When it comes to motorsports, brothers Jon and Mike Soldan know a thing or two. Actually, more like 50 things, multiplied by two. The founders of clothing brand 118 Racing (pronounced eleven eight) have been collecting motorcycles — cruiser street bikes, motocross bikes, sport bikes, trail bikes, collector bikes — for years. They also acquire cars, lots of cars, all fast and furiously powerful on road, dirt or sand. Today, the duo is well known in Utah’s exotic car scene for their ever evolving collection. Oh, and for being pretty nice guys, too.
Credit: 118 Racing
Need for speed
The Soldan brothers’ enthusiasm for speed goes back. Way back. As young kids, they would race BMX bikes around their self-made track in the wide open fields of Draper. “It was a lot more open 25 years ago,” Mike said. When they were 16, they started racing motocross competitively.
Credit: 118 Racing
While they don’t do it anymore, both still enjoy riding on the open tracks around the valley and occasionally tackling an endurance event. On any weekend, you might find them with their young sons tearing it up at the Jordan River OHV State Park or the Ogden Cycle Association. Mike’s 4-year-old, Max, rides a mini electric dirt bike. Jon’s 8-year-old, Tyler, already “is ridiculously good,” Mike said.
Life in the fast lane
Between the two of them, they’ve cycled through well over 100 cars, Mike said. “We have a tendency to change cars at the same time. When one of us gets a car, the other will too. We operate in cycles.”
There’s no doubt they know how to pick ‘em. Just take a look at a part of the Soldan’s current collection in Around the Hood With KSL Cars. They’ll tell you themselves, it’s a fun one. But, it’s subject to change, probably sooner than later. They recently joined a list to buy “a very cool car” — the Lamborghini Revuelto, a super sports V12 hybrid high performance electrified vehicle. “It’s the first hybrid model — hybrid for power — and just a beautiful car,” Mike said. They didn’t necessarily plan on building an impressive collection, but it’s not really a surprise it’s turned out that way. “As a young man, it’s always an aspiration,” he laughed. “Who knows if you’ll ever get to a point where you can do that.” Thanks to their skills and Utah’s early, booming tech industry, now they have.
Humble beginnings
The Soldans don’t hail from a wealthy family, or even one particularly interested in cars. “Our parents weren’t gearheads or anything. We kind of found it on our own. We’ve always been trailblazers.” Mike said as a kid, he built a “lawn mowing empire,” then later worked as a janitor at his middle school — “the only job you could get as a 14-year-old.” Jon’s first job was working as a bat boy for a minor league baseball team in Arizona.
They’ve come a long way. Both earned undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of Utah in information systems. Today Mike, 35, is the chief operating officer of Shmoop, an education technology company; Jon, 40, serves as general manager of RealPage, a software provider for real estate management.
First love
The brothers began their vehicle quest together around 2010, when they purchased matching 2004 Chevy Corvettes. “We liked cars as teenagers,” he said, “but it wasn’t until probably 10 or 15 years ago that we could have cars that weren’t just daily drivers. We’ve gone crazy in the last few years, as success has afforded it.”
Their revolving collection has included a McLaren 765LT and a rare model McLaren 600LT, one of only 12 in the world. How do you give up something like that? “With an addiction to buying new ones,” Mike said. “It’s fun to buy the cars, but when you’re a gearhead, you don’t really get attached to them.”
Credit: 118 Racing
Temporary treasures
So for now, there’s a 2023 Ford Bronco, hot off the showroom floor with less than 100 miles; a 2023 GMC Denali; and a 2023 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon — fully customized, of course. Then there are the exotics: a “ridiculously fast” 2022 McLaren 720S Spider and a 2023 Lamborghini Huracán STO — in lime green! — “essentially a street legal race car.” The latter is the first supercar they “ordered brand new.” Mike said, “We were one of the first five [people] to order that car before the Salt Lake dealership was even open, and had to wait two years. We bought and sold dozens of cars waiting for that.”
Credit: 118 Racing
Shared adoration
It’s not all about acquisitions, though. Being part of Utah’s supercar community includes appreciating the cars, of course. Sometimes owners get together — in groups as small as two or up to 50 — and they drive. Mike particularly loves driving through the canyons, where they get to push the cars through the corners.
