MICHAEL ECKERSON January 11, 2023 All Feature Vehicles
You would have had to be living under a rock, in a cave, on a deserted island on another planet to not have seen Courtney Hansen at work. She is a very talented and hard-working woman.
Courtney first achieved popularity as the co-host of TLC’s mega hit car-makeover show “Overhaulin’” where she helped teams led by auto design legend Chip Foose, transform a viewer’s dilapidated ride into an updated reinterpretation of its former self – in just one week . During her time on Overhaulin’, the assiduous Courtney also co-hosted the specials “Rides: Biggest Spenders” and “Million Dollar Motors” for the TLC channel.
After several seasons of Overhaulin’, Hansen went on to host 10 seasons of Powerblock/PowerNation for Spike TV. In later years she worked with NBC Sports and CBS Sports on a two-hour block of 4 popular automotive shows. Each week she showed off million-dollar rides, rare classics and tricked vehicles and brought her enthusiasm and knowledge to interviews with famous collectors, race car drivers and celebrity guests like Jay Leno, UFC founder Dana White and actor Dax Shepard.
In addition to her work in television, Courtney is an accomplished author: her book, The Garage Girls Guide to Everything You Need to Know About Your Car, which is written to inform inexperienced women and first-time car owners. She also writes a bi-weekly syndicated newspaper column found throughout the US and Canada titled “Courtney Hansen: Full Throttle,” and formerly penned the “Garage Girl” column for FHM Magazine.
Frankly, we’d likely run out of ink if we tried to publish everything she’s accomplished to date.
In 2005, Courtney was honored as the recipient of Ford’s “Life in Drive” Award. This prestigious award recognizes women who combine talent with that little something extra that allows them to break free from convention to live life with style and attitude.
The aforementioned is but a small drop in the big bucket of Courtney’s achievements. If you would like more details of the life of this incredible woman, be sure to visit her website, courtneyhansen.com to learn more. Frankly, we’d likely run out of ink if we tried to publish everything she’s accomplished to date.
D! You have been called the Leading Lady of Automotive TV. You grew up a “pit kid” at Brainerd International Raceway, north of your hometown of Orono, Minnesota. Tell our readers a little about how your childhood was shaped by those experiences.
CH My childhood made me have an appreciation for family and racing. I grew up immersed in the automotive world traveling from race track to race track with my family, so I naturally became an automotive enthusiast, and everything I remember about my childhood was a blast. I’m so grateful for all of it.
“I’m so inspired by the women who preceded me in the auto world.”
D! Your father, Jerry Hansen, who is the winningest driver in SCCA history (27 national titles) forged an impressive career. How did his career inspire yours?
CH He inspired me to want to be a winner in whatever I have attempted to do along life’s path. He instilled in me a very strong work ethic and taught me honor and integrity, as did my mom. My favorite quote in life comes from my dad and talks about winning at your craft, sport, career or endeavor. He was asked on a talk show at the peak of his career what the difference is between winning and losing. He said, the difference is when you think you have given all there is left to give, dig deeper and find more. That has always resonated. As tough as this road has been for me in entertainment, and there have been many, many challenges, I remember that quote and always find ways to get creative, surmount obstacles, dig deeper, find more and achieve my goals.
D! Your work ethic is remarkable. Please share what has made you so determined to succeed?
CH In my professional life, I live by that quote I just shared from my dad. I had dreams and goals and was determined to make them a reality, and it has always been very important to me to keep my morals and ethics about me and never compromise. This has shaped who I am and propelled me to this place, and I’m not stopping anytime soon! I will teach my daughter that she can do anything in life, absolutely anything she puts her mind to if she stays focused, works hard, keeps a positive attitude and never compromises who she is. It’s easy in life to sell out and compromise, to be opportunistic. I take pride in the fact that I’ve never compromised who I am to make this path happen. It’s been super challenging, and there have been so many obstacles, but I always wanted to be true to myself. So I just forged ahead, worked my butt off, got creative when I needed to, and have so far made it happen. Can’t wait to achieve the next goals.
D! You have so many responsibilities in your diverse career, and your daughter will be 5 this year. How do you balance work and family time?
CH It’s not always easy, that’s for sure, but we find a way. Family is number one to us. But While family comes first, Jay and I both have Entrepreneurial careers and work very hard. We both have a strong work ethic and believe in the working woman. We want to instill those ethics in our daughter and our future children. We navigate the line carefully. We have homes in different cities…LA, NY and Florida, so we move around a lot. But we do our best to always stay together as a family, and we’re making it work! It helps that Jay owns his businesses, and I’m the EP of this TV show. It gives us more freedom with our schedules.
D! That you even have time in the day for all you accomplish is remarkable. But you also are very involved with charities. Tell us which charities you lend support for and some of the more inspirational memories you have from your involvement.
CH I’ve been involved with a lot of different charities along the way. The Painted Turtle Camp, which is one of the branches of Paul Newman’s hole-in-the-wall gang camp that he created for children with disabilities and illnesses is close to my heart. The Painted Turtle camp gives those handicapped children the chance to go to camp and have the same adventures and experiences that healthy kids have. It’s a beautiful cause. I’ve worked with the Ronald McDonald House, sat on the board of the March of Dimes, have worked for the LA Mission, homeless shelters, children’s charities and many different charitable projects over the years. Jay and I are co-chairs of the capital campaign for the Naples Zoo Project which is raising millions for the reconstruction of the Naples Zoo and animal hospital. That’s been a big project we’ve been hands-on with over the last two years. We like to donate to various charities, but I believe it’s important to be hands on, and we want that example for our daughter. We do whatever we can and we make time to do hands on charity work because it’s important to us to give back.
