Shoegazing Leo, a pillar of the community
There's one person I always need in the stunt community. He's contributed in many ways, not only with his good humor and unique perspective, but he was also the manager of a legendary competition: StuntsLOL. I'm talking about Shoegazing Leo, or as I knew him, "Leo Ramone." That was his nickname in his early days. Let's ask him a few things about himself, his beginnings, what he's up to now, and life outside of Stunts. We'll maybe know why he's a pillar of the community.
1. When did you first play Stunts?
It was around 1996. I had a neighbour1 who around 1993 and 1994 learned to me and my sister about Informatics. His two sons are friends of mine. In 1996 my mother bought our first PC and we (the neighbour boys) started to exchange disks with games. One of discs contained a copy of Stunts. Then, I started. The first challenge was try to beat the times of a obscure Jhon Davis (maybe he drawn Garfield).
2. How did you come up with the idea of managing a Stunts competition?
I put internet on my PC in late 2001. A dial-up connection. I tried to took part in brazilian competitions, but it was broken. Then, I add a little section at my website that started in 1998, with tiny tiny ambitions...
3. How did you find the Stunts community?
I didn't find. It found me. Alain Rotoi and Krys Toff discovered the competition and I discovered first ISA and tried to race first there with a own team.
4. What was your opinion of the community back then?
Today is a very mature community. In early 2002 we were a lot of teenagers around the world and it was a revolution to a 18 to 19 year starting an university and discovering different paths of the Internet.
5. What was your manager experience in StuntsLOL?
It gave a lot of work because I'm not a coder (I tried, but I failed some years before) and I never had an automatized system of replays and scores. (It's like rain on your wedding day, sings Alanis) It was 100% manual.
6. Why did you stop participating?
I started to work a lot, lost some PCs, Stunts stopped to work on new computers, that season with confusing rules (2007?).
7. How was your return in 2015?
I returned unemployed in 2015 discovering DosBox, with a little more time to play.
8. How would you describe your performance?
I tried manual gears at my appex, but I forgot how to do it properly. Then, my performance is trying to be in the middle table. This season is stronger than 2024, then, the 12th of 2024 is a 15th or 16th in 2025. And I'm working this year, with less time to do a lot of laps. It's just I can do. Maybe the most important is the team. I'm proud to helped Marco to be World Champion and I'm trying to enhance performances together with Mark Nailwood, who also uses manual shift and is around 6 seconds faster than me. I dream of Marco returning, but aging is complicated and his arm felt the years, but I see another pipsqueak with similar potential: Zapper. Maybe he can join Slowdrive someday. Sad that I got depressed after that championship and we lost Cas before I recover some motivation. Since I can't be the top individual racer, I can be a racer who can help the more skilled partner to reach his best.
9. How would you describe your participation in the races?
When I race in start of race, I like to test a lot of cars. This is maybe why I have a good number of car medals without a podium in Zakstunts. And maybe make my team partners start the race ahead the zero, with first track impressions. But during busy months, I have difficulties to race since the start, then the goal is to stay at the scoreboard not far away to a realistic goal.
10. Do you have any rituals you follow every month?
When I got a race in start, I like to try a lot of cars to find the best at that moment. When I got a developed race, I try on almost all cars at score to "worst" to "better" to find my best car at that race.
11. What differences do you see between the community in 2002, 2015, and now (2025)?
We are getting fucking old. I fell at bus stop today because it was dirty and raining, like an old man. Krys Toff maybe is a grandfather today like our beloved Aburaf was. Some racers are getting bald, some are getting grizzle, and another ones are becoming both. We are more mature, flamewars are not cool anymore (never were cool, anyway), but is a mark of strenght a virtual community reach 25 years. Maybe some younger retrogamers can find and join us, making a new age generation. Or we can be like that old lads at same pub since the younghood and it's can be good. Aburaf learned us about become imortal being not imortal.
12. You're one of the most consistent racers; what message do you have for new racers?
Just push play. You can have a lot of fun and you don't need to be a new Argammon, a new Rotoi, a new Duplode. Make friends, make teams, beat yourself and sometimes fail to beat yourself. A anime said that the true trophies are the friends that we made during your journey. Bonus: Bonzai Joe and Alan Rotoi are maybe the racers that I never was at same team that I would like to race a day together.
13. Which replay or replays do you think are your best?
Maybe the fastest on Ushuaia STLOL (I don't know if first or second draft) or maybe one of 7th place2. I really don't remember replays.
And welcome back, 