Fluge Global Adventures

The Lead Adventurer of FGA, Nick Fluge, turned a bumpy spring and early summer filled with mechanical failures into a 45 plus second victory in the August Sports Car Club of America Championships. Starting from the pole alongside one of the best Porsche drivers and cars in North America, Dave Cormier, Fluge could only wonder if the car would withstand the high temperatures and humidity to finally win one for the Fluge team.

With team-mate and Rose Cup Champion Matt Crandall off on vacation, Fluge realized the race was his to lose with arguably the best Car Management Team and Crew – Steve Gatrell and Pro Fab of North America. Friend and race mentor, Todd Harris, (owner of Pro Drive and one of the world’s best professional drivers) also added his advice to Fluge to further encourage the win which was so commonplace in 2007-2009 but has been illusive this year. Other strong competitors filled out the field and were chomping at their bits to jump over team FGA with the slightest of whines from an injured car – as they’ve seen all year long. But it was not to happen.

FLUGE and FGA / Pro Fab Team on Pre Grid

Fluge jumped into the lead immediately at the green flag and never relinquished it – adding several seconds to his victory with each passing lap. Lapping car after car, the blue #7 took an easy victory from the summer weekend. The win was welcome after a challenging mid-summer that included a brief stay in the (now closed) but infamous Allegheny Lunatic Asylum in West Virginia followed a week later by a Fluge performance at “Gallery Night” featuring his play on a 5 string guitar, harmonica styling and singling…accompanied by his buddies, Marianna, Reece, Craig, Kevin, the Vamps and the rest of the band known to many as “Band FGA.” Other summer events have featured FGA standouts, from Troy, Yelena, Tony and Allen competing in ‘off-road, mountain and stream runs where they gained strong finishes. The “Face” of FGA, Tiffany has been playing extremely well in top regional softball action. In recent Soap Box Derby action, Leo proved his engineer skills, Mimi her driving talent, and Patrick his strength and running ability as push off man as excellent as expected. Finally, Spence Gatrell, returned to motorsports in the Canadian / American ICSCC Challenge race along with the Pro Fab crew (now featuring Fluge as the ‘tire pressure/umbrella man). Quite a mid-summer for the cast of characters who one often sees at FGA events indeed.

Fluge, Marianna, Reece, Craig and the Band

The remainder of the summer and upcoming fall remains uncertain. However, for those of you planning on attending the “Warrior Dash” in mid-September, Fluge, Carter, King, Rudolph and others are already entered in the “Craziest Freakin Day of Your Life.” (Fluge privately hopes he’ll be painting in France by then – so as to avoid the flames, mud, and beer contests of the Warrior Dash but without any set reservations – he remains a ‘possible’ along with the great FGA team).

Fluge Lapping Top Contender

By Yelena King

The roar of the crowd echoed through the redwood trees of Eureka, CA as over 1100 running enthusiasts (aka “crazies”) positioned themselves at the starting line of the 39th annual Avenue of the Giants half-marathon. As a long-time member of the FGA crew, and Nick Fluge’s core-specialist commandante, I had been inspired by his epic (and admittedly spontaneous) finish at the 2009 Portland Marathon. This was my chance to prove to Nick, and the rest of the FGA nation, that I deserved to climb mountains, do crunches, and sip cocktails next to a champion.

FGA VO2max specialist Troy Carter had been dispatched to assure my triumphant finish. He stood beside me poised, strong and silent, staring at the course ahead like a tiger ready to pounce. I believe he was channeling Mr. Fluge from his Kilimanjaro days; alpha-male, ready to lead the pack without reservation.

The starting gun rang out like a backfiring GT1 racer, and we made our way across the starting line. Troy and I ran hard, weaving through the crowd of participants, all of whom looked at us with envy. After all, we represented the FGA team, Troy sporting a limited-edition Tarzan tech shirt, myself in a brand-new FGA racing team hat… we may as well have painted targets on our backs. The competition was fierce, and holding our lead was not easy. Between labored breaths we heard them talk amongst themselves, “What’s Tarzan?”, “Who are these Olympic-worthy athletes sporting this fancy gear?”, “Why didn’t the Fluge make a celebrity appearance this year?”

To avoid an angry mob at the finish line, we graciously allowed some participants to pass us, strategically slowing up at water stations and chatting with the locals. We even managed to elude an FGA heckler at the finish line, who claimed we were not “race official” in our gear.

“Fluge Global Adventures?” she snarled, “I’ve never heard of that brand!”

“Lady,” Troy quipped without missing a beat, “This is FGA. It’s not just a brand, it’s a lifestyle.”