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A Life in Modeling: K&N Calendar Model Ashley Wilke’s Story

Besides K&N, Ashley has shot a national campaign for Monster Energy and many other well known br

Besides K&N, Ashley has shot a national campaign for Monster Energy and many other well known brands

Modeling is a competitive career. It requires a lot of dedication, healthy eating habits, and commitment to fitness. More than anything, it requires time. Ashley Wilke has been punching the clock since she was a child. She comments, “I got my first agency in Chicago in middle school for print modeling.”

Ashley was born in Batavia, Illinois, and she was raised in Dekalb, Illinois. In her youth, she loved riding horses, dancing, and cheering at football and basketball games. Of course, she was also involved in modeling. She attended Cornerstone Christian High School. The student population was tiny and close-knit. Ashley shares, “My graduating class only had 8 people!”

She went on to attend the Illinois Center for Broadcasting where she majored in Broadcast Journalism. She excelled in this field and was actually voted “most likely to succeed” by her peers.

Follow Ashley on Instagram to keep up with her career

Follow Ashley on Instagram to keep up with her career

Ashley has built up quite a brand in all her years of modeling. She has shot for many well-known companies like Monster Energy, Kohl’s, Groupon, and of course K&N. She has also modeled lingerie and swimwear. Her favorite modeling memory is “shooting a national campaign with Monster Energy.” Her worst modeling memory is, “flying across the country, only to have a shoot canceled.”

In the future, Ashley plans to continue modeling and focus on TV hosting. As for her personal life, she was just married, and in her free time, she enjoys traveling, hiking, and volunteering at animal charities. Ashley looks forward to more campaigns and a life in modeling.

IG Handle: @ashwilkexo

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Podium & Pain: American Superbike Racer Kyle Wyman Reflects on the 2017 Season

Kyle Wyman on the American Superbike Podium

Wyman (left) achieved his first American Superbike podium finish in 2017

Kyle Wyman has proven he can race with the best of the best in the elite MotoAmerica Superbike series. The talented speedster has also had to fight through injuries incurred in scary and spectacular crashes. Charles Dickens wrote, "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times." Wyman likely feels the same way about the 2017 race season.

The ambitious K&N-sponsored racer, who has proven relentless in his pursuit of major sponsorship as well as the podium in the highly-competitive American Superbike race circuit, is garnering the respect of race fans as well as fellow competitors. K&N caught up with Wyman after he spent time at the SEMA trade show networking with potential backers for his 2018 race season.

Here are Wyman's thoughts on the just completed Superbike season and his plans for 2018.

Kyle Wyman racing in the MotoAmerica Superbike class

The KWR team has worked feverishly to put a competitive bike under Wyman

K&N: What do you consider the highlight of the 2017 season?

Kyle Wyman: The highlight of my season was our podium result in race two at New Jersey Motorsports Park. It was my first ever podium in the Superbike category, up against the factory teams. As a private team that I manage and run, it was very rewarding to achieve that result. It's been a very long time since a rider/owner has found the podium in that class.

K&N: What were your biggest obstacles and challenges?

Kyle Wyman racing in the MotoAmerica Superbike class

Wyman catches air as his Yamaha breathes clean air through a K&N filter

KW: My biggest obstacle was overcoming my head injury that I got when I raced overseas at Donington Park in England. I did a one-off race in the European Superstock 1000 series and got a concussion over there. I missed the Road America round of MotoAmerica because of it and I was really bummed out. I had to rebuild my confidence in the middle of the season, regroup and find my way back to the front.

The other obstacle was my crash at the last round at Barber Motorsports Park, where I had a brake failure. I broke my T6 vertebra and bruised ribs and was banged up pretty good.

K&N: How is the crash recovery going?

KW: So far so good. My back and wrist are still sore but they will just take time to heal. I've already been doing some riding on the track instructing, and have spent some solid time on the bicycle. I'm fortunate to have the time to recover in the offseason and I am sure to be back to 100% in a couple weeks.

