Seriously. You would have to – literally – have been living under a rock these past 10-15 years NOT to have at the very least, heard the name, Ken Block.
(And if indeed you are one of these incredibly rare sub-rock-dwellers who have only just come up for air and are wondering what, indeed, all the fuss is about, can I suggest that you click on the following YouTube video
Part serial entrepreneur, part serious (WRC level) rally driver, but also absolute grand master of the modern (i.e. internet-based) way of marketing a product and/or a service direct to the potential end users via the sort of short, sharp, guerrilla-style videos which revolutionised YouTube and helped Chinese start-up TikTok refine its original (i.e.. Video, direction) Block had always cast a particularly long shadow.
And now, due to his unfortunate death in a single-vehicle snow mobile accident in his adopted home state of Utah on Monday Jan 02, that shadow that looked like it was only going to get longer and stronger with the passing years, is set now, to pass.
In saying that it is a mark of the man, not to mention what he both achieved and created in his 55 years on the planet, that my social media feeds have been full of little else BUT heartfelt tributes to ‘Ken Block #43’ since mid-afternoon on Tuesday Jan 03.
For instance, a post by Pro drifter Chris Forsberg on his Instagram page was the first to alert me of Ken’s death, and I repeat it here because of its rare brevity & gravitas.
“Speechless. Incredibly tragic news to hear that (Ken Block) has passed away. We did not talk often but every interaction I’ve had with Ken he was always in a positive mood, laughing and smiling.
“His creativity and passion brought attention to all of us. He will be missed.
“Condolences to his family….”
Of which, in fact, little is actually known, bar the fact that wife Lucy also competes in rallies in the US, and that eldest of their three children, 14-year-old Lia, is in the process of forging a career of her own on four wheels.
True to form it was Lia who took to Instagram just a day after her father’s untimely death, saying simply that; “ yesterday I didn’t just lose my father, I lost my best friend. He was truly my whole world and the only person I ever looked up too. No matter what I did he was always there to support me. (And) I can’t believe how fast he was taken from all of us.
“No words can describe of how much of an amazing human my dad was, he lived so many lives, accomplished more in 55 years than most people could in 10 lifetimes, and lived his life to the absolute fullest every single day.
He always did what he loved no matter what, right up to the last second, and always was there for me and my siblings and my mom whenever we did what we loved.
“He never said no to something we wanted to try, never pushed us to like what he liked, just opened the door for us to explore.
“He never missed an opportunity to help us grow as good people, he always told me that he wanted us to be even more amazing, caring, happy, selfless, humans than him and my mom.
“He always helped others and opened doors for so many other people. I can only hope to do half as many amazing things he did.”
“I grew up, knowing in the back of my head, that I wanted to be just like dad. He was one of the most amazing people in the world, not to mention the best dad I could have ever asked for. I will strive every single day to make you proud.”
Which certainly brought a lump to my own throat when I read it.
What turned that lump into a stream of hot, salty tears, however, were another couple of seemingly unrelated posts, one from Block’s esteemed co-founder and current ‘Big Boss’ of the burgeoning Hoonigan business empire, Brian Scotto, and the other from our own Mad Mike Whiddett.
Brian Scotto:
“Ken would always say ‘Can’t you just say it for me…’ He hated talking on camera. So it was often my job to coach and sometimes coax him along. I was always the one with the words. But I have no idea what to say right now. I feel broken.
“The automotive world lost an icon. Lucy lost a husband. Lia, Kira and Mika lost their dad. So many of us lost a man who gave us incredible opportunities. And I lost a mentor, a partner and a dear friend.
“Fuck, this hurts.”
And Mad Mike:
“Damn this hits hard. Ken you have left a legacy, you inspired so many people including myself and Linc, Linc lost his hero today and I lost an amazing friend, so many rad times and memories with you sharing the same passion of building wild cars, shredding and entertaining the world.
“You will always be the KING. So many fun times with you and our kids in so many different countries.
“Love you bro, still can’t believe we were just messaging about our hang’s next week in Japan I still find this hard to believe. Sending your family and team all the love we possibly have from the MADFAM.”
Having lost several close friends, now, to cancer, suicide, or car and/or motorcycle accidents I can certainly verify the bit about it hurting.
Even for someone who, like me, never actually got to meet Ken Block in person, despite our paths crossing on numerous occasions through the years, the suddenness and sheer random nature of his death sent me reeling – and it is only now, five full days after his death that I felt able to sit down and stitch together this tribute piece to Kenneth Paul Block, a driven individual if ever there was one, taken – albeit absolutely on his own terms – (well) before his own time.
Ken Block – a life
Ken Block was born and raised in Long Beach, CA, and first met success in the 1990s in the allied worlds of skateboarding and streetwear.
With fellow young gun business partner Damon Way, Block co-founded some of the day’s most influential apparel and footwear brands, including Eightball Clothing, DC Shoes, Type A Snowboards, and Dub outerwear.
The DC Shoes company proved one of the most successful business ventures in boardsports history, Block and Way selling the brand to Quiksilver in 2004 for a reported $US88 million.
Block then used some of his pay out to kick start a parallel career in his first motorsport love, stage rallying and rallycross.
He also established his own motorsport ‘brand,’ Hoonigan Industries, and created a new extreme-sport-as-video-entertainment package, based – albeit rather loosely – on the classic US club motorsport staple, the Gymkhana.
Block built an incredible following worldwide with his ‘Gymkhana 1-10’ video series which has now generated more than half a billion (550 million) views.
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