There’s something almost magical about stumbling upon a story when you aren’t looking for it. But, if you keep your eyes open, sometimes you end up where some magic is taking place. When I spotted a gorgeous Challenger widebody carving up Virginia International Raceway, I had to find the owner and see if they would sit down for a chat.
What caught my attention wasn’t just the muscular widebody silhouette but the unmistakable soundtrack of a manual transmission being worked through the gears. In today’s world of lightning-quick automatics and paddle shifters, hearing someone rowing their own gears is like witnessing an endangered art form.
Later that day, I tracked down Ken Mitchell from Durham, North Carolina, in the paddock. He sat down with me in the trailer between sessions. His Frostbite Challenger sits cooling in the paddock, with the brake rotors still ticking from 30 minutes of proper on-track use.
“I got this car back in June,” he explains, with pride in his voice. “I wasn’t actively looking, but I sold my previous daily driver and wanted something fun to take its place.” What Ken found takes “fun” to another level. It’s a 2020 Scat Pack widebody with a six-speed manual transmission, a combination becoming increasingly rare in a world dominated by automatics. Even more unusual is seeing such a platform being properly flogged around a technical road course. Despite their impressive capabilities, LX platform cars – Challengers, Chargers and their siblings – aren’t exactly familiar sights at track days, but they should be!
“This is day ten, I think, track day ten since August or so,” Ken says, revealing the intensity of his rekindled affair with track driving. After a long hiatus from performance driving that started in the 2000s, he’s been rebuilding his confidence one session at a time and one corner at a time.
“It was pretty shocking at first,” he admits with a chuckle, suggesting humility and self-awareness. “I mean, you know the line. You can hit the line but can’t do it as fast as you want to right out of the gate. You want to throw the car into the corners at 10/10ths, but it feels really scary when you haven’t done it in 10-15 years.”
That philosophy of respecting your comfort zone resonates deeply with track veterans. The quickest way to end your day (or worse) is to steamroll past your limits rather than gently nudging them. Ken’s approach is refreshingly mature – he’s not out chasing lap times or trying to be the fastest guy on track. He’s simply rediscovering the joy of performance driving, incrementally pushing his limits and enjoying the journey.
“Your comfort zone is important to pay attention to,” I offer. “Don’t step over it. Just bump into it regularly, and that’s what elevates your driving skills.” Ken nods in agreement. “And just because the straightaway is there doesn’t mean you have to mash the throttle wide open for the entire length of it.”
“If they don’t have a turn at the end, you’ve done something wrong,” Ken mentions. I laugh. Acknowledging an unanticipated trip or two of my own into the grass followed by various levels of deceleration trauma over the years.
Ken’s Challenger has undergone thoughtful modifications to enhance its track prowess. BMR strut tower braces front and rear create a more rigid chassis. Subframe connectors reduce flex. SPC adjustable upper control arms add much-needed camber for cornering grip. KW adjustable springs lower the car’s center of gravity and stiffen the ride. Lightweight Apex wheels shed a remarkable 10 pounds per corner, significantly reducing unsprung weight while improving brake performance and turn-in considerably.
Perhaps most impressive is Ken’s attention to detail – he’s gone so far as to have the car corner-weighted, a step most casual track enthusiasts skip but one essential for balanced handling. The Apex wheels, painted in a beautiful “Gold School” color that matches the 50th anniversary special editions, demonstrate his blend of form and function. They’re functional upgrades that also make the car distinctively his own.
“It definitely feels good,” Ken says of his suspension setup, which includes an electronic shock controller that makes individual corner adjustments on the fly. While he admits the jury’s still out on whether this high-tech addition makes a noticeable difference with his already-sorted suspension, it’s clear he’s enjoying the process of fine-tuning. “I can’t tell just yet if I’m getting a lot of difference. I was hoping that I could tell here through the uphill esses.”
I suggest that the improvement is more evident in data than in feel. “You know, if you’re finding tenths instead of seconds, you’re likely not gonna feel it seat-of-the-pants. It’s just that you’re a little smoother here. You carried a little more speed off the corner and into the straightaway there, and you rolled this corner with a mile an hour and a half more than you used to.” Tiny differences significantly lower lap times; hopefully, that is what the shock controller system is doing.
When asked what he loves most about the Challenger, Ken quickly pivots to its dual nature: “It is just such a nice daily driver. It’s just so comfortable, quiet and smooth. I’m just in love with the car.”
As our conversation wraps up, what strikes me most is how Ken represents the purest form of automotive enthusiasm. He’s not chasing Instagram fame or trying to impress anyone. He’s found the perfect car for this chapter of his life – a machine that delivers both daily comfort and weekend thrills, all with that intangible connection that only comes from rowing your own gears around a challenging circuit.
In a world of digital everything and automatic transmissions, there’s something profoundly authentic about a man, his manual transmission Dodge and the timeless pursuit of the perfect corner. And isn’t that what this passion is all about?
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