I'd be surprised if by now, any of my readers haven't heard of Desert Meihan which occurred in early December 2017, so I'll skip the details of how and why this event came to be and just dive right on in. While one of my 2017 goals was to somewhat give myself a birthday gift and allow myself to drive this event, the cards just didn't fall into place so I did my normal thing and covered the event from a Bushido perspective. Due to the hype and excitement which really came out in the community around the replica track event, I wasn't one of the lucky few to obtain a media pass, even with a slight dab of persuasion from the friendly fellow Chris at Track Society. However, he was super open to the idea of me still coming to the event, and generously invited me to attend the track day Pre-Meet which took place the Friday night immediately before the event at local aftermarket parts scientists, Voodoo13's warehouse. Several of the big hitters that were going to be in attendance at Desert Meihan were invited to appear at the pre-meet so I was honored to come hang for awhile.
While heading over to the venue, I mistaken passed the entrance while I was breaking-neck to the lovely glass-in-brick windows, decorated with historic Hondas, that offered a peek inside the establishment. After a quick 'U-ie,' I found myself inside the enormous garage that is Voodoo13. Greeted by the smiles of a few local friends, glances from out-of-towners, and the view of Caleb Quanbeck's S14 enveloped by his friends and associated YouTubers, the realization that this event was going to be something legendary began to sink in.
A decent perspective of just a fraction of the inside of the space from when you first turn the corner coming inside.
The Track Society team really, for lack of a better term, raised the bar with this event. I had caught Chris a couple times in the months leading up to December, and let him know I was happy to help out in anyway that I could - as loads of other local members of the community did as well. All of the planning, promoting, advertising, thought and calculation really added up to a flawless execution. Many of the track-workers and crew associated to making Desert Meihan happen had spent most of Friday at the track setting up and testing, then resetting and retesting, then repeating - so needless to say by the time most of them got to the shop, a well-deserved beer was in order.
There's no missing Josh's deep lime S13 Coupe fitted with Koguchi goods.
Everyone getting stoked for the festivities that the next day would bring. . . then there's Ravi.
Being on a strict timeline, Caleb had to roll out a bit early. It wasn't moments later that we heard the sounds of V8 roars and tires holding on for dear life, so naturally the crowd went running to the bay door to get a preview.
I took advantage of the break in time to go explore a bit more, when I came across the trophies that Nick from Wild Child Innovations had prepared for the drivers. These things left me speechless, and it's sick the amount of thought and care he put into crafting something that will mean so much to the recipients. My favorite was the "HARD LUCK" trophy, which carried some Minion-esque quality about it.
I moseyed a little further down the lane and found Chasen's Z, looking as ready as ever to be tested against the K-Rail.
That damn PBM kit. . .
He already knows what's up.
Aaron's Ruckus sitting all by its lonesome was just begging for some intimate shots.
Super sick craftsmanship on the exhaust.
The lucky end plate on Chris' wing that didn't have a thing to worry about the next day. . .
Shouts to Night Runner, who I'm impressed has really expanded so much!
Things were just starting to slow down . . . when Dustin showed up in his freshly sprayed Cefiro. Drawing crowds like crazy, on-lookers couldn't help but get caught in a daze.
About the most accurate shot I could get of the true detail in his paint job.
As folks began to wander off and either turn in for the night to get sleep or head out to squeeze in a few more drinks before the new day, Ravi still continued to look lost and it seemed that no one was claiming him. . .
I was pretty pumped though that Jesse and his father invited their long time friend, Ross Petty, to come hang out for the weekend. Getting to meet him in person was unreal, and I felt the good karma flowing after offering up my beanie to keep Kendall's head warm, when Jesse hit me with an allusive Garage Boso replacement. I was in the mood for some sushi, so from here shot down the street in the roller skate to a local, late night spot. The pre-meet evening was just what I needed to get in my groove and had left me really excited for the actual event. . . Stay tuned!
武士道 - B U S H I D O!
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