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Jeff Gordon Pepsi test drive fake? Do a real one. (1 Viewer)

The Ref said:
TheIronSheik said:
I'm pretty sure I would've reacted the same way.
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100% awesomeness, but also 100% fake. Way too much liability to pull off a stunt like this without him in the know.
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I don't think this one is fake. Here's the article that goes with the video.

About a year ago, the marketing geniuses of Pepsi MAX came up with the idea of having NASCAR star Jeff Gordon disguise himself as a milquetoast tire-kicker and shoot a video with him taking a used-car salesman on a high-speed joyride in a Camaro. It was a good notion, but the setup was a bit too transparent — the more you thought about it, the more staged it seemed. (C'mon, cupholder camera?)

So the marketers reconsidered, with Gordon himself. What if they could pull the same stunt, but this time on someone who had no idea it was coming? A mark who would offer an authentic reaction, yet not pursue charges for getting tossed around like wet laundry — like, perhaps, one of the Jalopnik writers who made the most noise about the first video?

The result? Let's just say Jeff Gordon knows how to scare the Pepsi MAX out of someone for real.

The target of this elaborate prank was Travis Okulski, Jalopnik's deputy editor. The new mission began with a new costume for Gordon, a more hard-bitten look featuring stubble and fake neck tattoos. The former editor of Jalopnik, Ray Wert, now works in advertising and served as set-up man, crafting a just-believable cover story: Okulski thought he was flying to North Carolina to get a sneak early drive of the Chevy Corvette Z06.

"I had no reason to believe anything was amiss," Okulski told me. "Everything made sense, and I don't really go through life expecting that people are actively trying to fool me."

Upon his arrival, Gordon showed up disguised as a taxi driver to take Okulski to the track, and when confronted by a fake state patrol, Gordon begins throwing off lines about being an ex-con who doesn't want to go back — leading to a '70s cop-show quality chase through an abandoned warehouse that's now Okulski's worst nightmare.

To his endless credit, Okulski maintains his politeness even as he's screaming in terror and being kidnapped by a maniac. And of course in hindsight, he says he should have seen the tell-tale signs of a prank; what kind of cabbie in North Carolina has a late-model Chevy Caprice police car? Despite all that, "I only figured out it was a setup when we drove into the warehouse," he said. "I was freaking out too much to have that be on my radar that someone would take that much time to put one over on me like this."

No one appears to have suffered any lasting trauma from the ride: Okulski now has a fantastic story to tell, and should Gordon decide to retire from NASCAR after this season as he's said he might, he's demonstrated new skills in dramatic acting and off-road racing. As for what all this has to do with beverages, Pepsi MAX's tagline is "a zero-calorie soda in disguise." Like I said, geniuses.
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Awful lot of tire marks at the 3:15 mark. Also, how does the guy not finish calling 911?

 
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I don't get why everyone is so convinced this is so fake.

-I'm sure they did several test runs. Gordon clearly had a route he was going to take

-The guy's door wouldn't unlock, nor would his window roll down. You have to do this so he doesn't try and jump out.

-It looked like he tried to unbuckle his seat belt, but that didn't seem to work either. Not sure if they also locked this down or what.

-No clue on the 911 call thing. They do things like this all the time on shows though, where they work with local authorities to not dispatch on a call related to a major undertaking.

I think this one was very real. The guy's reactions were much more real than the first one with the car dealer. If it's not real, he's one heck of an actor...specializing in terror scenes.

 
Fat Nick said:
I don't get why everyone is so convinced this is so fake.

-I'm sure they did several test runs. Gordon clearly had a route he was going to take

-The guy's door wouldn't unlock, nor would his window roll down. You have to do this so he doesn't try and jump out.

-It looked like he tried to unbuckle his seat belt, but that didn't seem to work either. Not sure if they also locked this down or what.

-No clue on the 911 call thing. They do things like this all the time on shows though, where they work with local authorities to not dispatch on a call related to a major undertaking.

I think this one was very real. The guy's reactions were much more real than the first one with the car dealer. If it's not real, he's one heck of an actor...specializing in terror scenes.
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No way dude. There is this thing called insurance. And nobody is going to block 911. That's crazy talk

 
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I guess it's completely impossible that the company he worked for would enter a contract stating they'd handle 100% of the liability should something happen?

 
Fat Nick said:
I don't get why everyone is so convinced this is so fake.

-I'm sure they did several test runs. Gordon clearly had a route he was going to take

-The guy's door wouldn't unlock, nor would his window roll down. You have to do this so he doesn't try and jump out.

-It looked like he tried to unbuckle his seat belt, but that didn't seem to work either. Not sure if they also locked this down or what.

-No clue on the 911 call thing. They do things like this all the time on shows though, where they work with local authorities to not dispatch on a call related to a major undertaking.

I think this one was very real. The guy's reactions were much more real than the first one with the car dealer. If it's not real, he's one heck of an actor...specializing in terror scenes.
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Agreed.

