The Lab has a new home

The Hero Lab, has finally planted roots in the racing capitol of the world!

Located just west of the world famous Indianapolis speed way in the town of Pittsboro, IN. Home town of racing Legend Jeff Gordon, the Formation of the The Hero Lab was destiny in the making.

During the Hero Labs Quick and Exuberant start up, the organization is continuing it’s already established work with the same high profile/high caliber teams from across the country for which it is known. And with the new brick and mortar location the doors are open for business to the general public. The Hero Lab is unique to the Open wheel centric area of Indy, due to the fact that throughout 20+yrs of industry leading performance The Hero Lab has worked in almost every field of the motor-sports industry and is bridging the gap between Desert, short course off-road, competition rock crawling, and open wheel racing, bringing together the knowledge and secrets from each fraction into one accessible place! With many magazine Feature tech articles, how to’s and new product releases, the work and vehicles of the The Hero lab have also been lucky enough to grace the covers of some of the industries leading magazines, including, a special invite and induction into the elite group of Dirt Sports Magazine “Master Pieces in Metal” as a race vehicle builder. During the Founders career which ultimately lead to the decision and formation of The Hero Lab, some other notable career highlights include, private label projects with the lead engineering staff and the Skunk works crew at Diamler Chrysler-Jeep & MOPAR Performance, as well as, the introduction of new classes in Desert Racing. And as such, The Hero Lab continues to do its part to grow the motor-sports industry and life style to solidify its self as a key stone in the racing community.

With the the many services available at “the Lab” They specialize in; Custom sheet metal, Aerodynamic design & Fabrication, Chassis/suspension design, Track side tuning services and support, Crew Chief duties, Chassis & suspension upgrades and repairs, electrical, plumbing and data acquisition. With a and expanding list of support and services The Hero Lab should be considered the Gold seal standard for your Champion Racing, Design and Fabrication needs.

New Hero Shirts COMING SOON!!

The new Hero Lab T shirt will be coming out in the next few weeks. DM via instagram to pre-order!

Welcome to the lab,

I’m sitting here on my friends couch, on a Sunday afternoon, football on tv, dogs sleeping in the back ground. I’m here cause his house is quite and it has Wi-Fi and mine does not, lol. And I woke up today needing to start a blog. I’m not sure why, but I felt the need to start, again… Not that there was a first time, because most of the time I laugh it off as a silly pipe dream. But today, was different. I’m thinking about making some lifestyle changes for myself and so today, the need became greater than the fear. So I said fuck it, figuring that I am a frequent amateur writer, (mostly for myself or in technical writings) I think I should/could be successful, I mean, I like writing, I feel like I am good at it, or at least better than most. I have a great depth of knowledge in all things mechanical being a 20yr mechanic, fabricator and race car crew chief. I am an artist, and a published poet, amateur chef, a traveler and now I want to share my knowledge and experiences with the world.  I’m inspired by men like Mike Rowe, Jesse James, and Faye Butler and all of the coworkers and my counter parts in the racing, fabrication and artistic worlds. Because when it comes down to it, after 35 years on this planet I’ve come to one simple realization, that, it doesn’t matter what I am doing in the moment for work,  I JUST REALLY LIKE TO BUILD COOL SHIT! And ultimately is doesn’t really matter to me what it is, a house, a race car, a hot rod, a piece of art, lamp shades, or a survival shelter in the woods. I’ve built them all and it never gets old, ever!!!  I just really dig making things, from what seems like nothing.  There’s something very transcending and almost caveman-esque about seeing a big pile of raw materials and transforming them into a finished product that other people can enjoy, touch, feel, see, or even hate!! As long as the emotion I put into a thing evokes an emotion from you, I am content. The best part about the whole process is seeing the minds vision, the final picture in your head and seeing it so clearly before you start your hands work almost on their own without thought to make something.

I’m also starting this because the art of MAKING, is becoming a lost tradition. The men and women of our past generations who built this country with their hands and by their backs are in my mind, HERO’s. And thus why I have adopted the moniker of “The Antique Hero”. The craftsmen of olde are rapidly dying or becoming “antiques” and the knowledge and skills of their day are being buried, pushed aside and forgotten. Becoming cluttered with dust and hidden on shelves behind the new, the faster, the order it, buy it, ship it overnight mentality. Even the education system today is broken, our school systems focuses more on memorization and an aptitude fitted for feeding the machine than it does on creating self-sufficient individuals with an actual ability to devise a plan and learn from mistakes. Our society and by result our schools have taken away the problem solving and creation abilities in our minds and the minds of our youth.  And so I hope my moniker and The Hero labs will serve as tribute to help bring back a time and a culture of building yourself, by building, yourself.

Now, that said, I don’t want this blog to be about preaching or ranting about what I think is wrong in the world. I just hope that if you can see things from my unique vantage point that maybe you will join me on my mission. We live in the best age possible, information is so abundant it can become mind numbing, but there is almost nothing you can’t teach yourself or learn about anymore. But more importantly the information can help us learn and to focus on our passions and make the things, the real tangible things in the world that bring us joy and can bring people and communities together. And so after we read the posts, watch youtube, and do whatever else it is we do on social media, let’s close the lap tops, lock our phones, crack our knuckles and become the Heroes ourselves.

This blog will be used as a tool for me too, a challenge. A challenge to write, to write frequently and to write well. Forcing me to learn new topics and adapt new practices to make me the better Hero I want to be, and in turn share what I’ve learned with you so that we may learn together. I may get a little off topic at times or my post may seem random as I start to find myself and my true written voice for the purposes of this mission, and as I hone in on where you and I decide this “thing” should be directed I may and probably frequently cover anything from building a race car, welding and fabricating, to cooking, poetry, art, interior design, maybe even some spirituality….. There is a Zen to building I assure you! But we will always be making something, and in the future I hope to make the opportunities to bring in some guest writers and provide some spot light interviews of the other people who make for a living.

So welcome to the lab, and welcome to my journey.

Please head to the comments section to give me any feedback, or even topics you want to hear my take on or discuss.

Also follow me on Instagram @ AntiqueHero