Ryan Conley Interview.

When deciding to do a set of ITR Expo based interviews, I was pretty pumped about getting to know more about Conley. I think our first interaction was at Expo11 regarding karting, but I think that was the extent of it. I believe our first real interaction was at WMHM11. We spoke during the weekend, but we also caravaned back towards Indy together with a stop for dinner. He was very easy to talk to and super nice guy. He actually flew up for WMHM12, I was around him for a lot of the weekend and we watched the XGames together at Black River Tavern. haha. I then got in contact with him before Expo12 to let him know of my plans and to see if he could be of assistance. Of course, he was down and he was one of the very few that knew the surprise that Brandy was going to be presented with. Since then, I try to grab a chat with Ryan any chance that I get. Enough of my interaction with him, it is your turn. Ryan is a guy who is willing to help anyone and as I mentioned before, if not the nicest, he is one of the nicest people that you will ever meet. I have seen the "other side" once and it was awesome, but beware, I wouldn't want to be on that side!! Well, besides cookies, online dating, and BMX tricks, lets see what makes Ryan tick!


BA: What was your first car and what ever happened to it?

RC: My first vehicle was a 1987 Mazda B2200 SE-5 cab plus. My dad bought it for $500. It over heated and needed a brake job. At 15 it took me two weeks in my driveway to fix it, but it was a great learning experience. I have been a big DIY’er ever since. It blew up my freshmen year and that is when I bought my first car, a 99’ GS-R.


BA: What got you into racing or into cars in general?

RC: The experience above is what got me wrenching on cars. I have a twin brother and my family didn’t have the means to always pay a shop. My dad was by no means mechanically inclined, but we got a Haynes manual and fixed items like the brakes, clutch MC, drive belts, shocks, etc. Swapping the timing belt was a miserable experience. A good life lesson there; “If it is too difficult you are either doing wrong or don’t have the right tool.”

After the purchase of the GS-R I was able to start modding, rather than just fixing items. Through sites like Team-Integra.net, OG H-T, and ITRCA I was fortunately taught to avoid "Lego" mods. My first real time spent on Honda-Tech was the week of ITR Expo5 and I got very track-focused early on. The GS-R was purchased with 78k, so mechanically it was sound. I only did suspension and safety mods throughout the five years I owned it. After backing out of events like ITR Expo6 and a few we-todd-did-racing track days, I finally did my first event at ITR Expo7 at Virginia International Raceway. Despite some serious nerve issues I was hooked.

I must note that I have yet to participate in any form of actual racing. I do see myself throwing my hat in on a LeMons or ChumpCar type event in the future, but the past ~6-7 years I have focused solely on HPDE’s. Now that I am on the west coast, I’m thrilled there is a series like the HFF Challenge.  I plan to spend time participating and supporting the HFF series, I think it is great for many like myself.


BA: What has been your favorite car to drive on track?

RC: I’m a total nut when it comes to DC2s, so I am biased. I’m on my fourth ITR and sixth DC2(BA: Can't hide money). I tracked all except my second GS-R which would have been a blast due to the motor Jay Haire/King Motorsports built. Other than driving a few friend’s EGs, my track experience is limited to DC2s, so I’m uneducated. Currently my near stock '97 ITR has been a lot of fun. I’m still refreshing the worn 140k bushings, but it has been a blast in stock form at the five track events I have taken it to since its purchase. It has been a good reminder of how fun these cars are out of the box.

BA: What is your favorite track that you have driven?

RC: Until recently it was Virginia International Raceway. Laguna Seca might be a contender now though.

BA: What do you enjoy most about racing or the car community in general?

RC: The community of people that I have met through the years is what I enjoy the most. I first got on team-integra.net and OG H-T in '04, many of my first friends from those sites are now close friends ten years later. My best story is showing up at ITR Expo7 at dusk after driving 10.5+ hours alone. I didn’t know anyone, but as I was unloading my car and swapping wheels, five guys approached me. They ended up helping me swap wheels, unload, and then drove me to dinner. It was a great introduction to the ITR community, ITR Expo, and track days in general. My favorite part about ITR Expo and other track days now is driving in a caravan with friends to the event, plus hanging out. The driving part is just icing on the cake.

BA: So, ITR Expo7 was your first DE. What got you to sign up for Expo?

RC: After seeing all the fun at ITR Expo5. I was set to go, but I chickened out of signing up for ITR Expo6 and the first we-todd-did-racing event. There was another we-todd-did-racing event the following spring, but I had to cancel due to a mechanical issue. When registration for ITR Expo7 opened up, I just registered and paid despite not knowing anyone. I spent the winter making sure the car was solid, getting brake pads, a helmet, etc., and just went for it.


BA: You've been to almost half of the Expos, what keeps bringing you back?

