On Monday night I received a call from Jason Torchinsky’s wife, Sally, who informed me that Jason had suffered what seemed at the time like early stages of a heart attack. With intense chest and stomach pain, Jason had to be take in an ambulance to the local hospital, where he underwent surgery for a tear in his aorta. The Taillight-King is currently recovering, and seems in good spirits.
I’m gonna keep this blog short, because there’s a lot rushing through my mind at the moment. Jason Torchinsky is, of course, way, way more than my coworker, he’s one of my closest friends and a titan in the automotive media world who has made cars fun and approachable in ways that nobody has ever done before. Squid cars? Ham bumpers? Sushi taillights? An entire world themed around taillight gangs? I could go on and on. Jason is the soul of The Autopian, just as he was the soul of the German Lighting Site, but more than that, he’s an amazing, one-of-one human being with an awesome wife, Sally, and fantastic son, Otto. Which is why I’m so glad to hear that Jason is recovering well after surgery.
What happened is something called “Aortic dissection.” Here’s a little primer on this rather serious condition via St. Clair Hospital’s website:
An aortic dissection is a medical emergency. In this condition, a tear occurs in the inner layer of the large blood vessel branching off the heart. This blood vessel is called the aorta. Aortic dissection is most common in men in their 60s and 70s.Symptoms include sudden, severe chest pain that spreads to the neck or down the back and sudden stomach pain. Other symptoms include loss of consciousness, shortness of breath, and stroke symptoms such as trouble seeing, speaking or moving. Treatment includes surgery to fix the aorta and medicines, such as beta blockers.
He’ll be back here blogging crazy taillight blogs before you know it, but until then, he’ll take a nice, long, well-deserved and much-needed break.
We love you, Torch. Get well soon so we can fix your Beetle’s engine. And your F-150’s flywheel. And your Pao’s hood. And the Tiguan’s…Volkswagen-iness. And your RV’s…everything. Actually, forget I mentioned those — you don’t need that stress in your life. Just relax and enjoy the holiday season.
UPDATE: You can support Jason HERE.
Best wishes to Jason, may he have a speedy and full recovery. He has many more batteries to chainsaw and deers to crash into. Virtual hugs to Sally and Otto too
Random failure requiring an intuitive response but it all works out in the end? It’s just like every vehicle in his possession!
Jokes aside, get well soon, glad the taillight angels were watching. Also, side note.. the song playing in my truck right now is “Tail Lights” by Blacktop Mojo.. coincidence? I think not!
Get well soon. Best wishes, thoughts, etc.
Prayers for Torch! Do you guys have enough nonsense lined up for Cold Start? Can we help? I like the questions asking where we send our get-well-soon drawing too, I’m assuming tips@theautopian.com?
The get well drawings are a great idea!
This is the best idea I’ve heard all day.
Sure!
oh dang, that’s no good! hope the healing is the Miatas of recoveries, fast and easy
Glad to hear he’s still dirt side up!
Get well soon! You’ll be back to deer hunting in no time!
Dammit, Torch.
Nothing but Aortic burpees in the mornings from now on.
Get well soon Jason. Don’t worry about the site. Concentrate on yourself and family.
Well, fuck. Hang in there.
dammit! That is not a headline I wanted/expected to see. Best of thoughts and all that stuff. We need to see more taillights on the next trivia night, so you have no choice but to recover 100%.
Best wishes to Jason and his family!
Hang in there Torch! Get well soon <3
So sorry for this Torch.
Prayers to you and the family.
Best wishes for a recovery to him. Someone send him a bouquet of taillights.
Crikey. Get well soon Torch!
Wow, that is a gut punch. The entire tail light community is simultaneously holding our breaths and refusing to blink amber until Torch is back in the Chang Li saddle.
Well fuck, I wish Torch a speedy recovery, speedy like a quad turbo charged W16 powered VW Beetle.
Get well soon, we love you!
Insert all the regular oil change jokes here.
I’m glad he’s going to be OK. I wish you a smooth recovery, Jason.
Oh crap! I am glad Torch is okay, but health challenges are very scary. Wishing a speedy recovery and preventative work on the other side.
Wow, apparently that fake Cybertruck really made an impression on Jason.
Seriously though, this stopped me in my tracks. Best wishes to Torch for a speedy recovery!
Oh shit! I’m glad Torch is okay and wishing him a complete and quick recovery. Rest up and heal, Torch! We’ll save our taillight questions for when you are back to full strength.
Oh no! Glad he is doing ok. Get well soon Torch!!!!