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Stunt driving is pay-to-play
Driving at close to 100 mph on a stretch of the Camarillo Airport in a red Mustang SRS, Ore pulls off two 360-degree turns in a straight line. He then drifts around a small box of cones with the nose of the car facing in, sliding on the pavement as if it was a sheet of ice. Without touching any of the cones, the tires screech against the black asphalt as plumes of gray smoke shroud the car. Putting the pedal to the floor, Ore flips the car around and continues going in the same direction- only in reverse. There isn't a drop of perspiration on his face, which hasn't changed expression all day. His black baseball cap did fly out the window on the last stunt, but that was one of his few miscues. "I don't hit cones," the professional stuntman said. It's just another day on the job. A lifetime of teaching Bobby Ore Motorsports clinics have been held in Camarillo for the past nine years, but Ore has taught a variety of driving courses for the past 35 years around the world. Calling Ore a professional driver is a bit of an understatement. Besides training stunt drivers and the general public, the Oklahoma City native works closely with law enforcement agencies, teaching detailed courses for counter-terrorist units, highway patrol and tactical SWAT teams. "A lot of them say it's the most advanced training they've ever got," Ore said. Ore doesn't do much advertising. Much of his business is by word of mouth or from recommendations. "I wanted to do more stunts, so I asked people in the industry where to go," said stuntwoman Tammie Baird of Burbank. "Everyone said Bobby Ore is the first person to go to. They said, if you go to Bobby, he will teach you properly. His way works. It's amazing how little work you have to do. The car wants to do it all," said Baird. Teaching himself tricks on dirt roads at 14, Ore devised a more efficient steering system called "shuffle steering." Ore, who splits time between his homes in Calabasas and Sebring, Fla., teaches students to hold the steering wheel at 8 and 4 o'clock positions instead of the traditional 9 and 3. With shuffle steering, a driver never runs out of steering or fails to maintain control. Ore also stresses driver attentiveness, focusing on the horizon and knowledge of the vehicle, all to gain better control of the vehicle. With 13 world records under his belt, Ore can only chuckle when asked how many spots he's done for movies, television shows or commercials. "Ask my wife," Ore said. He is famous for driving a doubledecker bus on two wheels- a technique called skiing- for 810 feet, a record featured on the cover of the "Guinness Book of World Records" in 1989. Ore teaches four types of classes at his school: the beginner stunt class, the advanced class, commercial driving and law enforcement-type courses. By his estimate, Ore's trained about 30,000 to 40,000 people on his driving technique. And people keep coming back. Starting with basics On the last day of another beginner's clinic, people from around the world want to learn from Ore. There's Stina Hübinette, an aspiring stunt driver from Sweden who lives in Newport Beach. Dmitri Zaichkin from Albuquerque, N.M. is a computer engineer who just wanted to become a better driver, and have fun. Olivia Summers, originally from Toronto, is a professional stuntwoman who stopped by to pick up anything new and offer her knowledge to the students. Baird, Tiffany Susan and Eric Knudstrup also offered assistance as volunteer instructors. Then there's Jim Wilkey, an assistant instructor who has known Ore for 25 years, and worked in over 200 movies and television shows. "What we emphasize to these guys is that they're not going to be rock 'n' roll Hollywood stuntmen in two days. What we give them are the basics. . . . It takes years to break into the business," said Wilkey, who recently spent three months on the set of "The Dark Knight," the sequel to "Batman Begins." In "The Dark Knight," Wilkey is the stunt double for the Joker. Wilkey performs what he believes is a stunt no one has ever attempted before by flipping an 18wheel truck and trailer completely on its back on LaSalle Street in downtown Chicago. On Sunday, Ore and Wilkey help students complete forward 180s, passenger-side forward 180s, sliding 90s, passenger-side sling 90s and reverse 180s. Susan, 21, who endured head trauma in a car accident four years ago, found the best way to overcome her fear was jumping back behind the wheel. Even though she has undergone 15 surgeries, Susan has worked on movies and on pit row for NASCAR races. She was recently a utility stunt driver for "Mission: Impossible III." "I love it," said Susan, who lives in Woodland Hills. "My first day back home, my mom was like, 'you look so much happier'. . . . I'm not good at office jobs. So what else could I do? Well, I was thinking I'd do something with cars. I'd rather drive cross country than fly. I just like to drive . . . stunt drive." Summers, who has performed stunts for "Transformers," "Oceans 13," "24" and a variety of car commercials enjoys being around Ore. "I like hanging out with Bobby," said Summers, who lives in Encino. "He's always entertaining." But Ore, whose wife, Roslyn, son, C.J., and daughter, Rachel live primarily in Florida, always preaches safety behind the wheel. "Driving's taken for granted," he said. "I'd like to see people take driving more seriously. They don't check anything. They just pile the family in the car, stick the key in the ignition and go. They don't walk around the car to even see if they got a flat." While Ore spends time on his hands and knees fixing the emergency brakes on one of the Ford Escorts, the car used for the beginners' classes, he never misses a chance to take a car out for a spin. Ore zooms around the airport, a stunt junky who keeps going and going and going . . . "You'd think he'd at least blow out his cigarette," Susan said, shaking her head. For Ore, there isn't any reason to stop. Or flinch. |
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