RC: Now that’s a funny thought. I consider myself to be the second class Expo compared to many of the OGs that were around in the early OG H-T/Expo1 days. Up until recently, I think there were two guys that had been to every ITR Expo. Now I’m doing the math and its funny to think this will be my eighth ITR Expo. As we discussed earlier, the people at this event are what keep me coming back. My first year I met maybe ~15 people because I was shy and went to bed early since I was exhausted from my first two days on track. The next year at Expo8 I made a point to meet people, and it was well worth the effort. Each year that you attend Expo, you meet more new faces, build better friendships, and all of a sudden you are hanging out with ~150 friends each year. Between the evening hangouts, beer exchanges, banquet fun, it is tough not to have a good time. Everyone is super open and friendly, whether you need to borrow a random bolt, need a wrench, or just want a cold beverage at the end of the day.

BA: Obviously driving on track near the limit is fun, but do you think that the time spent off the track is more fun? If so, why?

RC: I have a very non-competitive personality. Tracking has always been one of the most stressful, yet exhilarating things that I have ever done, so it’s a mixed bag. A bad day on track is still a good day though, especially when spent with good friends. Off track is generally full on relax mode and have fun with friends over dinner, beverages, and hanging out at the track. I view driving on track as a catalyst for initially bring us all together, but hanging out with friends is the biggest proponent on why I continue to track.


BA: You're kind of like the resident banquet speaker for Expo. You do a really good job, do you rehearse at all? (Laughs)

RC: Ha! It’s a funny story on how I became the MC at the Expo 11. I found out about 30 minutes before the event. Jay, Dave, and some of the other committee members elected me on the spot and I just laughed, then immediately had a cold beverage. For Expo12 and 13, I obviously had notice, but I don’t feel I have done a good job, so thank you. Other than writing out a layout of the evening on paper nothing has been rehearsed.  Well, other than your proposal at Expo12. Sadly, there were no Expo proposals last year, so I’m hoping someone steps up to the plate this year.

BA: Alright, here is the kicker and you might lose some friends over this. You now live in San Francisco, so which coast do you prefer most, East or West? Just kidding, don't answer that. A lot of people complain about travel, distance, etc. For one, you've been to a lot of tracks and logged tons of miles. But, last year, you had a pretty extensive itinerary for getting to Expo13 at Mid-Ohio. Can you share your story with the readers?

RC: I’m officially in the middle of two camps now, the old East vs. West coast battle. Ha. I miss my garage space, but I’m happy to have the privilege to track with great communities of people at awesome tracks all over.

Expo13 was a fun trip and proves how much of a nut I am. I sold my daily driver ITR(01-0187) when I moved from South Carolina to SF due to theft concerns. I daily drove a 02’ Civic Si for over a year out here and did one track event at Chuckwalla Valley Raceway. This was an Eibach Springs charity fundraiser event, so there was a big group of the HFF Challenge regulars. A friend let me borrow his 98’ ITR for a session and it just ruined me. Even with old tires, I knew I had to find a way. So, I found a garage spot to park a car and put a plan in motion to buy another ITR.

A good friend on the Expo committee was considering selling his '97. We began talking and eventually worked out plan around my schedule. Dave went above and beyond making sure the car was solid for both the track and the road trip. He even threw in spare tools/parts for the drive home.  At this point, I will mention that Dave lives in Florida, which is a bit of a drive back to San Francisco. Another good friend, Ali, also lives in Florida.  He offered fly to Tampa, pick up the car, and drive it ~9hrs to my old house in South Carolina. I flew from SF to South Carolina and we continued to the journey to Expo13 in Ohio, joining the southeast Expo caravan along the way. 

I tracked the car both days and then left to visit my family in Nashville. After a day we hit I-40 West. We weren’t road warriors, but with Ali’s help we made good time. Ali found an iPhone app that allowed you to map stops around beer breweries, so we tried to make every stop worthwhile. This was during the big storm in Colorado, so we detoured off I-40 near the Arizona border and headed south. I had met several people from Phoenix through both Expo8 and Expo10, and later SEMA in '12. With Nolan Whitenack’s help we had an awesome back roads route from 40 to Phoenix and spent a good evening with Nolan, Phil Robles, Simon Pavlick, Matt from ICB, Carlos Espinosa, and Paul Green from Project One-Thirty. It was a great night and Nolan was generous enough to offer us a place to crash. After one more long day Ali and I finished the drive to SF.

It is pretty cool how awesome the track community is. Almost everyone that was involved with purchasing the '97 and the subsequent roadtrip I have met at track events like ITR Expo. It really sums up why I continue to invest my time into tracking my cars with community run events like HFF Challenge, ITR Expo, etc.

This picture made people think that Conley's internet dating skills were paying off!