Travis Pastrana Cosplays as a Sheriff in Veterans Day ‘Hoonigan’ Tribute Video
Veterans Day on November 11 is a holiday to pay respects to those who serve or have served in the U.S. military, and Black Rifle Coffee Company and Hoonigan have teamed up to make this video in their honor.
In this case, it involves some over-the-top activities such as carjacking a vehicle and driving it like there’s no tomorrow. Apparently the point simply lies in having fun with life—and a Jeep—including squealing tires and reckless driving.
Veterans have a small role in the film, and the message at the end thanking veterans for their service is sincere, but the main attraction is Travis Pastrana, giving chase in a Subaru BRAT.
Black Rifle Coffee Company and the team at Hoonigan Media Machine have honored America’s military veterans this year with a short video that, if it were real, would land any veteran doing what the video recommends in a heap of trouble. But never mind that: this short film that’s perfectly timed to hit YouTube viewers’ preference for action and for 10-minute videos.
Called “The Final Send,” the mini-movie enlists actual veterans at the end, but really, what we’re here to see is two customized Hoonigan vehicles tear up the streets of small-town Boerne, Texas. If that’s your thing, settle in and hit play.
In “The Final Send” cinematic universe, military veterans happily steal cars and their owners hop in to join the lawless fun, even if they end up leading local police on a dangerous chase on public roads (something we cannot recommend, of course).
The human star here is World War II military veteran Hank (played by off-road racer Dave Carapetyan), who gets a doctor’s recommendation to do something “epic” as a reward for his service to his country. Hank decides that means he should hoon it up in a stolen Jeep, which attracts the attention of Sheriff Pastrami (stunt driver Travis Pastrana, who chases the scofflaw in a delightfully customized Subaru BRAT).
However you interpret the video’s final message, you can tell Pastrana and Carapetyan had a fun day at work. The funniest part of the whole thing, though, is YouTube’s auto-generated transcript, which repeatedly attempts to turn tire squeals into words. They sound like “foreign” and applause to the AI, apparently.
Black Rifle Coffee Company, of course, is promoting its coffee and runs an annual Veterans Day sale, but Hoonigan’s vice president of brands, Ron Zaras, who also directed the film, said the collaboration between the two brands and the resulting video were simply meant to honor veterans.”The message we want to get across is that veterans have done so much for us, and they come back to this [civilian] world and should have that fun too,” Zaras said in a statement. “They should be able to enjoy what they’ve made possible for us.”
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After hi-jacking a car and sliding it around the streets of Boerne, Texas, most local sheriffs would have their ticket book out in a heartbeat. But not Sheriff Pastrami. He recognizes something special in Hank, and decides to let him go.
Welcome to ‘The Final Send’ – a joint collaboration between Black Rifle Coffee Company and the Hoonigan Media Machine to mark this year’s Veteran’s Day.
‘Texas Dave’ Carapetyan plays the role of Hank – a World War II veteran who’s just received some life-changing news from his physician. Sliding a Hoonigan-modified Jeep around town, he attracted the attention of the sheriff who is played by Travis Pastrana.
“Putting these amazing Hoonigan vehicles through the paces with Dave was a blast, but to shine a light on these war heroes and Best Defense Foundation made this project extra special,” said Pastrana.
“The team at Black Rifle Coffee Company is doing incredible things for the veteran community, and it was an honor and a privilege to tear up the streets of Boerne for such a worthy American cause.”
And that’s what makes ‘The Final Send’ such a powerful watch. Of course, the machines Carapetyan and Pastrana are sliding pack plenty of ponies, but it’s serious fun with a serious message – made clearer by the presence of actual war veterans in the video.
Ron Zaras, vice president of brands at Hoonigan and director of the film, explained: “We’ve been talking about doing a project like this for quite some time, and this year it finally became reality.
“The message we want to get across is that veterans have done so much for us, and they come back to this [civilian] world and should have that fun too. They should be able to enjoy what they’ve made possible for us.”
As tributes to our war heroes go, this one’s off the wall but we can guarantee you won’t see anything better all week. Smash that play button and watch for yourself. We promise you won’t regret it.
“The message we want to get across is that veterans have done so much for us, and they come back to this [civilian] world and should have that fun too. They should be able to enjoy what they’ve made possible for us.”
As tributes to our war heroes go, this one’s off the wall but we can guarantee you won’t see anything better all week. Smash that play button and watch for yourself. We promise you won’t regret it.
“The message we want to get across is that veterans have done so much for us, and they come back to this [civilian] world and should have that fun too. They should be able to enjoy what they’ve made possible for us.”
As tributes to our war heroes go, this one’s off the wall but we can guarantee you won’t see anything better all week. Smash that play button and watch for yourself. We promise you won’t regret it.
“The message we want to get across is that veterans have done so much for us, and they come back to this [civilian] world and should have that fun too. They should be able to enjoy what they’ve made possible for us.”
As tributes to our war heroes go, this one’s off the wall but we can guarantee you won’t see anything better all week. Smash that play button and watch for yourself. We promise you won’t regret it.