| NEWS | Warrior from p 9 Arizona’s automotive landscape. Chrysler and Ford each stake claim to proving grounds there, directly off of Interstate 40. After eight months of shopping on Zillow and working with a real estate agent, James found his holy grail. It ticked all the boxes: near an interstate, off a paved road, and at a reduced risk of wind and dust storms, which are common in nearby areas. Public records show that BAM purchased the 203-acre lot for $155,000. James noted that the company is “very close to acquiring another 280 acres” of land in the same area. “We want to build a mini community around that [track],” he said. “It’s a great location.” His vision includes luxury condos for investors, upscale shopping, and adobe revival homes for Airbnb rentals. He hopes the area will entice attractions similar to his favorite places to go in greater Phoenix, including the Wild Horse Pass Hotel and Casino, and the Phoenix Premium Outlets. “We have huge visions,” James said. “But what is the reality? The reality is that we just started. We’re a pandemic baby, born in the dirt.” Construction of a track and permanent buildings is slated for completion in 2024, but James said he wants to start beta testing cars there next year. How Much Will It Cost? As of May, the average price of an electric car in the U.S. was $54,000, about $10,000 more than the average gas car. Electric vehicles from BAM, however, will come with a sticker price more than double that. “This is going to be an expensive vehicle,” James said. “Would it be sold in Camping World? If anything, it’s going to be in a Ferrari dealership.” Just how expensive? About $100,000 for the flagship model and closer to $150,000 for the racing model. James predicted that hard-core off-road enthusiasts will spend another $50,000 to $80,000 at a fabrication shop on suspen- sion upgrades and other customizations. Film from p 9 within that First Amendment right.” Kleminich told lawmakers that there are “reasons to be concerned about how a court will ultimately rule on this measure.” On a slim, 31-27 party-line vote, House Republicans sent the bill to Ducey’s desk. The new law states, “It is unlawful for a person to knowingly make a video recording of law enforcement activity if the person making the video recording is within 8 feet of where the person knows or reasonably should know that law enforcement activity is occurring.” “Law enforcement activity” refers to Of course, the more cars BAM sells, the more it can lower prices. “Buying a car is the most miserable experience you can do,” James said. That’s why, when the vehicles become commercially available — in five to seven years, James hopes — the company has plans to meld the approaches of Tesla and Tempe-based Carvana, the used-car retailer. You’ll be able to customize and purchase your car online, then have it delivered to your driveway. Chief Visionary Officer James describes his idea as “Ferrari meets Tesla in the dirt.” The creator is as multi- faceted as his invention. James was born in Woking, England, where the British luxury automotive manufacturer McLaren is headquartered. From a young age, he was captivated by extreme sports. He breakdanced and raced BMX professionally, while his father was a pro in the Formula One circuit. James has also run a trio of successful U.K.- and U.S.-based record labels. He managed recording studios for Phil Manzanera of Roxy Music fame and worked as label manager for Bull & Butcher Recording’s U.K. division. He co-founded and managed Billboard Top Five jazz label Internal Bass Records and Billboard Top Two jazz group Down to the Bone. He also had a No. 1 record in Japan as a recording artist and sold more than 4.7 million units independently. In 2008, James pitched his local country music television program in Orlando, Honky Tonk TV, to billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban, who aired it on his then-network HDNet (now AXS TV). The show was renamed Your Country and ran until 2012. As the program came to an end, James reignited his love for extreme sports with Mod Kids USA, a four- part documentary series on Amazon Prime Video that follows tweens and teens ages 12 to 15 who raced “really badass mini trucks on a massive short-course BMX track,” James said. Contestants on the show included questioning a suspicious person, handling an “emotionally disturbed or disorderly person,” conducting an arrest, or simply, “enforcing the law.” Film too close to the cops and a person could get tossed in jail for 30 days, plus face $500 in fines and a year of probation. Critics of the new law call it threadbare and ambiguous. They claim it doesn’t take into account what happens