Ken Block – November 21, 1967 – January 2, 2023
Entrepreneur, Athlete, Extreme Sportsman, Drifter, TV Celeb, Social Media Giant, Rally Driver and Head Hoonigan, there are a multitude of ways to describe American-born Ken Block, but ‘gone too soon’ is the one we didn’t want to hear.
Kenneth Paul Block (Ken Block) was born in Long Beach, California. Humble beginnings for sure, with his father having an electronics business and Block living the 80’s ‘anti-establishment’ SoCal-way of skateboarding, snowboarding, and listening to punk rock music. From there his parents decided to own an Avocado grove which prompted a family move to Escondido, and where Block subsequently went to high school.
Spending much of his formative years in Escondido meant that Block ‘hung out’ with
professional skateboarders, snowboarders and surfers and he attributes this period to shaping how he thought about the world, how he wanted to do things his own way and create his own path.
The young Block moved to Breckenridge, Colorado for a couple years to become a snowboarder, but quickly realised he wasn’t good enough to be a pro. From there he moved back to California and went to school for graphic arts and design before starting his own shirt printing business and ultimately co-founding DC Shoes in1994 with his
good friend Damon Way.
As with most of us, Block’s varied upbringing laid the foundation for what was to be his true calling, being a racer.
Although Block was somewhat late in his debut Rally appearance, 2005, the global event had piqued his interest back in the 80’s when Audi began getting worldwide press with its Quattro, and on top of that, Block had enjoyed riding and racing dirt bikes from the age of 12 which he remarked that for him, Rally was kind of a version of that.
“I liked Rally, I wanted to do Rally, and when I got keys to my own cars, I lived on a twisty, windy road out in the middle of nowhere, [so] that was the driving style that I mimicked.”
Due to his age and experience, Rallying began as a hobby for Block, where he and DC athlete Travis Pastrana raced ‘for fun’ in the Rally American Championship. However, as it turned out, Block’s natural talent shone through and he ended up beating Travis in the championship, and immediately decided to keep doing it as long as he could.
2006, 2007 is when Block started taking it a bit more seriously. In 2006, Block and Pastrana signed a new sponsorship deal with Subaru and became known as Subaru Rally Team USA, and finished second in the Rally America National Championship. The same year, Block also competed in his first-ever X Games rally event at X Games XII.
2007 saw Block grabbing silver at the X Games XIII rally event, and bronze in the Rally America National Championship, and during this season Block also entered in a few rounds of the World Rally Championship; Rally Mexico and Rally New Zealand. In Rally New Zealand, Block recorded two top-five stage times in the Group N class. At the end of 2007, Block had achieved 19 podiums and 8 overall victories in rally events.
In 2008 Block created his first (80’s Rally and Rallycross inspired) ‘Gymkhana’ video, a series of high-octane, all-thrills YouTube videos that have gone on to draw hundreds of millions of views, and even been showcased on BBC’s Top Gear. Each video has become more and more extreme with outrageous stunts that Block insisted were made without any CGI (so very real).
And as for the ‘Hoonigan’ name, Block said that in America, hoon is a term of endearment, meaning you’re having fun with the car. ‘I got called ‘King of the Hoons’ by a magazine so we started using it more and more’.
Block hung up his WRC boots in 2018 having achieved various degrees of success, including being the first ever American driver to campaign for the World Rally Championship, finishing 8th at the France Rally, 9th at Wales and scoring his best ever overall finish (7th) at the Mexican rally. However, he continued to attend a variety of global meets (including NZ) in a more amateur capacity – just for the fun of it.
‘Hoonigan’ Ken Block died earlier this year as a result of a snowmobile accident, he was aged 55. As a mark of respect, the number 43 will be retired from the World Rally Championship in his honour. He will be sadly missed.
Dave McLeod
Motoring Writer