Q&A with Markos Mylonas from Snail Performance
Markos Mylonas
Markos Mylonas from Snail Performance has been setting records and smashing it on the Global Time Attack Series. We get this Team Turbosmart driver in the hot seat for an inside scoop.
Q&A with Markos Mylonas
Where does your love of motorsport come from?
I guess you could say that motorsport has been in my blood since day one. My Mom’s side of the family had a deep love for two and four-wheeled things, so I got exposed at a very young age to what is my passion. Both my Grandma and Grandpa rode motorcycles and built hotrods back in their day, and also both of my Uncles and my one Uncle, Steve, raced circle dirt track all over the world and even lived in Auckland, NZ, for a few years while competing. Fun fact about my Mom, she used to be Steve Saleen’s Travel Agent back in the early 80s!
How long have you been involved in motorsports?
I’ve been involved in motorsports since 2009.
Where does your love of motorsport come from?
I would probably credit my brother and mutual friends who helped spark the Motorsport bug within. My love for the sport and community started to take shape when I was 17 and purchased my first Mitsubishi Evolution 2. Coming from a competitive swimming background from a young age, I have always tended to be driven with a scope to always improve on my previous best – at that point in my childhood, I would probably say I looked up to and was influenced by NZ swimming greats – Trent Bray & Danyon Loader.
What age did you start racing and what was your first race car?
Oddly enough, my first race/competition was an Autocross event in Tucson, AZ. At the time, I had my 2005 Subaru Impreza RS, which had some tasteful modifications done to it, and I ended up winning Novice Class, which got my feet wet into motorsports as a competitor.
What car/set up are you currently running?
I am currently campaigning my 2006 Subaru WRX, with numerous modifications from Turbosmart, Forge Motorsport, Honeywell Garrett, IAG Performance, COBB Tuning, CSF Radiators, Ignite Racing Fuel, Mann Engineering, Pipercross Air Filters, and RAYS Wheels.
What made you choose the current color scheme on the car?
Taylor Wilson designed the current livery, my teammate and fellow Snail Fam. It was created via Forza Motorsport many years ago and was able to be adapted to the car as you see it today. It’s pretty special to me, as I lost my Mom to breast cancer in October of 2008 when I was 19. The pink throughout the car shows awareness and support to those fighting and who have fought Breast Cancer, all the way down to the custom Arizona Breast Cancer Awareness plate, which reads “RACECR.”
What series are you currently racing in?
I currently compete in the Global Time Attack series in their Street AWD class.
What do you get up to while you’re not on the track?
Going to other motorsport events HAHA, fitness, hanging out with friends/family and playing silly buggers with our dogs.
What series do you one day hope to race in?
Oh man, this is a good one! There’s so many excellent series’ out there that I can’t pick just one! SuperGT leads the pack for me, BTCC, V8 Supercars, WTCC, DTM, Pirelli WC, and the IMSA Weathertech SportsCar Series round out that list. The crazy aero and excellent tracks throughout the Far East are what draw me to SuperGT, plus their fans are INSANELY dedicated to their favourites; it’s unreal.
What has been the most memorable moment of your motorsports career?
The most memorable moment of my career would have to be this current 2017 Season for sure. Between the track records I’ve broken and reset, to the trials and tribulations we (Snail Performance) have been through as a team preparing the car for the year, it’s been one for the books. The best part is there are still two more events and potentially two more records to break! Adding ACS Roval and the legendary Buttonwillow CW13 to my list would cap off the season nicely.
What is your favorite race track and why?
My favourite track would have to be Road Atlanta for a few reasons. For those that don’t follow me or Global Time Attack as a series, the event in Atlanta falls alongside Forumla Drifts’ “Drift Atlanta”, which it seems like EVERYONE in the greater Atlanta area is aware of. The stands are PACKED, flying down the back straight into Turn 10A and 10B. The track in itself is worth making a trip across the country for; high speeds, natural elevation, and all that weird green stuff you don’t see in Arizona, real nature! The whole atmosphere during the weekend is fantastic, must be experienced!
