Travis Pastrana has made two attempts this year at the
Global Rally Cross world with his Red Bull sponsored 2013 Dodge Dart rally car
and while things could have certainly gone better – there have been good signs
along the way.Pastrana showed that the
Dart is more than competitive with the likes of the Ford Fiesta and Subaru WRX
that dominate the GRC program and recently, the Red Bull YouTube channel
offered up a video shot the day that Travis met the new Dart rally car for the
first time.
The 7 minute video below walks us through a day in the life
of Travis Pastrana – a day in which he got his first look and his first seat
time in the 2013 Dodge Dart rally car. We have seen the videos of Pastrana and the Red Bull Racing Dart rally
car tearing around the Chelsea Proving Grounds but this new, 8 minute video
offers a look at some unique angles – including outtakes and behind-the-scenes
clips from the day that Pastrana took the lid off of the awesome new Mopar
rally car.
So crank up your speakers, sit back and enjoy the video of
Travis Pastrana meeting his Dart rally car. If you are more interested in the actual moving shots of the car, that
footage begins about four and a half minutes into the video.
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
Travis Pastrana has made two attempts this year at the