Journalist, marketer, announcer, drag racer, publisher

Barely out of his teens, amateur drag racer Luikens began working at Berger Chevrolet in his Grand Rapids, MI hometown. He was soon promoted to High-Performance Parts Manager and over the next four years helped turn it into the #1 Chevrolet high-performance parts dealer in the country. In 1975, Luikens joined Mr. Gasket, where he worked with A&A Fiberglass, founding their race support program and becoming their first racing coordinator. He started his own marketing company, Rise Sales, in 1981, creating award-winning communications and public relations programs for numerous clients over the next 40+ years. He was also heavily involved with the Mercedes-Benz Club of America, earning from Daimler AG in 2017 its worldwide Silver Star Award for the non-employee who’s done the most to advance Mercedes-Benz. A prolific author on motorsports topics for National Dragster, Smoke Signals and DragRaceCentral.com, plus the Pebble Beach and Amelia Island Concours, Luikens was involved for 50 years with Martin U.S. 131 Motorsports Park, which recognized him in 2012 for his many outstanding contributions.