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Gavin Brantmeier Prabhakar (10) and Arlo Ziolkowski (10) drive around downtown Clayton Jan. 25. Working on his car several days a week, Brantmeier Prabhakar’s 2000 BMW 328Ci manual coupe has modifications including custom headlights, a cold air intake, wheels, headers and tuning. He visits the Slammedenuff car show in Chicago every year, where cars with lowered suspensions are showcased. Ziolkowski’s 2019 Volkswagen Jetta GLI 35th Anniversary Edition is only one of 3,500 units produced. “I definitely know a good amount of people through cars,” Ziolkowski said. “Just by looking at different accounts of people posting stuff in St. Louis about cars, and also meeting people through meets, talking to a lot of different owners.”
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Gavin Brantmeier Prabhakar (10) and Arlo Ziolkowski (10) drive around downtown Clayton Jan. 25. Working on his car several days a week, Brantmeier Prabhakar’s 2000 BMW 328Ci manual coupe has modifications including custom headlights, a cold air intake, wheels, headers and tuning. He visits the Slammedenuff car show in Chicago every year, where cars with lowered suspensions are showcased. Ziolkowski’s 2019 Volkswagen Jetta GLI 35th Anniversary Edition is only one of 3,500 units produced. “I definitely know a good amount of people through cars,” Ziolkowski said. “Just by looking at different accounts of people posting stuff in St. Louis about cars, and also meeting people through meets, talking to a lot of different owners.”
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Gavin Brantmeier Prabhakar (10) and Arlo Ziolkowski (10) drive around downtown Clayton Jan. 25. Working on his car several days a week, Brantmeier Prabhakar’s 2000 BMW 328Ci manual coupe has modifications including custom headlights, a cold air intake, wheels, headers and tuning. He visits the Slammedenuff car show in Chicago every year, where cars with lowered suspensions are showcased. Ziolkowski’s 2019 Volkswagen Jetta GLI 35th Anniversary Edition is only one of 3,500 units produced. “I definitely know a good amount of people through cars,” Ziolkowski said. “Just by looking at different accounts of people posting stuff in St. Louis about cars, and also meeting people through meets, talking to a lot of different owners.”
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Gavin Brantmeier Prabhakar (10) and Arlo Ziolkowski (10) drive around downtown Clayton Jan. 25. Working on his car several days a week, Brantmeier Prabhakar’s 2000 BMW 328Ci manual coupe has modifications including custom headlights, a cold air intake, wheels, headers and tuning. He visits the Slammedenuff car show in Chicago every year, where cars with lowered suspensions are showcased. Ziolkowski’s 2019 Volkswagen Jetta GLI 35th Anniversary Edition is only one of 3,500 units produced. “I definitely know a good amount of people through cars,” Ziolkowski said. “Just by looking at different accounts of people posting stuff in St. Louis about cars, and also meeting people through meets, talking to a lot of different owners.”
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Gavin Brantmeier Prabhakar (10) and Arlo Ziolkowski (10) drive around downtown Clayton Jan. 25. Working on his car several days a week, Brantmeier Prabhakar’s 2000 BMW 328Ci manual coupe has modifications including custom headlights, a cold air intake, wheels, headers and tuning. He visits the Slammedenuff car show in Chicago every year, where cars with lowered suspensions are showcased. Ziolkowski’s 2019 Volkswagen Jetta GLI 35th Anniversary Edition is only one of 3,500 units produced. “I definitely know a good amount of people through cars,” Ziolkowski said. “Just by looking at different accounts of people posting stuff in St. Louis about cars, and also meeting people through meets, talking to a lot of different owners.”