But there’s more to it. “We love [the cars] for the driving experience," Mike said, “and we like to use the experience for charitable events.” At these events, owners line up their vehicles for everyone to see and enjoy, and do a little fundraising while they’re at it.
You’ve got to give a little
Mike doesn’t have an estimate for how much they’ve been able to donate over the years, but he knows where the money went. “We choose causes where it goes straight to the people in need,” he said. Getting attention for owning cool cars is “kind of fun, but it gets kind of old. Why not make it count and do something better?”
The brothers’ company, 118 Racing, helps sponsor some events, including a toy drive for Shriners Hospitals for Children. At it, Mike said, they collected enough toys to fill their trailer to the brim. There were so many donations, in fact, the hospital had to find extra storage space. Most recently, they supported Utah Foster Care at the 2023 Exotics at The Gateway show.
Credit: 118 Racing
He said they’ve been inspired by others in the motorsports community. “There are lots of people who came before us, like @utahsupercarowner. We try to support [efforts from] people like him.”
Creating a brand
Still close, Mike and Jon talk every day. Rather than just hang out, they wanted to find something they could work on together and that would keep them connected to the community. “We don’t want to be snobby car guys,” he said. After tossing around a few ideas, they settled on 118 Racing, a “motorsports lifestyle brand selling automotive clothing.”
Appropriately, it’s named after their racing numbers — Jon rode with bike plate 11, Mike was 8. On the website, you’ll find surprisingly affordable T-shirts, hats and hoodies emblazoned with the 118 Racing brand. Jon’s wife, Stacey, designed the logo that graces every piece.
Something for everyone
“We started small, not thinking it would be much at all, and it got traction really quick,” he said. “People liked what it stood for. People like it because it's for all motorsports.” They’ve sold thousands of T-shirts since 118 Racing’s inception in 2019, and it has connected them to the motorsports community.
Branded gear tends to be expensive, but 118 Racing is quite the opposite. “It’s priced low to allow teenagers to get into the brands they like,” he said. It’s also a way for people to support local causes. When 118 Racing is an event sponsor, they bring most of their inventory. It typically sells out, he said, and they donate all profits to the event’s cause.
Credit: 118 Racing
Between friends
The Soldans are not the only ones eager to give. Mike said a recent event they attended didn’t bring in as much as they’d hoped — so they got in touch with other members of the supercar community. Next thing you know, he said, “All these people donated 500 bucks here, 500 bucks there. There’s a whole side to the car community that people don’t see.”
Getting started
While Mike admits he and Jon have been fortunate to own so many vehicles, he said it’s not totally out of reach for most people. His advice? “Start small with what you can afford, like a small, older Corvette.” Once you’ve paid that down some, escalate your purchase for the next one. Eventually, he said, “You get more comfortable with how much you spend. I know several guys who started with [Ford] Mustangs and are now driving late model Lamborghinis.”
So there’s hope, even for the little guy? “There’s hope for everyone,” he laughed. “It’s just where you want to spend your money. People driving [exotic cars] haven’t necessarily changed their wealth. It’s just where you want to spend.”
Inspired to get started? KSL Cars has Corvettes, Mustangs and other popular sports cars. When you’re ready to move up to supercars such as Lamborghinis and McLarens, those are available, too. Prefer something a bit beefier? Search for off-road beasts such as Broncos and Jeeps.
Credit: 118 Racing
Grand total
The Soldans have owned sports cars, rare cars, custom trucks, vans, super bikes and supercars. Is a hypercar next, for a cool $1 million? “It would be amazing, but it takes some serious dealing,” Mike laughed. For now, “We’re going to keep enjoying the motorsports, having fun where we can include our families, getting into street bikes — we’ll kind of see where it goes.”
You can keep tabs on the Soldans charitable efforts — and their ever-changing collection — by following @118_Racing on Instagram. Learn more about other local supercar events on @KSLCarsOfficial.
Credit: 118 Racing
KSL Cars does not endorse any vehicles. The views or opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer and do not reflect the views or opinions of KSL.com or its employees.
