Conversations with Big Rich

Johnny Campbell, 11-time Baja Champion, Johnny has raced, supported, and managed the American Honda team. A fun listen, Johnny shares stories from around the world. Johnny was inducted in the Off Road Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2018. Johnny is why we say; legends live at ORMHOF.org. Be sure to tune in on your favorite podcast app.

9:17 – at a local level, I had a couple number one plates. I had a few mentors, I was always following them and watching what they were doing

13:13 – I was 21 when I finally got noticed by American Honda, and a guy who became my absolute hero and mentor

24:26 – Bruce was super humble, super organized, super smart

31:32 – we were professional at pre-running and racing and following ribbons and arrows, but we were novices at trying to navigate off a roadbook

41:57 – I call it 11 time, 17 gives people the illusion I rode it all

53:35 – We’ve built a program around Rancho Santa Maria, the school and orphanage that every year we do an event called the Baja Beach Bash

59:56 – ORMHOF was a really big point in my career; I think as a racer, it’s more than just racing, it’s how have you impacted the sport?

Special thanks to ORMHOF.org for support and sponsorship of this podcast.

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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.

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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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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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.

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.

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.