THE NAME OF THE GAME AT THROTTLE THRASHERS GARAGE
BY ALLISON ROGERS
A collision repairer for more than 35 years, Chelsie Lesnoski’s father never wanted her to find a career in collision repair; he swore she would end up resenting a life in the sector.
Like most daughters, she didn’t listen—but Reb Lesnoski couldn’t be more proud of her now. “I eventually won him over,” beamed Chelsie, hot off the heels of SEMA 2021, where she claimed the title of the first-ever female builder to claim a top-three spot in the Battle of the Builders Young Guns competition. Cole Marten and Chelsie Lesnoski are the owners of Penticton, British Columbia’s Throttle Thrashers Garage, a shop specializing in custom builds and paintwork. The pair also happen to be known for breaking records at the SEMA Show annual Battle of the Builders Young Guns competition.
Cole and Chelsie’s first swing in Battle of the Builders happened in 2019 when they brought Chelsie’s 2013 Scion FR-S down to Vegas. The couple had initially met when Cole took her for a ride in a GTR, sparking her love for Skylines.
“I was working retail at that time. But, when Cole and I went for that ride I was like, hey, this is pretty cool,” said Chelsie.
“We love to continually set the standard for the world’s first, and every car we’ve taken to SEMA has been the world’s first in its own regard.” — Chelsie Lesnoski, co-owner Throttle Thrashers Garage
“I spent two years thinking about this car and a mere two months building it,” said Chelsie. “Every nut, weld and stroke of paint was done by my own hands.”
Cole, who claimed one of three all-inclusive SEMA Show Golden Tickets, took a 1991 Nissan Skyline R32 GTR down to SEMA, equally adorned with modifications, featuring a 1,000 horsepower 2JZ engine conversion with a changeover to AWD, which required a custom front differential, transmission tunnel and adapter. A widebody kit was also moulded in to make the six-inch wide-body increase appear seamless.
“It’s also LHD swapped steering,” said Chelsie. “So, we can fist-bump each other at red lights.”
Cole said a saving grace in their SEMA journey was his ability to convince their hauler to allow an additional 24-hours to work on their builds before they crossed the border bound for Vegas.
“No matter how blasphemous the idea, we love it. The worse it is, the better.” – Cole Marten, co-owner Throttle Thrashers Garage
“The first time I drove my car was off the trailer in Vegas,” said Chelsie, stressing that drivability is a non-negotiable factor in qualifying for a Battle of the Builders win. One of the hardest parts of this year’s builds, the couple says, was teaching the other their trade.
“The hard thing about teaching is that no matter how you show someone, they’re always going to find their own twist to doing the job,” said Cole.
“Yeah, like some of us like to spray two medium wet coats, and some of us like to do five super-heavy running coats,” said Chelsie with a glare pointed in Cole’s direction. The biggest challenge overall, though, was finding the strength to continue the build when the going gets tough.
“You’re not eating properly, you’re not sleeping properly—all you’re thinking about is the car. It’s hard because your body is telling you to stop. We were awake for 96 hours straight in the days leading up to the SEMA,” said Chelsie. “I mean, we’re trying to build these cars, we’re twenty-something-years-old and have no income at all, since we shut down the shop to work on our builds. We’re calling Lordco several times a day, then asking ourselves how we’re going to make rent this month.” “You can always make the money back, but you can’t always regain that time or the achievement,” said Cole.
Even just a month after the SEMA Show, Cole and Chelsie said their work has already paid off in droves.
“If you would have told me we’d be debuting the new Toyota 86 at SEMA Garage back when I bought mine in 2015, I would’ve laughed at you,” said Chelsie.
As for future builds, the couple says there are no questions about SEMA 2022. “Next year, I’m going to be competing in the pro class, so I’m planning to just do a fun entry for that,” said Cole.
Chelsie said she’s aiming for more records. “I’m shooting for the podium in the next two years,” said Chelsie, who will compete in the Young Guns segment until 2023. “I’m going to be rebuilding the FR-S this winter, we might collaborate on it again, and I’ll bring that to SEMA 2022.
“The build I have in place for 2023—I feel very confident that is the winning car. If I can achieve what I have planned, I do feel like it will be the car that takes me on the podium and makes me the first woman in that position.”