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Gavin Brantmeier Prabhakar (10) and Arlo Ziolkowski (10) drive around downtown Clayton Jan. 25. Working on his car several days a week, Brantmeier Prabhakar’s 2000 BMW 328Ci manual coupe has modifications including custom headlights, a cold air intake, wheels, headers and tuning. He visits the Slammedenuff car show in Chicago every year, where cars with lowered suspensions are showcased. Ziolkowski’s 2019 Volkswagen Jetta GLI 35th Anniversary Edition is only one of 3,500 units produced. “I definitely know a good amount of people through cars,” Ziolkowski said. “Just by looking at different accounts of people posting stuff in St. Louis about cars, and also meeting people through meets, talking to a lot of different owners.”
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For Arlo Ziolkowski (10) and Gavin Brantmeier Prabhakar (10), cars are more than just for getting from point A to point B. It’s a lifestyle that fuels their friendship while immersing them into a vibrant community of fellow enthusiasts, where they attend meets and express their creativity through content creation and photography.
The two became friends in eighth grade after Brantmeier Prabhakar heard about Ziolkowski’s interest in cars. Prior to their encounter, both found enthusiasm for cars from video games. Ziolkowski received his first gaming console in elementary school, which included the racing game Forza Horizon 3.
“I had a similar story,” Brantmeier Prabhakar said. “When I got my Xbox, it came with Forza Motorsport 5, and so that’s where I gained my interest from mostly.”
After getting their permits last school year, they shifted gears to the real thing. Brantmeier Prabhakar has a BMW 328Ci, purchased in seventh grade after earning enough money from mowing lawns, cleaning cars and reselling shoes online. Ziolkowski recently got a Volkswagen Jetta GLI.
“I was always looking for more of a sporty car, just to kind of show my enthusiasm for cars through what I drive,” Ziolkowski said. “And this GLI popped up, my dad saw it, and we took it out for a test drive. [I] really liked it, and we just ended up getting it.”
Both visit car meets regularly and go spotting for exotic cars. Ziolkowski has refined his car photography skills and has recently dabbled into creating video edits — something that Brantmeier Prabhakar has seen viral success in. His car spotting page on TikTok has amassed over 17,000 followers, 1.4 million likes and 2.8 million views on his most popular clip.
“When I see cars that I like, I will usually take videos and photos and I’ll edit them, and then I’ll post them online,” Brantmeier Prabhakar said. “This year, it’s started to gain a lot of traction.”
From gaming to events to content creation, there’s a variety of ways to engage with the hobby.
“So many people think being into cars is about speeding or racing or being loud and obnoxious,” Brantmeier Prabhakar said. “But it’s really a way of bonding with people.”
![Ladue students, families and staff gathered at the McKenna Athletic Plaza and track for the 12th Annual ‘Due Run 4 Education, hosted by the Ladue Education Foundation, Saturday, Sept. 21. The ‘Due Run is a 5K and 1 mile run that fundraises the LEF nonprofit organization for their grants and initiatives that help further the academic opportunities for students across the district. Participant registration fees and dozens of corporate sponsors help contribute to an approximate total of $25,000 each year. LEF provided entertainment including a DJ, performances from the Laduettes and cheer team, gift card giveaways and food. Medals were awarded to the fastest runners in age groups. High school students in the National Honor Society chapter volunteered at the event as course monitors, photographers and mascots from each Ladue school. “It was pretty hot in those costumes, I was the [Conway] ram,” Garon Agrawal (12) said. “It got pretty hot, but it was a really fun experience. I loved giving all the kids high fives, and everyone’s really excited to see us mascots.”](https://laduepublications.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/DJI_20240921083433_0022_D-1200x675.jpg)
![Yaya Ungacta (10) assistant teaches Brazilian jiu-jitsu at the Gracie Barra martial arts school in Chesterfield. She teaches four days out of the week for about an hour after school. It used to be her father’s favorite thing to do back in Guam. Ungacta’s parents had her learn martial arts when she turned 10 years old. She started with mixed martial arts at the same studio where she found jiu-jitsu. She has been doing jiu-jitsu for the past five years. “[In BJJ,] we focus on different moves every week but we always have a theme,” Ungacta said. “For example this week, we are focused on takedowns.”](https://laduepublications.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/4K2A6928-CR3-1200x800.jpg)