Kyle Wyman holding his K&N race helmet

K&N looks forward to a continued partnership with the KWR team

K&N: What are you working on for 2018?

KW: Right now I'm spending some time on the road, meeting with sponsors, and working on my plans for next year. I will definitely be staying in the Superbike class, and with our podium finish toward the end of the season, we have high hopes for even better results in 2018. I can't wait to start things back up in March at the pre-season test.

K&N: What else is new in your life?

KW: I moved into a new house two weeks ago, after spending the season on the road. I moved out of a house a week before the 2017 season started and spent the year living out of my race trailer. It feels great to finally be back at a home base and I am hoping to keep this place throughout the 2018 season.

K&N is proud to be a major sponsor of Kyle Wyman and the KWR team.

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[Video] Sadistic Iron Werks Bags an Audi R8 and Drops it to the Deck at SEMA 2017

There aren’t too many custom car builders at the 2017 SEMA Show who came with the expectation of “flattening everyone’s expectations” but that was exactly the intention of Bobby Martins of Sadistic Iron Werks.

If passed on the highway by this R8 doubtful you'd see this view for very long

If passed on the highway by this R8 doubtful you'd see this view for very long

According to Bobby, much has been made online about the inability to slam an Audi R8 on the ground, and Bobby decided to show his latest creation at the industry show to prove them wrong.

The car is a 2017 Audi R8 with a twin turbo V10 that Sadistic modified for FLO Airride Manufacturing. A stunning custom body from Prior Design North America was fitted, then covered with an APA Wrap in an anodized silver color, what Bobby refers to as “the inside of a Coke can,” though that understates just how striking the car is in person.

Looking more like it landed there than drove the completed R8 heads en route to the SEMA Show

Looking more like it landed there than drove the completed R8 heads en route to the SEMA Show

The engine was fitted with a Dallas Performance Stage 1 twin turbo system fed through K&N RU-5121 K&N air filters. Fitted to a stock 5.2L V10 engine, the Stage 1 modifications raise output to 750 wheel horsepower on 93 octane fuel. "We chose K&N as they're the best filters on the market. With an engine with this much power you can't let the smallest micron through," Bobby stated.

Filling out the wheel wells are B-Forged 315TS wheels wrapped in Toyo tires. Bobby created the suspension using utilizing AirLift struts, but as there aren’t many aftermarket components for a 'bagged Audi R8, Bobby had to fabricate many of the pieces that complete the system.

On Sunday the R8 still looked like this. Check out the assignments on the white board in the back

On Sunday the R8 still looked like this. Check out the assignments on the white board in the back

The result is a range of seven inches. And according to Bobby, it rides about the same, if not a bit softer than the original equipment steel springs and shock absorbers he replaced. And, for at least a minute or two, he silenced the internet.

Bobby’s expertise comes from both formal and informal education. He was a certified Toyota Master Tech for 20 years, but his hobby has been to 'bag vehicles, his first a Bug ('69 that is). He opened Sadistic Iron Werks in 2001 and has become a full-service one-stop shop for air suspension conversions and other performance upgrades.

Hard to believe that the project started just two months before the SEMA Show, and given that information, it’s not hard to believe that the R8 was completed on the Monday before the show. Maybe that’s how Bobby decided to name his shop “Sadistic.”

There's a photo posted here that shows the condition of the car on the Sunday before the show, with a whiteboard in the background that lists all the tasks that need to be completed. Most likely every one is a major undertaking and it's a small wonder that the team completed the car in time for the show. Thankfully Bobby’s shop is located in Hesperia, California, which is less than a 200 miles drive from Las Vegas and the SEMA Show.

[Video] Jesse James' 1964 Dodge Polara by Roadster Shop Unveiled at SEMA 2017

Upon first viewing Jesse James’ 1964 Dodge Polara the exterior patina make the car looks more like the starting point for a restoration project, not the completion. But that’s all part of the design. The world-renowned Roadster Shop of Mundelin, IL cut the Mopar unibody apart and built an entirely new car underneath.

