Feature: Ken “Block”ing San Francisco

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It would seem that I can’t really ever escape the automotive aspect of my life. Even on my honeymoon I was hunting down content. If you follow us on Facebook, then you know I was lucky enough to come across the tail end of Ken Block’s Gymkhana 5 shoot.

The sheer level of the production is what got me; having the ability to shut down streets in downtown San Francisco is amazing.

It took some relocating to get close enough to the shooting. After walking down some empty back alleys, we came across one P.A. who was super helpful.

It put us close enough to get an unobstructed view of Mr. Block doing his thing around some historic cable cars.

He did less takes then I thought he would to get the shots, which was really surprising. In fact, more time was spent staging the shot. This meant the talent had to sit around and wait a lot. You can’t see it here, but the cable cars would fill up with camera operators when Block was laying it down.

The shoot took place over several days, all over the city. We were lucky enough to stumble across the last shot of the shoot.

There is something really cool about seeing a race car on the streets, and it’s even more amazing hearing it echo off the tall buildings in San Francisco’s Financial District.

It’s truly impressive just how famous Ken Block has become. Obviously any film production will draw a crowd, but it was surprising how many people knew who Ken Block was… even if they kept calling him a “drifter.”
Those of you who know me know I don’t own a cell phone. That means I don’t get to carry a device and instagram things. It also means I have to lug my camera around if I want to capture something. The positive side of this is if you keep your mouth shut and pretend you know what you’re doing, people won’t realize you were just passing through the neighbourhood.
The entire Block family was there for the shoot. It was cool to see that, especially because it was the day before Mother’s Day.
Then the Ford Fiesta drove off into the sunset and my fluke day of automotive content had come to an end.
There was a lot of things to take pictures of in San Francisco and of course tons of tourists spots, but this was probably one of the coolest things I saw. Tourist attractions are visited every day by tons of people, but this was a fleeting moment – perhaps a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. And the best part was that it was a chance encounter.

3 thoughts on “Feature: Ken “Block”ing San Francisco”

  1. Pingback: NEU LINGO » Gymkhana 5

  2. Great shots! I like the one of him and his kids; nice to see with all the stuff he does; he’s still a family man.

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