20-year-old James Salalila is this year’s NMTech burnout champion. He claimed that title for the second year in a row at last weekend’s Island Summer Auto Fest.

He told KUAM, "It is a lot of practice and usually, in New Year’s all of our trucks would go out and usually burn out to celebrate New Year’s…and it is in our family bloodline to run against cars."

The path to victory started when he was just in middle school. His father encouraged him to learn mechanics -- building a passion for cars. It’s those dreams that the Northern Marianas Technical Institute wants to make a reality.

NMTech's Ben Babauta said, "This is our automotive outreach to show that we can do automotive careers in the CNMI and you can do that by taking classes at NMTech."

It’s 21-year-old Dave Bautista’s first car show since he started working on cars at 16. He’s studying business management at Northern Marianas College. He said, "These events continue to inspire me and I hope this build inspires the younger generation to start building as well."

The event brings together car enthusiasts from across the island to showcase their work.

Jeffrey Riman explained, "It is fun to be here because it is my passion too, I spend a lot of time on it."

Mark Caacbay’s 1997 Honda Civic DX Hatchback drew in a large crowd. He said, "Cars are something that, you know, no matter how stressful it is…working on cars just makes me happy. I see a vision in my head I want to pull it through. I want to stand out. I do not like fitting in. I do not like being the same as other people. So my whole build is totally one of."

The 28-year-old built the car up himself. He hopes to see the community grow. He added, "Saipan, we need a drag strip. We need a drag strip. Give us a strip. That is all I am asking for all of us. Anyway, anybody out there, you know, just keep building. Follow your dream. Follow your passion."