Boost Mobile Hot Import Nights - Minneapolis

Boost Mobile Hot Import Nights - Minneapolis Date: September 27, 2008 Location: Minneapolis, MN Article: Mike Bender Photos: Mike Bender, Dave Bourne, Drew Andres

Minnesota (or MinneSnowda as it's known to some because of its super cold winters) had a party in the form of Hot Import Nights this past weekend. The Minneapolis show included several hundred of the finest cars and models from the region and around the country.

Entertainment included the MC Battle, the Go-Go dancers, DJ Yoshi on the Boost Stage and performances by Asher Roth, Casadon and several other hip-hop groups. This was the second year at this particular venue and there was never a dull moment at the Minneapolis Convention Center.

Models attending this event came from far and wide to be a part of it. A few of the faces you'll see in this gallery includes: Ashley Sarto, Jenny Chu, Melissa Paradise, Sophia Lin (aka DJ Hustle Lin), Amber Sulligan and Jae Angel, to name a few.

The next stop is HIN Dallas on October 11th. If you are within 500 miles, make sure you check it out!

Formula Drift - Round 7 Finals

Formula Drift - Round 7 Finals Date: October 11, 2008 Location: Toyota Speedway, Irwindale, CA. Article: Clinton Lum Photos: Clinton Lum, John Coupe

The stakes were high and it was put up or shut-up to qualify as well as clinch the 2008 Formula Drift series. Everyone pushed their cars to the limits because they had to. These drivers scraped their rear ends, popped off their bumpers (both front and rear), smashed through plastic barricades, and spun out because they came into corners too hot.

After all of that drama just to qualify, there were 16 hardcore drivers to duke it out. The top 16 included Rhys Millen, Ryuji Miki, Vaughn Gitten Jr., Bill Sherman, Sam Hubinette, Conrad Grunewald, Daijiro Yoshihara, Michihiro Takatori, Tanner Foust, Mitsuru Haruguchi, Ryan Tureck, Chris Forsberg, Justin Pawlak, Taka Aono, Manabu Orido, and Robbie Nishida.

When the sun started dropping in the horizon, the track became that much more treacherous. The warm day and grip that the drivers grew accustomed to while the sun was out changed as colder temps rolled in. Of course they had grip with their tires, but considering that these drivers were already riding that fine line between a sweet drift and a major slam into perimeter concrete, they had to adjust to their night game.

Sometimes I wonder how these drivers can do what they do, like whipping into turn 1 at around 80 mph slide sideways and also do it while opponents kick up major tire smoke in their face. These guys have skills, that's for sure.

In the end, Vaughn Gittin Jr. clinched Round 7, and took his spot on the podium. Tanner Foust came in second and Justin Pawlak clinched 3rd place.


2008 Series Point Standings

1st - Tanner Foust (599 points)
2nd - Samuel Hubinette (544 points)
3rd - Rhys Millen (510 points)

CVT TRANMISSION

If you like drifting, look what's coming up next month...

Formula DRIFT, North America's premier drifting sanctioning body, has partnered with Red Bull Energy Drink, the world's leading energy drink, to create one of the world's most anticipated drifting events ever - the Red Bull Drifting World Championship. The event, which will feature 32 of the world's best drifters, will be held on the docks at the Port of Long Beach, Calif., on Saturday, November 15, 2008. www.formulad.com

Battle of the Imports - World Finals

Battle of the Imports - World Finals Dates: October 18, 2008 - October 19, 2008 Location: California Speedway, Fontana, CA. Article: Clinton Lum Photos: Clinton Lum

The straightaway was clear and the only thing that separated these drivers were sometimes thousandths of a second. These guys needed to have their cars in perfect working condition, but even with that, if your reaction times are even a fraction of a second off, you may have already lost the race before it even started.

It was the usual day at the strip. For some drivers, their reaction times were perfect. For others, there were situations where their cars just died at the starting line or they could not get into gear as their car shuddered past the Christmas tree. I guess it could be worse by having your car die and spilling fluid all over the track.

In between the sound of cars burning out, there was go-go dancing by the models from The Dutchess. And if that wasn't enough, Import Tuner hosted a bikini show to the crowd's delight. The stage cranked out tunes throughout the day and there were tons of freebies being thrown out to the crowds. I guess everyone came out a winner at the show.


Results (Finals):

Pro-FWD: Marty Ladwig (08 Chevy Cobalt) 7.365 sec, 199.02 mph
Pro-Import: Bryan Jimenez (07 Chevy Cobalt) 8.073 sec, 173.90 mph
Pro-Stock: Jeremy Lookofsky (06 Honda Civic) 9.523 sec, 141.34 mph
Pro-Stock VW: Ron Fleming (66 VW Bug) 10.397 sec, 127.40

Street-Tuner: Ali Ashfar (07 Subaru WRX) 8.914 sec, 152.83 mph
Street-Comp: Jonathan Reynolds (01 Acura Integra) 9.550 sec, 159.89 mph
Street-Performance: Tim Grey (94 Honda Civic) 10.935 sec, 123.89 mph
Street-Stock: Mike Sedra (95 Acura Integra) 12.321 sec, 109.69 mph

Quick-16: Greg Ramirez (95 Acura Integra) 12.618 sec, 114.46 mph
Sportsman: Dan Bullis (04 VW) 14.445 sec, 98.38 mph

HIN LA (Anaheim)

HIN LA (Anaheim) Date: March 14, 2009 Location: Angel Stadium of Anaheim Article: Photos: Car and Model staff

Hot Import Nights kicked off their 11th season at the Angel Stadium of Anaheim with a BANG! The HIN crew pieced a solid line up of features for the public; such as Dromo-1 Kart Racing, Auto Barrel Racing, Pro Freestyle MX Riders, Street Stunt Bikers, Chris Forsberg and the NOS Energy Human Horsepower Zone & DJ Rocky Rock and friends with freestyle rapper Tom Green!? Celebrity Tom Green was one of many special guest appearances (peep his youtube video!). Efrain Ramirez, better known as 'Pedro' from the hit movie 'Napoleon Dynamite' rocked the crowd with a 20 minute DJ set. 'Far East Movement' along with 'Ben Baller' & 'Quest Crew', fresh from their 'America's Best Dance Crew' victory on MTV, opened up for 'YaBoy' who closed the show with his hit song 'We Run LA'.

HIN introduced the brand new Ultimate Car Competition that will pay over $120,000 to car competitors throughout the 2009 HIN tour. With over 650 cars in the house, you must be curious to know who represented... Alpha Squad, Arkan, Auto Concept, Auto Fashion, Euro Rev, Flux, Heavy Hitters, High Intenzity, Hokori, Hybrid, Illmatic, M-Fest, Over Rev, Rare JDM, RL2, Supra & TWC! By far, some of the best team displays in years...

Congratulations to Viet Nguyen and his Unlimited Best of Show victory at HIN Anaheim. His victory has won him an invite to compete for the Ultimate Unlimited Title & Cash Prize in Phoenix 12/12/09. Who will claim the Unlimited Best of Show in San Mateo!?