Not sure why people think this couldn't be real. It's basically just an episode of Punk'd starring Jeff Gordon. :shrug:

 
The Commish said:
I guess it's completely impossible that the company he worked for would enter a contract stating they'd handle 100% of the liability should something happen?
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I'm sure Pepsi can buy insurance.

Closed course, professional driver.

 
pantherclub said:
Fat Nick said:
I don't get why everyone is so convinced this is so fake.

-I'm sure they did several test runs. Gordon clearly had a route he was going to take

-The guy's door wouldn't unlock, nor would his window roll down. You have to do this so he doesn't try and jump out.

-It looked like he tried to unbuckle his seat belt, but that didn't seem to work either. Not sure if they also locked this down or what.

-No clue on the 911 call thing. They do things like this all the time on shows though, where they work with local authorities to not dispatch on a call related to a major undertaking.

I think this one was very real. The guy's reactions were much more real than the first one with the car dealer. If it's not real, he's one heck of an actor...specializing in terror scenes.
Click to expand...
No way dude. There is this thing called insurance.And nobody is going to block 911. That's crazy talk
Click to expand...
Nobody BLOCKS 911, but a company this big would easily be able to call the local dispatch and, with proper approval and maybe some cash have it noted that if they get a call from this guy's #, to play along, but not send any personnel to respond. If you don't believe this, you're highly underestimating the amount of money Pepsi could send to some po-dunk town to get things done.

The insurance costs would be a drop in the hat for a company of Pepsi's size. It's not like a month long policy. It's a 1-shot thing.

 
Fat Nick said:
pantherclub said:
Fat Nick said:
I don't get why everyone is so convinced this is so fake.

-I'm sure they did several test runs. Gordon clearly had a route he was going to take

-The guy's door wouldn't unlock, nor would his window roll down. You have to do this so he doesn't try and jump out.

-It looked like he tried to unbuckle his seat belt, but that didn't seem to work either. Not sure if they also locked this down or what.

-No clue on the 911 call thing. They do things like this all the time on shows though, where they work with local authorities to not dispatch on a call related to a major undertaking.

I think this one was very real. The guy's reactions were much more real than the first one with the car dealer. If it's not real, he's one heck of an actor...specializing in terror scenes.
Click to expand...
No way dude. There is this thing called insurance.And nobody is going to block 911. That's crazy talk
Click to expand...
Nobody BLOCKS 911, but a company this big would easily be able to call the local dispatch and, with proper approval and maybe some cash have it noted that if they get a call from this guy's #, to play along, but not send any personnel to respond. If you don't believe this, you're highly underestimating the amount of money Pepsi could send to some po-dunk town to get things done.

The insurance costs would be a drop in the hat for a company of Pepsi's size. It's not like a month long policy. It's a 1-shot thing.
Click to expand...
Especially since they're filming in a State Trooper's car. Something tells me that they may have been in on it.

 
Sinn Fein said:
WhatDoIKnow said:
The Commish said:
I guess it's completely impossible that the company he worked for would enter a contract stating they'd handle 100% of the liability should something happen?
Click to expand...
I'm sure Pepsi can buy insurance.

Closed course, professional driver.
Click to expand...
/thread

You can buy insurance for just about anything.
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Don't you think they would have to buy insurance for Gordon, and the other guy driving the cop car? Not to mention all of the camera guys hiding around the course. One more guy in the back of the car wouldn't be that much more.

 
TheIronSheik said:
Fat Nick said:
pantherclub said:
Fat Nick said:
I don't get why everyone is so convinced this is so fake.

-I'm sure they did several test runs. Gordon clearly had a route he was going to take

-The guy's door wouldn't unlock, nor would his window roll down. You have to do this so he doesn't try and jump out.

-It looked like he tried to unbuckle his seat belt, but that didn't seem to work either. Not sure if they also locked this down or what.

-No clue on the 911 call thing. They do things like this all the time on shows though, where they work with local authorities to not dispatch on a call related to a major undertaking.

I think this one was very real. The guy's reactions were much more real than the first one with the car dealer. If it's not real, he's one heck of an actor...specializing in terror scenes.
Click to expand...
No way dude. There is this thing called insurance.And nobody is going to block 911. That's crazy talk
Click to expand...
Nobody BLOCKS 911, but a company this big would easily be able to call the local dispatch and, with proper approval and maybe some cash have it noted that if they get a call from this guy's #, to play along, but not send any personnel to respond. If you don't believe this, you're highly underestimating the amount of money Pepsi could send to some po-dunk town to get things done.

The insurance costs would be a drop in the hat for a company of Pepsi's size. It's not like a month long policy. It's a 1-shot thing.
Click to expand...
Especially since they're filming in a State Trooper's car. Something tells me that they may have been in on it.
Click to expand...
From the story you quoted earlier:

Upon his arrival, Gordon showed up disguised as a taxi driver to take Okulski to the track, and when confronted by a fake state patrol, Gordon begins throwing off lines about being an ex-con who doesn't want to go back
Click to expand...
Also, "Hey, mind if we tie up 911 to make a viral ad?"

 
You guys :lmao:

did you ever think he came to his senses and said...

hey I don't need to dial 911 THERE IS A COP CAR CHASING US

 
I truly weep for America if people think this isnt fake.

