into this stuff?
36:15It's just something we kind of grew up doing.
36:16I was a baby and it just kind of started off with a truck this big and they just keep getting
36:22bigger the older I get.
36:23Danny Joe Ferrigo is a former U.S. Marine.
36:24He served as a former U.S. Marine.
36:25He served as a former U.S. Marine.
36:26A lot of tractor parts.
36:27These are big combine tires.
36:28The axles are out of a big four-wheel drive tractor.
36:29A mega truck's going to be something that's more so built in someone's garage at home.
36:30Yeah, I like that.
36:31I like the sound of that.
36:32How'd you get into this stuff?
36:33It's just something we kind of grew up doing.
36:34I was a baby and it just kind of started off with a truck this big and they just keep
36:39getting bigger the older I get.
36:41Danny Joe Ferrigo is a former U.S. Marine who served as a machine gunner in Iraq.
36:47How'd that experience kind of change your perspective coming back home?
36:50It really makes you value and kind of respect what we have.
36:54There's a people a lot worse off than we are and they generally have a better attitude
36:59about life even with a lot less.
37:02It makes you appreciate being able to do this.
37:04Yes, absolutely.
37:05So unlike races like, you know, NASCAR or rally or drifting, what is the point of this?
37:14So the point of this is to go out and have fun.
37:17It's just to go have fun.
37:18No race, no competition.
37:20It is just a free-for-all, everyone out having fun.
37:23Whoa.
37:24Let's see this group of friends out here.
37:27Hi.
37:28Mudbug.
37:29I love your truck.
37:31Wow.
37:32Hey, this is like well-built.
37:34Look at that.
37:35So this is all custom four-link suspension.
37:37It's got the military axles, military tires under it.
37:40Why a bug?
37:41I love Volkswagen Beetles.
37:43Oh, yeah?
37:44It's a good community too, the mud world.
37:47Hey, Jared.
37:48Oh, man, fancy.
37:50That's so cool.
37:52Hey, Jared.
37:53Nice to meet you.
37:54Very good, and you?
37:55Wow.
37:56You got the tallest one in the house.
37:58Jared's 16-year-old son, Diesel, helped build a mega truck of his own.
38:03Diesel was just 12 when he started to work on a 68 Dodge D100 sweat line.
38:08What is it that you love about this?
38:11No rules out here.
38:12No rules.
38:13You can just do whatever, basically.
38:15And you meet all new people.
38:17Wow.
38:18That El Camino is speaking to me too.
38:22That's one of my favorite cars.
38:24I love this.
38:25I love the El Camino.
38:26Hi, how are you?
38:27Thank you, man.
38:28I love El Camino.
38:29My daughters drive it more than I do.
38:30Wow.
38:31That's one of them.
38:32This is awesome that you guys are doing this together.
38:33It's a family tradition.
38:35You want to drive it?
38:36Oh, yeah.
38:37It's for anybody.
38:38Wow.
38:39I can really do this?
38:40Yeah.
38:41All right.
38:50Whoo!
38:51Whoo!
38:52Whoa!
38:53Yeah.
38:54Nice.
38:56That was awesome.
38:57That was awesome.
38:58That was awesome.
38:59That was awesome.
39:00You did fine.
39:01It puts a smile on your face.
39:02Look at me.
39:03So happy.
39:04A lot of endorphins are kicking it.
39:08You're going to stay, baby.
39:10It's awesome.
39:11It's fun.
39:12It puts a smile on your face.
39:14Look at it.
39:15I'm so happy.
39:16I know the endorphins are kicking in.
39:19Drifting, baby.
39:21Drifting.
39:22Oh, dude!
39:25While I was thrashing the El Camino, one of the megatrucks has taken a heavy tumble,
39:30and the crash was captured by a spectator.
39:33Boom!
39:34Oh!
39:35Oh!
39:36In the event of any accident, the other megatruckers ran their first aid and recovered their vehicle.
39:42It is something that you can always reach out to someone if you ever need any help, anything like that.
39:47It's almost like a brotherhood.
39:49All right, what's next?
39:50Well, we can jump in one of the big trucks.
39:53Danny's truck towers three and a half meters above ground.
39:57You need a ladder to get in this.
39:59I'm on top of the world, baby.
40:02All right.
40:03You got it?
40:05Come on, drive.
40:14From up here, it's an awfully long way down to my next challenge, the mud pit.
40:20It's a hundred meters long, two meters deep, trench of traction-robbing sludge.
40:26You can use your left hand to run the rear steer if you want.
40:29Kind of just watch in the mirror there, and you can kind of see where your tires are pointing.
40:33Giant tires limit turning radius, so megatrucks have front and rear wheel steering to maximize maneuverability.
40:42There you go. That looks pretty good.
40:46We're just kind of nose down in there, nice and slow.
40:51Whoa!
40:52We are in the water!
40:55We are in the water!
40:57Oh, looking at the water!
40:58Uh-oh!
40:59Woo-oh!
41:00Woo-oh!
41:01Woo-oh!
41:02Woo-oh!
41:03Woo-oh!
41:04Yeah!
41:05Turn this way a little bit.
41:06Nice.
41:07Turn to the right.
41:08Come to the right!
41:09Woo-oh!
41:12Woo-oh!
41:13Woo-oh!
41:14Woo-oh!
41:15Woo-oh!
41:16Turn right!
41:17Turn right!
41:18Other right! Other right!
41:28It's crazy!
41:32That was a good one!
41:34Wow, I thought I was like, oh, this thing's gonna flip!
41:38That was crazy, huh?
41:40Man, my heart beats like...
41:44Wow.
41:46The adrenaline's pumping.
41:48Now I understand.
41:49I mean, this is so much fun.
41:53All right.
41:54Ready?
41:55Oh!
41:56Okay.
42:00That's awesome!
42:02Great, man.
42:03Good job.
42:04That was so fun.
42:06I am starving.
42:08I think we're gonna go have some barbecue with the new friends, yeah?
42:12The Mega Truckers sure know how to put on a monster barbecue.
42:17Good.
42:19The pork chop sandwich.
42:21It's delicious.
42:22I'll remember this day for a long, long time.
42:24It's amazing what you can learn, what lessons you can, like, take away with just being around cars, huh?
42:31We've made so many different friends and stuff throughout the years, just by having the shared interest.
42:38You know, aside from the cars, it's really the people that make this event amazing.
42:43And if you guys are a representation of Midwestern hospitality, you guys are great ambassadors, so I just wanna say thank you.
42:52I think I'm gonna have another pork chop sandwich.
43:04What sets a place like this apart is the people.
43:08Midwest, what I have realized is that everyone has this genuine kindness to them.
43:17To me, Chicago does not have a bad rap.
43:19It's a pretty amazing place.
43:22It's a big city with a small town heart.
43:25The spirit of Chicago car culture is about people who serve.
43:30It's serving the community through the cars, using the cars to pay it forward.
43:36These are people that want to give back to each other.
43:40To serve this community.
43:43Who would have guessed that Chicago has that spirit?
43:46PRESIDENT TROGAN
43:59Closed Captions by 3xe
Comments