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Dustin "Wacker" Nowak is a favorite of ours. He may not be a household name, but he rips at riding FMX and he's one of the most unique characters we've ever associated with. No matter what the occasion, Mr. Nowak's main priority is having fun and anyone that knows him will tell you that it's not a party unless it's a Wacker party. Our very own Cliff Talley recently ran into Mr. Nowak, so he decided to sit him down for a little Q&A. Check it out.

Wacker, what have you been up to?
Well, I just got back from the Dominican Republic a little while back. I was doing a big show down there and it was amazing! I've just been traveling a bunch, riding a bunch of shows all over and trying to get some practice and chill time in between.

How are the chicks in the Dominican Republic?
Well generally speaking, Latin and Caribbean ladies are amazing, but I have an awesome girlfriend so I just stay away from them. But yeah, they are pretty damn hot! (laughs)

Oh snap! Sorry man, I'm not trying to get you in trouble with the little lady! So, is the Dominican Republic where all the narcotics and expensive cigars come from?
I don't think so. Cuba for the cigars, and those only cost a lot because of the USA's trade embargo with Cuba. And for the narcotics, well I'm certainly not a connoisseur, but I believe that comes straight and direct from the highlands of Colombia — though I wouldn't doubt that you can get both from a hamburger stand in the D.R., along with anything else you were looking for.

I heard you're living in Hollyweird these days. Is that true?
Beverly Hills to be precise, but that isn't to say that I don't frequent Hollywood here and there for the occasional get together or epic night out at a Steel Panther show. Or if I have a few weeks between shows I'll head up to Mammoth and hang out with the family and lady friend — and to jump my '79 Lincoln in the desert. Or I like to just go to the river and chill with some Coronas.

Is it hard to practice FMX living so deep in the city?
It's really not that bad — I think I practiced like a month or two ago... actually I can't remember. No I lied, I rode at Kyle Loza's for precisely 11 jumps before I left for my last show because I had been motoing the hell out of my 125 at Mammoth for the two weeks before. I didn't think it would be awesome to go from a 125 in Mammoth at like 8,000 ft altitude to a ripping built 250 at sea level for a show. So I actually practiced a bit, but before that I went to Adam Jones' house and stayed for two days and rode at Dustin Miller's. That was a long time ago, like mid-May. It isn't so bad because with all the shows I ride, I'm still on the bike at least two to three times a week and I always feel dialed, so I'm fine with it.

Mammoth as in the infamous Mammoth Mountain Motocross race?
Yes. Let's not go into results though. Let's just say I was on vacation, I've had one track day in the last year, and I may or may not have had a little too much fun the night before my motos. I had a blast though. I grew up on that track and I haven't ridden it in ages so it was epic to just get in some track time. I actually lined up at the starting line like 15 minutes before practice started so I could be the first one out on practice day. I felt like an 80 Novice again. I had my goggles on and my bike revving 10 minutes before there was anyone else there. I definitely had way more fun that weekend then anyone else I saw out there, and lets face it, out of the 120 kids in my class that smoked me, 10 may have a chance of ever making a living of riding a dirt bike and I have been going at it for over six years now. Amateur kids take that stuff way too seriously. I just tried to get the holeshot and then I pulled over to get out of everyone's way. I'm pretty sure there were dudes battling for 37th place in the LCQ yelling at me while I was just out playing around to get some laps in. It was epic though.

(laughs) I love to hear that! I think it is awesome to pay your respect to what got freestyle going, which was motocross. I'm always pumped to hear about guys getting away from the ramp and onto the track.
I love it so much. Back when I was in living in Texas, I was going to the track 2-3 times a week and racing on weekends I had off. There is nothing that you can do while riding ramps that can actually make you a better rider, so I love to hit up 60 mile single track loops in the mountains by Mammoth, ride the desert, hit up the track, anything I can. I can do my tricks anytime, but when you feel good on the bike, it makes everything so much better.

I totally agree. Lets circle back to the "jumping my '79 Lincoln in the desert" part of this conversation.
I thought you would never ask! Okay, here it goes. First off, a year ago Kyle Loza and I co-purchased a 79 Trans-Am because we needed a car to get to Vegas in, FAST. Well, he bought me out two days later and turned the damn thing into a hot rod. That's a whole other episode, though. Anyway, he has this '79 Lincoln that he spray painted flat black, sawed the roof off, and put bull horns on the hood. He had to get rid of it, so I took it off his hands. I put some all terrain tires on it, a dirt bike rack on the top of it, and drove it to San Francisco from L.A. for a show.

Then after the show I had to get it from San Francisco to Mammoth, so we trekked up over through Tahoe and luckily got it there in one piece. I have this course in the desert by my grandparent's house in Bishop that I used to derby the hell out of in my old Ford Ranger on. Given the fact that I no longer own that, and that the 20's on my new truck don't handle the desert so well, I decided to take the Lincoln out on the track.

The thing rips! It's the best off-road car ever. I just floats through whoops and flies like nobody's business. This one night my friends and I hit this kicker in the desert as fast as we could go. We launched so far that we landed and the bull skull that was on the hood disintegrated into thousands of pieces, and the muffler ripped off and went crashing through the gas tank. I picked up the muffler, drove the sucker home, and now she's sitting on blocks waiting for a muffler and gas tank repair. I kind of hoped the tank would have caught fire, because the story would have been way sweeter and I wouldn't have to dump all my money into a car that costs less than my shoes. The thing is epic though, and if I can somehow acquire the funds, it will soon be full long-travel and caged. Oh, and it has a working 8 track with KISS tapes.

Please tell me you have photos or video of this wonderful event!
I feel that documenting my adventures could be very incriminating and so I try to not let it happen. Though there may be a cell phone video floating around. I'm pretty sure all you can hear is loud rumbling, schoolgirls giggling, screams and then a big crash — all while staring at two headlights bombing through a dusty night sky. With a new gas tank, muffler, and a skid plate a re-enactment could ensue...

Who knows? I live my life trying to have as much fun as I can possibly have, with the best stories possible. It doesn't matter what it costs. I don't have much money, but I will drop as much as I have for a good time and a better story. 1979 Lincoln Towne Coupes fit into that category.

Well we thank you for sharing that one with us, and I hope there are many, many more to come. Thanks for taking the time to chat!
Thanks for taking the time to allow me to let the world in on my fabulous adventures and thanks to everyone out there who has helped me with my dirt bike riding career. There are so many to list I could go on forever. And thanks to the sponsors that help me out: Shoei Helmets, FMF Racing, Alpinestars, EBR Performance, Universal, ODI Grips, Outlaw Racing Products and BackyardOne.com. Over and Out!