“That’s a good question! My favorite memory that never made it on the show was when…”
D! You have been around so many types of cars in your life. Which car is your favorite, and why?
CH To a car lover, that’s like asking who your favorite child is! It depends on the day and my mood. I can give you a few of my favorites. As far as Chevrolet, I love the 1971 Chevy Chevelle that we built on our first episode of “Overhaulin.’” I hope to one day buy that car. For Ford, I love the GT40. It’s one of my favorite cars of all time. And Eleanor, the movie car. And as far as Mopar, I love the ‘71 Hemi Cuda. But right now, I actually have my eye on a ’68 Charger and a ’66 GTO convertible.
D! We are huge fans of Chip Foose and Overhaulin’. What was your most memorable encounter that never made it on the show?
CH That’s a good question! My favorite memory that never made it on the show was when we were all pranking each other in Wyoming while we were building the 56 Bel Air at WyoTech. We got into this pranking ritual, and in Wyoming, we took it to a whole new level. Chris and I pranked Chip so badly, as well as the EP of the show. We let air out of the tires of the EP’s car and wrote on his car and windshield with lipstick. We ran back to Chip’s hotel room, removed his mattress and flipped his room upside down. It was pretty crazy, but they were good sports about it. It led to a whole road of pranking which continued for the rest of the time we worked together. Overhaulin was such a fun show!
D! Chris Jacobs can’t possibly be that nice. C’mon, give us the real story.
CH He really is that nice, and he and I have been great friends since the beginning of Overhaulin’. He comes from a great family which I think is a huge part of it. He’s a true car guy, and I think he’s one of the bes t hosts on television. I have so much respect for his work ethic. Chris really is just a good, all-American guy and great friend. My favorite thing about him is that he loves tequila as much as I do!
D! You spend a lot of time traveling. What are some of your favorite places?
CH Across the world…my favorite place is Angkor Wat, Cambodia. It’s a magical place that I’m so happy I was introduced to. The history there is so rich, and the trees are phenomenal. They are gorgeous, massive and literally supporting the temple structures—it’s like nothing I have ever seen. It’s magical.
I also think Cape Town, South Africa is very special. And Amsterdam. I’ve traveled there many times in my life and love it so much I named my daughter Holland. It was like, “Amsterdam or Holland? Let’s go with Holland!”
I’m a big city girl, but I also love to get to the mountains of Colorado, and I think Montana and Wyoming are absolutely spectacular. A cruise along the PCH always makes me happy.
D! We imagine once you are off set you want to put cars out of your mind. How do you relax and de-stress? Do you have a hobby?
CH I never want to put cars out of my mind. Actually, a big form of de-stressing for me is driving. I love to drive; I love road trips. And as long as I’m not in traffic, I’m always happy to be behind the wheel. I also love traveling, exploring and seeing the world. I love photography, that’s definitely a hobby. I really enjoy every second with my daughter and family.
D! You were honored as the recipient of Ford’s “Life in Drive” Award for authoring “The Garage Girls Guide to Everything You Need to Know About Your Car”. Today there are greater numbers of women that are interested in getting under the hood for fun and profit. What advise do you have for those women still interested but intimidated by cars in general?
CH There is no reason to be intimidated. The automotive industry and majority of the men in it are so embracing of women in this space. I find virtually no chauvinism, but rather, feel completely welcomed. I think the chauvinistic ideas about women in the automotive space are thankfully a mentality of the past. I encourage all women interested in racing, working on cars or any facet of the auto industry to dive in because women are embraced here. This new reality makes me happy. I’m so inspired by the women who preceded me in the auto world, and if I can inspire others in that same way, then that means the world to me.
D! Well we would ask what’s next for the Leading Lady of Automotive TV but we already know about your collaboration with Troy Ladd. You’ve teamed up to make “The Ride That Got Away”, an inspired show about reuniting people with that special car they parted ways with long ago for one reason or another. To see more custom work by Troy Ladd is going to be awesome. The Ride That Got Away premiered January 26th on FYI Network and January 27th on History. We’re already hooked!
CH Troy and I love this opportunity to give back. We feel that the automotive industry has been very good to us, and we want to pay it forward by reuniting deserving people with their dream cars or trucks that got away from them when life struggles got in the way. We want to bring joy to their lives and hopefully make some dreams come true. This is why I founded ROYL Garage, teamed up with Troy Ladd and assembled a team of the industry’s best. This is an absolute dream come true for me. The fact that ROYL Garage and “The Ride That Got Away” are resonating and bringing joy to people’s lives warms my heart and brings so much joy because that’s what this is all about for me.
We are only building these cars for the most deserving people. Each episode, story, and car is completely unique from the rest. And I appreciate that Troy is keeping each vehicle looking as the owner remembers it but making it modernized and enhanced to be essentially their dream car on steroids. I love what Troy says: at first glance, the owner will think, “Oh my Gosh, that’s my car,” and at second glance, will think, “No, that’s too nice to be my car.”
And I also appreciate that the guys on the show are not just fabricators, but compelling characters who make you laugh. And in the end we always cry. Every one of us. It’s truly a dream team. And I dive in and get my hands dirty on these builds too, doing whenever I can to move the projects along. I enjoy getting my hands dirty, learning new things and being a part of the build team. I love every minute of it.
Stay tuned for season two. And submit your stories at ROYLGarage.com.
D! Thank you for your time, Courtney.
We’ll be watching!
Please wait...