Utilizing their Faro Technologies 3D scanner to accurate measure the Dodge, the RS crew then turned that data into a set of drawings that would serve as the blueprints for the build. As the floor was cut away braces were installed inside the body to keep it from flexing or being distorted.

The basis is a custom Roadster Shop’s Fast Track chassis with its own bespoke independent front suspension and a multi-link Strange Engineering rear end. Once the Polara was sitting on the chassis, the sheet metal fabrication began, with new floors (including trunk) firewall, transmission tunnel, and inner fenders were created and installed by the metal artists at RS.

Under the hood resides a 426 CID Wegner Motorsport Generation II Hemi “Elephant Motor”, with a custom intake manifold and stainless exhaust manifolds that are connected to twin Honeywell Garrett turbochargers. Intake air is drawn through a pair of K&N Air Filters and through a Honeywell Garrett air-to-water intercooler and a radiator and heat exchanger built by Ron Davis. Backing up the Hemi is a modified Tremec T-56 six-speed manual transmission from Blower Transmission.

Check out the video for all the details on this amazing build including the retro AF/X style interior.

(Some Of) The Cool Cars and Trucks We Saw at the 2017 SEMA Show

The 2017 SEMA show was one of the largest ever and raised the bar for custom vehicles

The 2017 SEMA show was one of the largest ever and raised the bar for custom vehicles

Since its inception, exhibitors at the SEMA Show have brought customized cars and trucks into their booths to showcase their new products and demonstrate how their products appear when installed. Often it was race cars, in the early days typically drag cars, but today the range is as wide as the imagination, or at least the builder’s imagination. How about a bagged Audi R8 V10 that lays on the belly pan and features a pair of turbos capped by K&N filters? Here’s a quick looks at some of our favorites.

Keep an eye on K&N's news site for future stories on these vehicles and more stories from the 2017 SEMA show.

There were hundreds of vehicles that sported K&N filters at the 2017 SEMA show

There were hundreds of vehicles that sported K&N filters at the 2017 SEMA show

The "Axis" Corvette by Roadster Shop was a finalist in SEMA's Battle of the Builders c

The "Axis" Corvette by Roadster Shop was a finalist in SEMA's Battle of the Builders competition

Finish Line Speed Shop brought out this C-30 dually, dubbed the BC-30, or Burnout Cancer-30

Finish Line Speed Shop brought out this C-30 dually, dubbed the BC-30, or Burnout Cancer-30

When we say that the bar was raised for custom vehicles at the 2017 SEMA show, we mean it

When we say that the bar was raised for custom vehicles at the 2017 SEMA show, we mean it

Richard Petty trusts K&N to protect the engines in the cars built by Petty's Garage

Richard Petty trusts K&N to protect the engines in the cars built by Petty's Garage

Jesse James commissioned the guys at the Roadster Shop to build him a piece of Mopar art

Jesse James commissioned the guys at the Roadster Shop to build him a piece of Mopar art

Jesse James' Polara featured a Gen III Hemi and a pair of Garrett turbos capped by K&N filte

Jesse James' Polara featured a Gen III Hemi and a pair of Garrett turbos capped by K&N filters

Straight from the mean streets of Atlanta comes this '40 Ford built by the talented Bryan Fuller

Straight from the mean streets of Atlanta comes this '40 Ford built by the talented Bryan Fuller

Bryan Fuller's '40 Ford is dubbed "Georgia Gold" and features a K&N round filt

Bryan Fuller's '40 Ford is dubbed "Georgia Gold" and features a K&N round filter

Laying hard in the BForged Wheels booth is this twin turbo V10 Audi R8 built by Sadistic Iron Werks

Laying hard in the BForged Wheels booth is this twin turbo V10 Audi R8 built by Sadistic Iron Werks

You will never guess what this 6.2L SRT8 motor is in (it is a Prius, dubbed "PriuSRT8")

You will never guess what this 6.2L SRT8 motor is in (it is a Prius, dubbed "PriuSRT8")