Justin Carven 31 is a mechanical designer and entrepreneur who started Greasecar Vegetable Fuel Systems in 2000. Born in Connecticut, he grew up in Nairobi Kenya until age 7 which later sparked his interest in “Third World” issues evolving into a devotion to the development of alternative fuels. As a life long car guy he is generally surrounded by a variety of mechanical projects though with work and family, always struggling to find the time to complete them.

Tony Steingraber is 38 years old and lives in El Cajon California. Considered the nucleus of the California crew, Tony spends countless hours in his backyard garage building race cars. Tony is currently employed by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems. He also owns his own semi truck repair company and does most of the repairs himself. Tony was born in California and prefers to spend his spare time in the desert and the mountains. He currently lives in El Cajon California with his fiancée and son… along with his roommate and teammate Trevor Terra.

Tony is currently remodeling his home himself and planning for his own wedding.

For the past eighteen years Mark has worked and traveled around the globe. Mark started his career in the visual arts with the medium of photography. He has worked for a variety of clients over the years ranging from fashion and music to commercial, corporate and lifestyle. His unique ability to capture the spirit of the world around him has set him apart from the current trend in photography and film.

Over the years Mark has worked with Victoria’s Secret, American Eagle, Pepsi, Sony Music, Timberland, Kodak, Lee Jeans, HP, Condé Nast Publications, Hearst Publications, Warner Brothers Music, MTV, DreamWorks, Fox Searchlight, Time, Newsweek, New York Times Magazine, just to name a few. He has worked with celebrities ranging from top models to Oscar winners, top musicians and up and comers alike. Mark has directed commercials for American Eagle, Target and Oil of Olay along with trying his hand with music videos. Mark has had several solo gallery shows of his photographic work. He has shown in San Francisco, New Orleans, Paris, and several times in New York City. He is in various private collections. His work is currently in the permanent collection of the Smithsonian.

Mark has lived and worked in Spain, France, London, and Germany. He currently resides in New York City with his wife and two year old son.

Mark Andrew and Jay Silver met ten years ago while sitting next to each other on a plane. They have collaborated on several film and art projects over the years. After racing vintage motorcycles in their spare time, Jay talked Mark into trying their hand at off road racing. Jay is the godfather of Marks son Harper, named after author Harper Lee. Mark was the best man in Jays wedding. As best friends they have formed a unique friendship that has allowed them to work together harmoniously.

For the last eleven years Jay has worked on numerous feature films, television commercials, short films, music videos and documentaries. He has worked with some of the most influential and cutting edge directors in the industry yet has the ability to taper his craft to any variety of client. From Orange Mobile phone commercials with director Chris Cunningham to BMW car ads with director Michele Gondry, Jay has proven himself with some of the top directors in the commercial world today.

Jay’s film credits include The Limbo Room (director Debra Eisenstadt), Persona au Gratin (director Rebecca Heck), She’s the One (director Ed Burns), Wendigo (director Larry Fessenden), 2004 Sundance Film Festival Audience Award Winner “Maria Full of Grace”(director Josh Marsten), and the Berlin Film festival Silver Bear winner, The Intervention (director Jay Duplass). He currently just finished filming on the feature length documentary, War Against the Weak, directed by award winning director Justin Strawhand.

Some of Jay’s current work include projects with his friend and collaborator director / photographer Mark Andrew. In the past two years they have worked on projects with Saatchi and Saatchi, Oil of Olay, Target and have had two gallery shows in New York City. Jay’s work has taken him around the globe from San Paolo Brazil to Cape Town South Africa, to the Philippines and to Berlin. Jay is originally from Chicago Illinois and currently resides in Brooklyn New York.

Shaun Dunbar is the rare San Diego native and having spent his 43 years playing in Southern California’s deserts and mountains, he is right at home as an off-road racer. His idea of relaxing is driving his pre-runner, bombing down a pole line road. Shaun works at an aerospace company and when not building race cars, spends his evenings at home with wife Robin.

Midori Connolly is a SoCal girl. She was born, raised and still lives in San Diego, CA. She is 31 years old, married with a 4 year old son and 6 month old daughter. She owns the nation’s first and only green audio visual staging company handling A/V support for live events and is a founding board member of the San Diego Green Business Network. While racing she’s been rolled and knocked out twice...but has finished all her races except for one fateful Baja 500 when she was stranded in Baja for 18 hours.

Ethan Olmstead grew up in western massachusetts. He moved to Vermont where his interest in Volkswagons and mechanics were peaked. Ethans fi rst race was the unoffi cial ‘Nebraska Valley Rally’ in Stowe Vermont. He purchased his first project car at the age of 19, this was a 1967 beetle, a standard in the baja races. Ethan was a technician in an automotive repair and training facility until his introduction to the technology at greasecar where he has been working ever since. He is currently the National Technical Sales Manager at Greasecar.

Conor MacKean is 23 years old, and currently living in Easthampton, MA. He grew up in a small town in eastern MA the youngest of four. Last May, Conor graduated from Lehigh with a degree in mechanical engineering, and joined Greasecar soon afterwards. He has been involved with racing alternative energy vehicles since high school, where he built and raced vehicles for Tour de Sol and Electrathon.

John Castillo is 50 years old and lives in santee california. John currently works as a retail merchandising manager in the produce industry. Johns passion for the last 26 years has been off road racing. John not only drives and co drives but is very involved in many organizations that produce and coordinate off road races. Johns greatest achievements is that he has fi nished 5 baja 1000’s.... the sweetest finish being the 2007, fortieth anniversary baha 1000. John is known and loved by the off road community.

Trevor J. Terra is 27 years old and lives in San Diego California. Trevor is a welder in the US Navy. He has been deployed to the Persian Gulf twice and is currently training for his third deployment that will take place in 2009. Trevor has always had an attraction to cars and motorcycles, and a unique ability for mechanics. It wasn’t until he befriended Tony Steingraber that he began living his off-road racing dreams. Trevor’s skill with welding and his quick learning curve in the mechanical genre has made him an integral part of the California crew. Trevor’s currently lives with Tony and Lilly, Tony’s fiancée.