Freelance photographer Jay Canter has documented the tuning industry for years. Having first met Shaun Carlson in 1997, he has been an inspiration to Jay, both professionally and personally, ever since.
Large and in Charge
What you might not have known about Shaun Carlson
1 Began his journalism career at Turbo Magazine in late '96, early '97.
2 Was the president and founder of NuFormz Racing, a fabrication company that builds aftermarket components and custom race cars.
3 Debuted Stephen Papadakis' Pro FWD tube-frame Honda Civic at SEMA in '98: the first sport compact drag car with a tube chassis.
4 That same Civic became the world's first FWD to run a 9-second quarter mile, with a 9.89 @ 149 pass on March 27th, 1999 at Battle of the Imports. And if that wasn't enough, it became the first FWD vehicle to break the 8-second barrier, with an 8.93 @ 164 pass at Maplegrove Raceway on May 14th, 2000.
5 Built the "World's Fastest 1.5-Liter" project car (10.2-second Honda CRX); cover feature for Turbo Magazine's April, '98 issue.
6 Shot the first two covers of Import Tuner in '98, featuring the Remix Twins, followed by Francine Dee.
7 Designed and debuted a revolutionary Honda cylinder-wall reinforcement called the "Block Guard" in '99.
8 Built and campaigned the Ford/Meguiar's Pro-class Focus dragster in '00.
9 Unveiled the Mopar/Nuformz Dodge SRT4 at SEMA '02 and set a new NHRA FWD class records for ET and speed in May '03, at Gainesville: 8.22 sec @ 181.70 mph, the same event in which he captured his first NHRA victory.
10 Took to the NHRA as a backup driver for Darrell Alderman in '04 Pro Stock competition.
11 Returned to the NHRA, piloting the Team Mopar/SRT Dodge Stratus R/T for Don Schumacher Racing in the NHRA Powerade Drag Racing Pro Stock Class for the '06 season.
12 Joined forces with Samuel Hubinette, constructing the Mopar Viper Competition Coupe that won Formula D championships in '04 and '06.
13 Continued ties between Nuformz and Mopar/Hubinette in '08, with the release of the Dodge Charger drift machine that debuted at SEMA the same year.
Shaun Carlson tributes:
Frank Choi
Founder, Battle of the Imports
"I met Shaun a long time ago, when he called me asking for a press pass to shoot a Mini Truckin' cover at a BOTI event at Los Angeles County Raceway. I think my words to him were, 'You want to put a mini on the starting line? WTF for?' It was then that I noticed what a talented photographer he was and our friendship began. Soon enough, Shaun ended up working for Turbo and Import Tuner, and our paths crossed regularly. Those were good days. I remember cruising around with him, dropping off his famous Nuformz Block Guards, and I knew this guy had something special to offer our industry. He was definitely ahead of his time when it came to ingenuity, creativity and work ethic. Simply stating that he'll be missed doesn't even come close."
Ken Miyoshi
Founder, Import Showoff
"When anyone recalls Shaun Carlson's name, words along the lines of 'true pioneer' are inevitably spoken by someone in the group. Everyone can say he was a great photographer, racer, entrepreneur, builder, team manager, but the one thing that stands out the most is that his actions spoke louder than words. From the Showoff trophy I awarded the CRX that he and Jason Whitfield built years ago, to his magazine cover shots and his work on drift and drag cars over the years, no one could top the attention to detail Shaun would pride himself with, but never boast. A true pioneer, he will be deeply missed by us all."