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Born March 6, 1973 in Stockholm,
Sweden, Sebastian Domingo grew up in Orange County, CA with an
interest in “how things worked” which came from his grandfather. Seb
recalls, “My grandfather was one to always put me to work and learn
new things. Always building things, be it a fishing pole or a
crossbow, it was always built by hand. I think this is what got me
into the engineering side of things...I’ll give that one to him!”
It wasn’t until the early 1990’s that Seb got interested in
horsepower. He was an auto detailer who happened to service the car
of one of NOS’s principles, who eventually offered Sebastian a job
at NOS in Cypress, California. He initially worked in the shipping
department and then he worked in the shop. While working at NOS, Seb
owned a 1991 Ford Escort GT which he installed a dry nitrous kit on
(100 hp to be exact) then proceeded to drive around town and beat up
on unsuspecting Mustangs. Well one thing let to another and he ended
up installing a t4 turbo off of a Ford Thunderbird on the car.
That's where both drag racing and turbocharging started in Seb's
life. |
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After leaving NOS, Seb worked in the
offshore electrical field, followed by installing nitrous kits out
of his garage. Most installations were on motorcycles because they
were more space friendly for a home-based business. This all took
place around the same time the turbocharged Honda cars were becoming
the weapon of choice on the streets and import cars became the new
generation for drag racing.
Seb’s early involvement in turbocharging cars led to applying his
knowledge to motorcycles. His first involvement with bikes was
strictly as a tuner, working on bikes for the likes of Larry Laye,
former AMA/Prostar West Funnybike Champion. He saw the opportunity
to bring the car technology into the motorcycle industry and thus
started Nxt Level Racing, today known simply as NLR.
As Seb and his wife, Stacy traveling with Larry to Prostar national
events, they knew it would be better for business to be located on
the East Coast in order to better service Seb’s customers. During
each trip, they would take a couple of days to scope out a new home
and finally settled on Opelika, Alabama. If you’re naive to the
state, I know you are wrinkling up your nose and saying “ALABAMA”
with a hick accent, but it’s because you know nothing of the state.
It’s a great place to live and inexpensive compared to the bookend
coast and frozen North. This spot paid for by Alabama Tourism at
www.alabama.travel.com. Not really Mr. Schnitz.
Seb started to race bikes himself as a way to help him make up for
what he lacked as a tuner. He understood that once he could
experience his bikes going down the track it would help him develop
an understanding of what the rider feels in conjunction with his
knowledge as a tuner with no bar bikes. This new knowledge allowed
Seb to take bikes to a whole new level. Seb said, “Riding the bike
has given me the ability to really understand what I’m seeing on
data. This comprehension makes it very easy for me to tune the
bikes.” He also said being a rider has given him the ability to put
together a package for his customers that is easy to ride and very,
very fast!
Other areas of interest:
Residence: Opelika, Alabama
Spouse: Stacy
Occupation: Motorsports Power and Control
Home track: Montgomery Motorsports Park
Team Name: NLR
Sponsors: Yoyodyne, Tial Sport, Gann, Wrath, Worldwide
Bearings, Cooper Performance, MW Ignitions
Accomplishments: 2008 Pro Street et record holder 7.181,
Worlds quickest Pro Street pass to date 7.15 @ 204mph, Tuned the
first 60 inch bike to run 60's in 2005, Tuned the first Hayabusa
into the sevens on a street tire, 2004 -AMI hp champion and first to
ever break 500 hp in competition, 2005-AMI hp champion and still the
hp record holder at 701 hp.
National event wins: Commerce AMA Dragbike 2009
History of racing bikes and classes: 1999 turbo intercooled
Busa street bike shootout, 2007 turbo intercooled sidemount Pro
Street drag radial, 2009 turbo intercooled sidemount Pro Street drag
radial.
Current race bike / class: Turbocharged and intercooled Pro
Street drag radial.
Goals: to go 0's
Interest outside of racing: a nice day with the wife
Favorite foods: Thai, Indian, Japanese, Mexican
Favorite movie: let you know when I see it
Daily driver: Lowered ‘09 f350 dually
First motorcycle: Yamaha YSR50
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