Whether you’re a motorhead or a race enthusiast, it’s unlikely that you haven’t heard of “Street Outlaws” by now. When the show hit TV screens in 2013, it instantly became a favorite for speed lovers all around the world.
Nonetheless, before The List became internationally known, Farmtruck was already well known in the Oklahoma City street scene. Thanks to his decades-long experience as a driver and enviable mechanic skills, Farmtruck and his long-time race partner AZN kept a good spot on The List, while gaining huge fame through the show.
However, there’s still a lot that the audience doesn’t know about Farmtruck, including details about his private life as well as his profession off-camera. If you’ve wondered about those things as well, keep with us to learn all!
What Does He Work In?
Although reality stars are known for revealing too much about their private life, that’s not the case with Farmtruck.
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Despite being active on Instagram, his preferred type of content usually has to do either with “Street Outlaws”, or any upcoming race event, leaving any glimpses of his personal endeavors aside.
Besides all the speculation about his family and romantic life caused by his preference for privacy, it’s the mystery surrounding his job off-camera which brings out more questions.
Truth be told, it’s unclear if Farmtruck works in any car fixing shop. However, it’s known that he and AZN own The FNA Firehouse, a fire station turned into a shop in which they sell original apparel and car accessories.
It’s unknown if any mechanical jobs are done at The FNA Firehouse, but judging by pics found online, it’s clear both drivers have part of their car collections displayed there. For all of those who are unable to visit the FNA Firehouse, online shopping is available on its website.
It’s unknown how profitable Farmtruck and AZN’s business actually is, but seeing the many sold-out collectible items listed on its web, it’s assumed that it’s doing relatively well in the money department.
Farmtruck’s Online Success
While Farmtruck’s real life business seems to be advancing on the right path, he has also tried his luck by becoming an online content creator. With over 100,000 subscribers and 15 million views in total, it could be said that Farmtruck and AZN’s YouTube channel is on its way to success. Their content niche is what anyone would expect from them, including trips around the US, promoting their shop, and of course an exclusive insight into their car race endeavors.
Occasionally, both men try some of their rarer products, such as their Pimp Juice Traction formula or the “Street Outlaws” video game “The List”. Nonetheless, while the channel might be on the rise, their earnings from it most likely come from advertising third-party products, something they also do on Instagram with more successful results.
If there’s something very clear when it comes to Farmtruck and his business’ partner AZN, it’s that they’re creating a brand around their careers as drivers.
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By setting up a website totally focused on their race team, creating merchandise and documenting their life on the road, they’re slowly but surely expanding beyond the limits of TV.
Though only time will tell how these projects will turn out, it’s certainly helping Farmtruck and his best friend to become some of the best liked “Street Outlaws” racers.
Does Farmtruck Have Another Show?
Just by knowing that “Street Outlaws” has several spin-offs, a video-game saga, and that its stars have hundreds of thousands of followers on social media, it’s not hard to confirm how widely successful the series is.
Furthermore, it’s not surprising that the huge fame Farmtruck has achieved thanks to his TV appearances ended up with him and his race pal AZN having their own show.
Premiered in late 2020, “Street Outlaws: Farmtruck and AZN” was a two-hour long episode centered on their then-current car projects.
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Although many viewers expected to see the duo having fun, speeding up the road, the fact that said episode was actually recorded during the COVID-19 contingency, left them with almost no races to film.
Regardless of the very unique situation they were going through, the pair were never ones to just sit and wait. That’s how the special described Farmtruck and AZN showing viewers their private car workshop, planning daring projects such as the Air Cannon Car and the Haunted Hearse, in addition to racing a Zamboni Machine.
Despite going with a very different route than “Street Outlaws” audience was used to, features such as first-person cameras, snippets from past seasons, and glimpses of plans for the main show’s future made the special episode noteworthy.
Who is Farmtruck?
Long before being known as Farmtruck, Sean Whitley was already well versed in the street race scene.
Although growing up in an Oklahoma rural town near the legendary 66 route didn’t inherently mean he was into cars and speed, the fact ‘there was not much going on out there’ definitely pushed into that world.
His early years were spent driving his mom’s 1974 Dodge Dart, which he modified with a slant-six engine, passing then to take his dad’s 1973 Ford pickup when he was experienced enough. It was that same car which led him to discover his love for big cars, as he told Motortrend: ‘I was excited to get behind the wheel of the truck. That’s what turned me into a truck guy.’
Despite being an adventurer by nature, a big part of Sean’s teens was spent working half-time as a janitor and foundry assistant. It was thanks to that work-study program that he afforded a 1970 Ford Camper Special, the first car and truck he ever bought.
Regardless of his previous driving experience, he didn’t jump into racing right away. He first got used to residential areas before daring ‘to stretch a car out’ by going 100 miles an hour – about 160kms per hour – on the Route 66 highway.
His Cars
Although were already his favorite, Sean tried many of those before finding the right one, thanks to an Auto Trader Magazine ad. That’s how he ended up with his 1970 C-10 Chevy Pickup Truck, the Farmtruck which gained him his nickname and many street races.