if a person who’s already filming is approached by a police officer. Others are concerned that protesters or citizen journalists using a camera phone to capture audio within 8 feet of cops, or carrying NASCAR Truck Series racer Hailie Deegan. James hopes to bring famous Hollywood kids to the Yucca track and film a reality show that’s “like their own version of Formula One,” he said. But creative work takes its toll over time. “Working in the creative space is really, really hard,” James said. “You can get really depressed about it.” Cash in the Bank, No Gas in the Tank With his music career and Mod Kids USA in the rearview mirror, at the dawn of the pandemic, James was stuck at home in a mask. Luckily, so was everyone else. Last year saw a meteoric rise in online equity crowdfunding in the United States. Half of all crowdfund investments made in the last five years occurred in 2021, according to a January survey from Crowdfund Capital Advisors. After striking out with investors offline, BAM raised $1.3 million from more than 1,500 investors online without even creating a concept video. The company claims that’s a first. On its first $1 million, BAM doled out one-third on marketing, James said. In raising the money, BAM proved the health of the electric vehicle market in an otherwise tumultuous time for investors. The company is contributing to the future worth of the North American electric vehicle market that’s expected to hit nearly $400 billion by 2028. Plug-in vehicles claimed a claimed a 4.8 percent share of the American auto market last year, doubling the 2.4 percent share in 2020 and up from 2 percent in 2019. James wants to raise at least $5 million before floating a test model, which is slated for 2023. But developing a new electric vehicle could take more than $6 billion, according to Gillette. “There are a lot of disadvantages to electric vehicles,” he said. “It takes a lot of patience and very deep pockets. We’ll see a lot of companies like this one get bought, a camera that isn’t turned on or shooting video, may still be arrested. Kavanagh, a 20-year cop himself, countered that only people making video recordings cause agitation — not because of the action of filming, but because of who they are. He said they’re usually part of organized “cop chaser” groups with a “rub it in your face” attitude. “If the people doing audio were doing this, I would have expanded the bill,” Kavanagh told New Times last week. “But I don’t want to impose restrictions on people who are not a problem.” Critics also doubt that any cop can accu- rately and consistently tell the difference Elias Weiss Battle Approved Motors CEO Chris James. and we’ll see a lot go bankrupt.” Ford recently poured $3.7 billion into its own electric vehicle endeavors to create a new vehicle and expand the production of existing models. Right now, James and his global team of 17 are focused on fundraising, design, and testing. Team members are spread across North America, Europe, and East Asia. BAM is working to patent its vehicles, but James said he’d rather join forces with Tesla or Apple as he already has with Italian auto parts maker Sparco. Sparco is designing the seats and steering wheels that will be featured along- side a massive multi-touchscreen interface inside each car. “I would rather partner up than patent up,” James said. When people hear the name Battle Approved Motors, it often conjures up images of Mad Max-style vehicles prepped for doomsday and outfitted with machine guns on top, James said. But don’t get it twisted — the name comes from battling it out on the track and proving electric off-road race cars can be even more viable than their gas-guzzling counterparts. With proving grounds planned in Yucca, James is seeking an investor to help build another off-road track in Phoenix. “I love Phoenix,” he said. “I want to invest money in Phoenix. And when I get to my deathbed, I want to be here.” between 8 or 9 feet — the difference between a crime and lawfulness. “They don’t know how far away you were until they have you in handcuffs,” Robbie Sherwood, a spokesperson for the House Democrats, told New Times. Kleminich makes an analogy: He and his buddy are walking down the street, focusing on their cellphones, when they pass a cop questioning a suspicious person. One of the friends is recording video as they walk past while the other is checking basketball scores. “That creates a constitutional tension that is difficult to overcome,” Kleminich said. It does not follow that one is >> p 12 11 phoenixnewtimes.com | CONTENTS | FEEDBACK | OPINION | NEWS | FEATURE | NIGHT+DAY | CULTURE | FILM | CAFE | MUSIC | PHOENIX NEW TIMES JULY 28TH–AUG 3RD, 2022
