Ken Block Won't Let a Little In-Cabin Fire Slow Him Down

11 years, 5 months ago - 9 November 2012, Autoblog
Ken Block Won't Let a Little In-Cabin Fire Slow Him Down
Say you're driving along, minding your own business and smoke starts rising from the hood of your car – you're going to pull over, right? Well if you are the master of Gymkhana, Ken Block, it's never that simple.

The drift-happy racer was competing at a Global RallyCross event at SEMA when things got a little hazy in the cockpit of the heavily modified Ford Fiesta rally car. Block was in the lead, and as one might do when leading a race, he ignored the smoke billowing from beneath the shifter. Three laps into the race, and the smoke persisted, but hey there was driving to be done! Finally, flames erupted, but Block was still not phased. This from the Hoonigan YouTube page:

"After qualifying first, winning each of his heats and leading the first 5 laps at Global Rally Cross SEMA, Ken Block was forced to DNF due to a FIRE in his cockpit. But before retiring Block drove the piss out of his Ford Fiesta HFHV despite the smoke, and flames. Why you ask... Cause, like any good Hoonigan, dude AIN'T CARE!!!"

Our takeaway from this mishap is that Block remains unsettlingly cool, and only after stuff starts melting and falling over does it appear that Block becomes alarmed at all. They say racers need ice water pumping through their veins, but that doesn't make you fireproof, so we're glad Block is alright. To see all the vehicular carnage, check out the video below.