Shaun Carlson dies at the age of 35
Shaun Carlson: 1974-2009
It is with great sadness that we report Shaun Carlson, sport compact drag racing trailblazer and head of Nuformz Racing, died over the weekend. He was just 35.
Carlson’s untimely exit came months after the disclosure that Carlson was suffering a hereditary disease called Brugada Syndrome, a disorder characterized by an abnormality in the heart’s electrical system that can cause potentially fatal arrhythmias. While his passing has yet to be officially linked to the condition, we suspect the two could likely be related.
In February, Carlson suffered a series of ventricular tachycardia episodes, basically a fast heart rhythm that originates in one of the ventricles of the heart. He was shocked back to life two times during that ordeal.
Following tests, Carlson received an Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator (ICD) to monitor his heart and deliver lifesaving shocks if dangerous rhythms occurred. He was also placed on limited work duty.
Carlson rose to prominence as the pilot of the Mopar Dodge Neon SRT-4 and head of Nuformz Racing, a regular backer of Samuel Hubinette’s drift cars. During the mid-90’s, Carlson founded Nuformz, a fabrication shop where he produced the first Honda cylinder sleeves, strengthening the D- and B-series motors that were producing big horsepower.
In ‘99, he teamed up with Stephan Papadakis to build the first FWD tube chassis racecar, a Civic that was the first to complete 9-, and then 8-second passes. His mechanical talent led him to a sponsorship with Ford and Meguiar’s where he raced a Focus ZX3 in numerous sport compact drag series.
BJ Birtwell, formerly of Meguiar’s who moved onto Mopar/Daimler Chrysler, brought Carlson into Mopar late in ‘03 where he raced the SRT-4 in the NHRA Xplod Sport Compact Series Pro-FWD class. He was a two-time winner in that class and finished in the top five each season from 2003 to 2005. He was also the 2002 Xbox Cup champion in the NOPI Pro Outlaw class.
Carlson made his NHRA Pro Stock debut in 2004 subbing for an injured Darrell Alderman in the Winternationals event. In Feb. 2006, he joined Richie Stevens Jr. as teammate on Don Schumacher Racing’s two-car Pro Stock team. He left the Pro Stock seat in August of the same year.
Since getting involved with Hubinette and drifting, the Nuformz team found its second wind, helping the Crazy Swede collect Formula DRIFT season titles in 2004 and again in 2006.
Check back with UrbanRacer for additional details as we receive them, as well as a remembrance of Carlson and the mark he left on our world. His presence will be missed – may he rest in peace.
Services for Shaun Carlson will be held Monday, Oct 12 at Calvary Chapel, Chino Valley. Address is 12205 N Pipeline Ave, Chino, CA 91710. Services begin at 1pm.
Source: urbanracer
