Ken Block

With names like Foust, Gronholm, Block, and Mirra - not many expected 24 year old British driver Liam Doran to walk away with X-Games Gold in Rally Car Racing. But it wasn't easy - first he had to beat 2-time World Rally Champion Marcus Gronholm in the finals this past Saturday in Los Angeles. Click past the break to see the rest of our coverage of this year's Rally Car Racing at X-Games 17.

There is perhaps no more visible ambassador for the hoon community than Ken Block. What started out as an expensive hobby for the DC Shoes honcho has ballooned into a globe-trotting series of videos where sliding, spinning and doing donuts are elevated to an art form. What’s more, Block has also expanded his horizons to rallying, even making the leap to the World Rally Championship this past year.

It was before the French round of aforementioned WRC in September that Block and his Ford Fiesta gymkhana car were back in the country (Who can forget the last time they were there?) as part of a big DC Shoes bash held in conjunction with a pro surfing contest in the town of Hossegor. The day before the party, Block was giving rides to DC- and Monster Energy-sponsored athletes (as well as a local TV reporter) around the local go kart track. Did he tiptoe around the course so as not to frighten his passengers?

When the name Ken Block is mentioned, the word awesome comes to mind. So when he sets up his own driving event, you know it's going to be good. On Saturday December 4, 2010, the Gymkhana Grid series made its first appearance at Toyota Speedway in Irwindale, CA.

First let's get a bit of background on Ken Block and Gymkhana. Ken Block is a decorated rally car racer, and co-founder of DC Shoes. Participating in various extreme sports over the years, Block truly found his niche in rally racing. So what is Gymkhana anyway?

To say that DC Shoes cheiftan and rally driver Ken Block has become an Internet celebrity of late is like saying a female praying mantis has a penchant for ruining its mate’s day once they’re done getting it on; both are a bit of an understatement. With his first and second Gymkhana videos (as well as their related remixes and permutations, plus his appearance on Top Gear in which he chauffered a bemused James May around an airport), Block has brought high-concept hoonage into the (semi-)mainstream consciousness, inspiring at least one spoof and numerous video-game-based homages.

So what does he do to make sure the third film of the main canon tops the first two? Well, at first we were quite worried Kenny B had inhaled a little too much tire smoke, for “Gymkhana Three, Part 1” was, minus some vehicular hijinks, little more than a music video for The Cool Kids. But then we remembered a “Part 2” was likely on its way, and yesterday afternoon it finally hit the ‘Net. Was it worth the wait? Take a gander after the jump; we’re betting you’ll agree with us when we say, “Hell to the yes.”