Air|Water Reality Check, Radwood Origins & Inside Japan’s Wildest Racetrack

This week on Shifted Opinions, we sit down with designer, Radwood co-founder, and Driving While Awesome host Lane Skelton for a raw, unfiltered conversation on car culture—past, present, and where it’s actually going.

We break down the real story behind Air|Water—from underwhelming show layouts to why it might be better understood as a trade show for Porsche enthusiasts. Plus, what most people completely missed.

Then we go deep into:

• The origin story of Radwood (and how it accidentally became a global brand)
• What it actually takes to turn passion into a business
• The behind-the-scenes reality of selling to Hagerty
• Why most car events fail creatively

And finally—Lane takes us inside one of the most insane automotive experiences on the planet:
👉 A $1 billion private racetrack in Japan that feels like Jurassic Park

This is part car talk, part industry reality check—and all operator-level perspective.

📍 In this episode:

• Air|Water vs Luftgekühlt — what’s missing
• Why car shows are really about people (not cars)
• The truth about automotive “taste vs money”
• Japan’s craziest track: Magarigawa Circuit
• Radwood’s accidental rise to success
• How Driving While Awesome stayed passion-first

🎙️ About Shifted Opinions:
“We’re not sure, but cars are involved.”
Hosted by Paul Kramer (AutoKennel), Dave Van Epps (Sonderwerks), and Casey Parkin (Group C Curation).

📩 Stay Connected:
👉 https://shiftedopinions.com