Name: Mike Alexander
Location: Temecula, CA
Age: 34
Current occupation: Founder of Slam'd Mag (www.SlamdMag.com)
How long have you been into building trucks?
Almost 20 years now, got an early start at around age 13-14
What got you started in trucking?
Sneaking into runs with some of my older friends and cousins in the early '90s.
First truck?
First full custom truck was my '98 S-10, full frame body drop on 22-inch wheels, 350motor swap, full smooth floor, firewall, cab wall, suicide doors, the works - built by Sadistic Iron Werks but went to Hill's Hot Rods for body/paint and interior and never got finished :(
Current project?
1936 Ford 5-window coupe - full frame, coyote powered, being built at Image Street Rods
What's the craziest/best time you've had at a show/trip?
Oh man lol there's no way to narrow this down to just one trip as over the last 15 years we've hit shows all over the world and have had some really great times! But I'd have to say that visiting Japan year after year is probably the best time with friends and cultures as I really admire the culture and custom scene over there. They take pride in everything they do and we could learn a lot from them!
Favorite truck built by someone else?
Twisted Metal (Toy-Blazer by Bob Grant which I was lucky enough to own and drive for awhile) and Sean Dell's Sideshow - I'm a huge Toyota minitruck fan and Bob Grant is who got me started in minis - I even have his logo tattooed on my chest.
What odd hobby do you have that people may be surprised at?
I collect. Old things, art, antique cameras, custom license plates, magazines, parts, anything cool lol always have - also snowboarding and traveling
Favorite show?
Favorite show of all-time would have to be the old school West Coast Nats river runs, Reso, ITB, and recently Lone Star Throwdown
Tell us about your time with Minitruckin Magazine
I was on Mini Truckin' for a little over 9 years, it was my life and I lived and breathed it. Did whatever it took to bring killer content, despite dwindling budgets, and increased workload. Because I was a minitrucker first and an editor second, I feel like the magazine had some heart and soul back in those days.
With the magazine industry going down hill I had to lay off staff and continually make budget cuts, and after awhile I had to put my family first and do what was best for them so I left to pursue a better career. The heart and soul was gone, and it was just another magazine with pages to fill, and before long the numbers were super low (final issues were only selling about 5,000 copies which is awful) that it met its demise along with many other beloved mags like Rod & Custom, etc. But always wanting to put together my own magazine and having the print publishing background and digital publishing experience I finally decided to go for it and build a multi-genre digital magazine that we can all enjoy without all the rules and politics of big corporate publishers.
So with the help of a few close friends we launched Slam'd Magazine last year and the first issue was a huge success! So things are looking good and I truly feel everything happens for a reason. Definitely blessed to be able to do what I love for a living and continue to bring you guys the sickest rides from around the globe. Stay tuned as it's only getting bigger and better Issue after Issue. Thanks for all of the support, the minitruck community has always been my family and family that has supported me for more than 15 years now and we're not going anywhere!
What's a typical day like running the Slam'd Mag?
Busy, busy! A typical day includes wearing many hats: Editor-in-chief, Publisher, accountant, merchandising, marketing, social media, etc. Collecting the best content from our talented staff and putting it together in a clean and high-quality package takes a lot of time and effort, but I feel it shows in the end product. Everything we do has that "Quality Over Quantity" look and feel throughout.
What's your most memorable day so far? (bad or good)
Most memorable day GOOD was designing the logo at 3:30 a.m. with the wife knocking on the office door asking; "Are you ok?" -"Yeah babe, just creating the next big thing!" and it was a lot of late nights from them on. Being able to turn down job offers was a great feeling, and having the freedom to do something "for the people, by the people" made it all worth while. Although it's always scary to dump your life savings into something and hope it pays off, especially with a family, things are going great and I'm glad we made the leap!
You have a huge MT family, but who do you go home to?
My wife and kid mean the world to me! Everything changes when you have your first kid, you no longer live for yourself. You are now responsible for someone else and from that moment on nothing else matters but them! Ashley and little Lincoln are who I go home to and they make it all worthwhile!
Who would you like to see interviewed next for Nuts and Bolts?
Bob Grant!
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