Lets pretend for a second a tire pops and they crash into a building killing the dude. Off the top of my head I would say Chevy gets sued, Gordon gets sued, Pepsi and the dude who set him up. There is no insurance you can purchase for that. Its a fake people.

 
pantherclub said:
I truly weep for America if people think this isnt fake.

Lets pretend for a second a tire pops and they crash into a building killing the dude. Off the top of my head I would say Chevy gets sued, Gordon gets sued, Pepsi and the dude who set him up. There is no insurance you can purchase for that. Its a fake people.
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no but I can purchase insurance on my elbow if I am a college athlete....Also to add.... how do movie companies get insurance if they are filming a stunt on a closed city street?

 
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belljr said:
You guys :lmao:

did you ever think he came to his senses and said...

hey I don't need to dial 911 THERE IS A COP CAR CHASING US
Click to expand...
This. Why the #### would you call 911. 'Yea, I'm being held hostage in a cab'

'OK sir, where?'

'Route 24.'

'Ok, we have a unit on Route 24.'

'I know, he's right behind me.'

'Um, ok sir. Help is...help is chasing you sir, hang tight.'

 
pantherclub said:
I truly weep for America if people think this isnt fake.

Lets pretend for a second a tire pops and they crash into a building killing the dude. Off the top of my head I would say Chevy gets sued, Gordon gets sued, Pepsi and the dude who set him up. There is no insurance you can purchase for that. Its a fake people.
Click to expand...
You couldn't be more wrong. It's definitely real.

 
mr roboto said:
belljr said:
You guys :lmao:

did you ever think he came to his senses and said...

hey I don't need to dial 911 THERE IS A COP CAR CHASING US
Click to expand...
This. Why the #### would you call 911.'Yea, I'm being held hostage in a cab'

'OK sir, where?'

'Route 24.'

'Ok, we have a unit on Route 24.'

'I know, he's right behind me.'

'Um, ok sir. Help is...help is chasing you sir, hang tight.'
Click to expand...
So 911 can relay to police that you're a hostage in the vehicle.

 
mr roboto said:
belljr said:
You guys :lmao:

did you ever think he came to his senses and said...

hey I don't need to dial 911 THERE IS A COP CAR CHASING US
Click to expand...
This. Why the #### would you call 911. 'Yea, I'm being held hostage in a cab'

'OK sir, where?'

'Route 24.'

'Ok, we have a unit on Route 24.'

'I know, he's right behind me.'

'Um, ok sir. Help is...help is chasing you sir, hang tight.'
Click to expand...
:lmao:
 
Should probably be cleared up for the outlying, slow to comprehend frey that the "real" part being talked about here is the guy's reaction. Shows are covered all the time as well as movies by insurance for things way more serious than this. Saying that no insurance company anywhere wouldn't insure a mild stunt like this (relatively speaking) makes me wonder if you know what insurance is or how it works.

 
TheIronSheik said:
Fat Nick said:
I don't get why everyone is so convinced this is so fake.

-I'm sure they did several test runs. Gordon clearly had a route he was going to take

-The guy's door wouldn't unlock, nor would his window roll down. You have to do this so he doesn't try and jump out.

-It looked like he tried to unbuckle his seat belt, but that didn't seem to work either. Not sure if they also locked this down or what.

-No clue on the 911 call thing. They do things like this all the time on shows though, where they work with local authorities to not dispatch on a call related to a major undertaking.

I think this one was very real. The guy's reactions were much more real than the first one with the car dealer. If it's not real, he's one heck of an actor...specializing in terror scenes.
Click to expand...
Agreed.

Not sure why people think this couldn't be real. It's basically just an episode of Punk'd starring Jeff Gordon. :shrug:
Click to expand...
None of the stunts were that dangerous. He drove fast, made some quick turns, and drove through some plastic barrels. Enough to scare an unsuspecting person, but not all that dangerous.

 
Skeptics will always give reasons that it's fake, but the rest of us just sit back and enjoy it… Im glad I'm the later :yes:

 
pantherclub said:
I truly weep for America if people think this isnt fake.

Lets pretend for a second a tire pops and they crash into a building killing the dude. Off the top of my head I would say Chevy gets sued, Gordon gets sued, Pepsi and the dude who set him up. There is no insurance you can purchase for that. Its a fake people.
Click to expand...
I think you are overestimating how fast they were actually going. Camera and production tricks.

Car was probably beefed-up also. Not a straight off the lot vehicle.

 
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WhatDoIKnow said:
pantherclub said:
I truly weep for America if people think this isnt fake.

Lets pretend for a second a tire pops and they crash into a building killing the dude. Off the top of my head I would say Chevy gets sued, Gordon gets sued, Pepsi and the dude who set him up. There is no insurance you can purchase for that. Its a fake people.
Click to expand...
I think you are overestimating how fast they were actually going. Camera and production tricks.

Car was probably beefed-up also. Not a straight off the lot vehicle.
Click to expand...
Looked like a police model. Definitely beefed up.

 
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