Favourite car movie of all time?
My favourite car movie of all time. I’d say Gone in 60 Seconds—a classic.
If you could have your dream car what would it be?
Well, like any other car person, you can’t have just one, so I will give you my three, haha. 997 Porsche GT3RS in that amazing Green, 22B Subaru Impreza, and some outrageous Chevy Nova!
If you could have any superpower, what would it be?
I’d say if I could pick a superpower, it would probably be being able to fly, so you can see the World and go wherever you want!
What do you like doing while you’re not on the track breaking records?
Some of the things I enjoy doing off-track are finding new places to eat with my girlfriend Sally, playing with our two Corgis, Carl and Lucy, spending time with our teammates Taylor and Travis when we’re all in one place, and spending time in SoCal with the Legend Ken Suen and crew.
Tell us more about your hair….what’s the story behind the famous Markos hair?
HAHA oh yes, the “Best Hair in Time Attack” as so I’ve been told! Honestly, I can’t remember where it came up, but one of my pre-race weekend rituals is always getting a fresh fade from my Barber, Anthony, here in Phoenix. It snowballed into seeing who had the best haircut out of all the drivers, and it came down to myself, Ken Suen, and Dai Yoshihara, haha. Now it’s become a full-on joke anytime we are trackside.
Matchbox or Hot Wheels?
Hot Wheels!
The Simpsons or Family Guy?
I never was huge into The Simpsons or Family Guy, but I was a fan of Rocko’s Modern Life and Hey! Arnold haha. I recently started watching Rick and Morty, which is funny.
What is your favourite food?
SUSHI! LOVE sushi, and we aren’t talking Cali rolls here. I mean good nigiri and sashimi. Love Korean food too, super good stuff. Also down for Dim Sum, Taiwanese Hot Pot, and you can’t forget Tacos and ELOTE!
When did you get involved with Turbosmart?
My first Turbosmart experience was back in 2012 when we (Snail Performance) got set up with Taylor and Travis at first!
What is your favourite thing about Turbosmart?
I can’t really pick just one thing I love about Turbosmart, the products honestly do speak for themselves, we’ve NEVER had a failure on anything we’ve run and abused since 2012, the support we always receive is second to none, anytime we need ANYTHING someone is there to help, plus you all love Crown and Dr Pepper too!
If you had to give advice to someone looking to get into racing, what would you say to them?
The best advice I can give someone who wants to get into racing is simple; don’t feel the need to throw tons of money in modifications at the car before you ever get on track! Get out there in a stock car, on factory tires, and start getting comfortable behind the wheel. Once you’ve reached your peak with what you have, then start changing and modifying things from there. You’ll have a much greater appreciation for noticing a difference from those modifications in the future.
If you could go back 5 years in time, what advice would you give yourself?
If I could go back five years and give myself advice, I’d say you should have just bought an STI! LOL. It would have saved me SO MANY headaches at the beginning. But oh well, I love my car and how it’s come along strong in the last year or so and wouldn’t trade it for the world!
Any projects that you are working on that you would like to talk about/share?
I do love being on track and having a functional car, but I also like the form side of it too, and I want to rebuild the motor in my former track car, my 2005 RS Impreza, which is bagged and lying on the ground with some super aggressive wheels on it. I miss the low life, “stancing the nation”, as everyone joked, but have been dedicating all my time to my car and Sally’s as well. And also need to get Taylor going on his car too! Plus, I still haven’t done my Dually swap on my 2003 Ram 3500 Cummins either. Maybe I could get an extra 12 hours a day? Haha!
To stay up to date with all the latest on Markos’ hair, follow GlobalHairAttack
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Global Time Attack Series
The Global Time Attack is comprised of a team of leaders in the tuner, time attack and traditional motorsports fields. There is no doubt that the dawn of time attack, in its purest form can be traced back to the Ibaraki Prefecture in the northeastern part of Japan’s Kanto region; more specifically the rather non-descript 1.27-mile Tsukuba circuit. Read more about the History of Global Time Attack.
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