Contrary to people’s general assumption, Sean’s everyday car is not the Chevy Farmtruck, but a 2006 GMC Duramax also known as The D, a truck that he finds no defects in. According to him, ‘there’s no dislikes at all’ in it, as he finds it comfortable, powerful and just as importantly, it takes him ‘down the road’ just fine.
Besides the powerful Chevy Farmtruck that Sean and AZN have raced for several years now, the FNA’s Rusty Fleet is bigger than that. Starting with the Dung Beetle, this 1966 Volkswagen is one of Sean’s most preferred cars on the track, along with the Farmbird, built by Sean, AZN and Jeff Lutz.
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Other speed machines belonging to Sean and AZN’s fleet are The Gonorail and The Skid Truck.
Career & Debut On TV
Just learning to drive at high speed isn’t enough, at least for Farmtruck. Making his way into the Oklahoma street race community was more a matter of having fun.
After eventually meeting a young AZN in a street race, both men instantly knew that they were meant to become a team, as well as best friends despite the age difference. However, Farmtruck and AZN’s goals go beyond entering the famous The List, or just earning quick money through ‘fishing’. According to their website, the pair’s main motivation to race doesn’t have to do with money or fame, but the ‘satisfaction they get, catching others by surprise’.
Before debuting on TV, Farmtruck’s skills behind the wheel became well-known thanks to a viral video someone else shared of him on the internet.
However, fame was ‘a dream that we never had’ according to Farmtruck, but knowing that there’s people out there who appreciate what he does for fun is rewarding.
Farmtruck is undeniably a “Street Outlaws” fan favorite, partly because of his evident confidence on the road,. Some of his most memorable times on the screen include racing against his fellow Discovery’s star Aaron Kaufman with the Farmbird, or just fighting for a spot on The List alongside AZN.
How Rich Is Farmtruck?
While reality stars aren’t usually very open about how much money they have, sometimes it’s not hard to guess how rich a celebrity actually is.
Though there’s no official statement coming from Discovery or Farmtruck himself, it’s rumored that his salary from the show is around $20,000 per episode.
If we take into account that he appears in “Street Outlaws” and almost all of its spin-offs, then it’s not hard to imagine how profitable his career on TV is so far.
Considering his earnings from TV, appearances in car events, along with his income from the FNA Firehouse and paid ads on his Instagram account, it’s estimated that his net worth is over $2 million, as of late-2021.
How “Street Outlaws” Started?
Despite becoming a hit show in no time, the story behind how “Street Outlaws” came to be is not like any other. For starters, just the fact that the show’s setting is apparently illegal is the first clue that this is not the usual run-of-the-mill TV production.
Passing from driving almost undercover to being showcased on national TV was unexpected. Back in the old days, The List was only known by its members, and those who wanted to be in it. It was only when independent filmmakers shared videos of them online, that they started gaining some fame beyond their community.
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Though at some point The List caught the attention of TV producers, its original members weren’t too convinced by the sudden interest. According to Joe Woods, known as Dominator in the show, he and his fellow race drivers thought that they were being set up by an undercover police operation to jail them.
Regardless of their understandable distrust, it was soon obvious that it wasn’t a trick. “Street Outlaws” not only became one of Discovery’s top shows, with over two million viewers per season on average, but it also put the street race scene in a more favorable light.
Were Their Licenses Suspended?
Every “Street Outlaws” viewer knows that drama is a common factor in the show. That’s only expected though, as the series is set in an environment where rivalries, money and ego is involved. That’s why it was so surprising when the drama surpassed the TV screen, and involved the National Hot Rod Association. The organization sets every rule in the drag racing community, in addition to acting as a ‘governing body’ of all that happens in it.
As expected, the NHRA isn’t quite receptive of “Street Outlaws”. In 2015 they not only expressed their negativity about awarding official race licenses to the show’s cast, but even warned them of being ‘ineligible’ for events organized by the association, if they continued to appear in the series.
Their reasoning for these admonitions was the potential danger that street racing entails. Although NHRA’s warnings were taken seriously, it seems that it didn’t affect the show greatly in the big scheme of things.
Is The Show Fake?
Just like any other reality show out there, “Street Outlaws” is believed to be not completely real. Although the show’s illegal factor is admittedly interesting and enthralling, it’s the main reason that distrusts the series’ alleged legitimacy.
Nonetheless, though most of what we see in the show looks to occur outside the law, that’s not the case. As the website Screen Rants affirms, the series’ production actually has permits for every race you see on screen.
As well, strict security measures are in place during filming, such as reported in 2014, when Tulsa’s police officers were allegedly guarding the street where the show was recording an episode.
Despite how disappointing this might sound, it’s only logical that Discovery won’t put themselves in any difficulty by openly exposing and approving an illegal activity. However, this doesn’t mean that street racing doesn’t happen in real life, but the closest we would see something similar is certainly thanks to “Street Outlaws”.
Regarding other factors such as staging and scripted scenes, it’s hard to tell what is real and what’s not. As it’s obvious, having to keep the whole façade of illegality inherently means that the show’s cast has to pretend certain things in front of the camera. However, it’s unknown if the races and winners are staged.
Anyway, what’s for sure is that despite the mysteriousness behind “Street Outlaws”, the race drivers in it are certainly genuine, and at the end of the day, it’s them who actually make the show exciting.
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