Target Team Takes it to the Tracks

During the tiny little blips of time during the year that might be considered an “off-season,” it should come as no surprise that your favorite action sports stars are busy seeking out new thrills instead of just resting up and letting their wounds heal: Travis Pastrana’s triumphs behind the wheel of a rally car are no secret, and he’s inspired the likes of FMX star Kenny Bartram, DC Shoe Co. CEO Ken Block, and skateboarder Rob Dyrdek to become fellow car guys.

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Now a new round of action sports stars is getting into the driver’s seat, this time behind the wheel of NASCAR-style stock racing cars.

To celebrate a huge year for its action sports athletes – Nate Adams won the FMX Dew Tour title, Kevin Robinson won the BMX Best Trick and Big Air contests at X Games 12, Anthony Napolitan claimed the Dew Cup for BMX Dirt, and Simon Dumont won more freestyle ski contests than we can keep track of – Team Target recently sent its crew down to Florida for a day at the Drivetech Racing School.

“I’ve always had a passion for cars, but I’d never really done any driving on this kind of level before,” says Dumont, who is now training full-time in Colorado to prepare for the Honda Ski Tour and Winter X Games 11. “We just went down there, had like a half-hour briefing, then jumped in some NASCARs. I never really thought NASCAR was cool before, but then I got in a stock car and went like 130 miles per hour around a turn. Now I know: Those guys are crazy. It’s ridiculous.”

The Drivetech Racing School is the real deal: After a short briefing session, students drive solo in real stock cars. Unlike many other driving schools, Drivetech permits drivers to pass each other, take the corners fast, draft off of other cars, and compare times with other drivers… all of which, one might imagine, is music to the ears of guys like Simon Dumont and Nate Adams.

“My competitive spirit will come out all over the place, and we definitely had a little trash talking going before we jumped in the cars,” says Dumont. “I think I held my own once I got behind the wheel.”

Dumont says the competitive bunch was humbled by the experience, but that each of the guys was inspired to take a new look at racing.

“In any other circumstances, I think it might have been a bit intimidating, but there was no way anybody was going to show it given the situation,” says Dumont, who notes that even though everything at the racetrack was in a safe, controlled environment, it all felt a bit on the edge. “In action sports right now, everybody’s always pushing it, you know, trying to get the rep that they’re not scared of anything. With guys like Nate Adams, Kevin Robinson, and Anthony Napolitan, it might actually be true. Professional bikers? It turns out, they’re gnarly.”

Although he’s focused on ski season for the moment and says he’s looking forward to the Ski Tour and Winter X Games, Dumont says he’s also interested in pursuing the whole car racing thing a bit further when he has another chance.

“After just 20 laps, which is nothing compared to what the NASCAR guys do, I was sweating and my heart was racing,” says Dumont. “Racing cars is exhilarating, no doubt about it. The weekend after I went to Drivetech, I persuaded Red Bull to send me to the rally car racing school in New Hampshire where Travis Pastrana got started.”

For now, his ski sponsors will be happy to know he’s still got his eyes on the prize as a skier.

“This season there’s a new world-class half-pipe Ski Tour with big prize money, and it’s a push for the Olympics, so that’s one of my main focuses,” says Dumont. “I also want to be known as more of a slopestyle skier: I won my first slopestyle contest last year, so I kind of want to put a little exclamation on that and keep stepping it up. A lot of people re getting crazy, so I’ve always gotta step my game up. Right now the only driving I’m going to be doing is to get to the mountain.”

Chances are, you’re never going to be able to do a 1080 on skis like Simon Dumont. But you can check out the Drivetech Racing School & Driving Experience and get yourself behind the wheel of a stock car>