With his life-long passion for motor vehicles and motor bikes – especially the large, loud and modified – it was only natural that Jason Davidson (AS Regional Service Manager East Coast) embarked on a six-week holiday motoring adventure across the USA.
It was back in 2014 and with Raquel, his wife of 20 years, they headed for the West Coast first, travelling the highways and byways in search of exciting motoring experiences.
First on their bucket list was Dirt Bike riding in the hauntingly beautiful Moab Desert of Arches (most people would probably recognise the landscape from those old cowboy movies). Then they got their kicks cruising the famous Route 66. Of course, for a speed freak like Jason, the holiday wouldn’t have been complete without visiting the famous Bonneville Salt Flat Speed Week.
Just being at such a world-famous racing venue was a massive buzz for Jason, so he wasn’t too fazed when the racing was cancelled early in the week. They took the opportunity drive to Snake River and see where Evil Knievel made his rocket-powered attempt to fly across the Canyon. It was on the way to Snake River when, stopping for gas, Jason met a Rat Rodder named Chris Muisick from Washington State.
Jason explained that “Chris was parked on the side of the road with his head under the bonnet of one of the coolest-looking Rat Rods you’ll ever see; he was having issues with the car. So, I jumped in to help” From that day, they formed a mateship and their families have kept in touch ever since.
With his passion for custom cars now fully-fuelled, it wasn’t long before Jason was back in the States. “In 2015, my son Jesse and I built a Rat Rod with Chris in Washington” he said. “We then drove it up and down the West Coast, visiting the salt flats and meeting Gene Winfield at his custom-car making shop”. Gene is a legendary car customiser and works in the Mohave desert. He helped create the whole Rat Rod scene. If you’re into custom cars, check out www.winfieldscustomshop.com
Not long after that second trip, Chris got involved with the Jack Rogers Race Team from Indiana. In search of new racing adventures, and always looking for long stretches of salt flat, they shipped a bunch of cars to Australia in early 2017 and set-up shop at Lake Gairdner in South Australia.
“I was asked to help out while they were here” Jason explains, “So, with my two sons, Jesse and Zac, we met them at Lake Gairdner and experienced the incredible blast of land-speed racing on our home turf”. The high-speed thrills keep coming for Jason and his family – they were then asked to join the Jack Rogers team in Bonneville USA – and then back in Australia again later this year!
Jason is totally pumped to be part of such an amazing racing experience. A proud and dedicated rev-head, he was quick off-the-mark to thank Jack Rogers Racing and Steve Strupp. “It’s been a rare privilege and an absolute blast” said Jason. “We’ve helped them with getting five people into two different 200MPH clubs and also set 6 land speed records. Just last week Steve Strupp made a record pass of 229MPH (in car 757-2, the Chev Camaro pictured), giving him membership into the 200MPH club. The cars have all gone over 250MPH and I’m certain this car is well capable of running 300MPH”.
Special thanks to Strupp Services and Jack Rogers.
The Rat Rod Jason built in 2016
Chev Camaro….. 250mph plus
Jason’s spiritual home – Chev V8 power
