RIP Ken Block

[LWJ]

I’m not a huge fan, but Ken Block was a source for auto hot rodding fantasies of today’s youth.

RIP. I did appreciate what he did. He had a remarkable vision.

[cstreit]

Whoa... Thats a bummer....

[pavulon]

Like so many things, snowmobiles can be wickedly dangerous.

[herr_oberst]

Wow. That's a shocker. RIP.

[masraum]

Wow! He seemed to have a lot of passion and was willing to share it. He was only a few years older than I am.

https://www.roadandtrack.com/news/a42381041/ken-block-dead/

Pro rally driver and Hoonigan co-founder Ken Block was killed in a snowmobile accident on Monday, Hoonigan's social media accounts confirmed.

Block, a prolific figure in the car community, was 55 years old. A co-founder of DC shoes, he moved into the world of rally and quickly made a name for himself, developing the Hoonigan brand and creating the much-loved Gymkhana video series.

"It's with our deepest regrets that we can confirm that Ken Block passed away in a snowmobile accident today," a statement from Hoonigan says. "Ken was a visionary, a pioneer, and an icon. And most importantly, a father and a husband."

The Wasatch County Sheriff's department confirmed Block's death in a statement published to Facebook. According to the statement Block was riding on a steep slope when his snowmobile "upended, landing on top of him." Block was riding with a group but alone at the time of the incident. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

When he wasn't driving electric stunt cars from Audi or race cars from Porsche, Block spent his time participating in a variety of winter sports, including snowboarding, driving UTVs, and snowmobiling. Block is survived by his wife, Lucy, and three children.

That last bit really sucks.

[CurtEgerer]

I assisted in several private test sessions for Block. His team (and long-time co-driver Alex Gelsomino) is like family to him. It's the same group of guys that has been with him for years. I really feel for them and wonder what they're going to do now? Many don't know that he was first and foremost a rally enthusiast, not so much the Hoonigan guy that paid the bills. He really knew of, and appreciated, the history of the sport.

This is some video I shot of Ken and his crew at a test session.

[Reg]

Real bummer. What a driver. Huge loss for family, friends and the fans. Rest in Peace.

[speeder]

Originally Posted by pavulon

Like so many things, snowmobiles can be wickedly dangerous.

Unbelievably dangerous, at least potentially, like a one liter sport bike on snow. I'm guessing that he was on something really fast and that he probably really knew how to hoon it. Really sad...RIP.

[Rusty Heap]

Ken was Living Life Large!

[aigel]

Shocking but not shocking. Constantly engaging in balls out motorsports… the risk does multiply

I feel bad, he took the risk for himself, but he still had children that needed him.

What will happen to the Porsche for the Pikes Peak hill climb? I criticized them for rushing that project. Deep inside he probably knew not to count on the future.

RIP

[slow&rusty]

Terribly sad.

I've been a huge fan of Ken since the first Gymkhana back in the early 2000s.

Very talented driver with incredible car control and overall great guy, dad and hubby.

I'm sure he and Colin McCrae are now exchanging stories.

[svandamme]

in a 2 wheeler you get thrown off
In a car, you are in a cage and you roll inside of it.
4 wheeler or snow machine ,the darn thing rolls over you..you are the crumple zone

We had a VP in Utah get rolled over by his quad, from VP, top of the world of a major Sofware company, to quadriplegic in the blink of an eye..

3 things scare the **** out of me, I'll never even try em: Quads, snow Machines and parapente chutes (low wing loading= high risk of collapse from gusts or fancy maneuvers )

[speeder]

Originally Posted by svandamme

in a 2 wheeler you get thrown off
In a car, you are in a cage and you roll inside of it.
4 wheeler or snow machine ,the darn thing rolls over you..you are the crumple zone

We had a VP in Utah get rolled over by his quad, from VP, top of the world of a major Sofware company, to quadriplegic in the blink of an eye..

3 things scare the **** out of me, I'll never even try em: Quads, snow Machines and parapente chutes (low wing loading= high risk of collapse from gusts or fancy maneuvers )

Not disagreeing with you at all but on a snowmobile, you can somewhat manage the risk with your choices if you are the operator...same as on a motorcycle. But yeah, they are really potentially dangerous. Where I'm from, people die on them every winter in measurable numbers.

[svandamme]

if you use a snow mobile, as a snowmobile, eg to get from A to B, cause well thats the only vehicle that works in frigging alaska.. its fine

But the thing is, people don't use it as an A to B machine but as a "fun lets run up and down a steep incline for ****s and giggles machine"

Ken Block was not going from A to B in it was he.

My comment was really in context of beyond use as a necessity..
as a fun machine, those 3 are dangerous , there are other fun machines that aren't as dangerous, so to me, not worth it

Jumping out of a plane, AFF chute.. count me in
parapente in the mountains.. No way.

[Cajundaddy]

I never new Ken Block personally but loved his over-the-top Hoonigan videos and the epic battles in Rally racing with one time teammate Travis Pastrana. Our circle of friends in motorsport overlapped at many points and his team had a lot of deep loyalty. Godspeed Ken.

A day at work on the streets of LA:

[GH85Carrera]

Sad result of a dangerous lifestyle.
I feel bad for his family and friends.
His skill at drifting was just amazing.

[cockerpunk]

i kinda aged out of his stuff.

but its a shame he died. snowmobiles and skiing seems to kill more drivers than driving does.

[Porchdog]

We used to snowmobile, back when our sleds were no where near that fast and where we rode wasn't nearly that steep or deep.

A 180 HP sled has to be nuts. From the photos he posted he was using it hard.

RIP. I enjoyed his videos and his rallying.

[Macroni]

absolutely sucks.....

[stevej37]

Three of my buddy's were snowmobiling along the shore of Lake Superior....about 50 miles from any houses or roads.
They went to stop and one of them coasted up too close to another guy that was stopped already. The ski of the moving sled went up into the foot/leg area of the other one. The ski broke the fibula and it was sticking right out through the skin.

It took almost 8 hours to get him to a hospital of any size.