Weckman puts skills to use on XOR TV show

Jeremy Weckman, a 2000 New Prague High School graduate, is one of the hosts of XOR (Xtreme Off Road), a television show that was recently picked up by the History Channel.

Jeremy attended Dakota County Technical College and was an automotive technician at Jeff Belzer’s in Lakeville. He later attended WyoTech in Laramie, WY, to study collision refinishing and street rod fabrication, graduating No. 1 in his class. He moved back to Minnesota and worked for a private car collector/builder and later ran his own shop in Jordan.

The son of Larry and Diane Weckman, Jeremy has always been interested in cars and how they worked. He watched a lot of auto programs and in 2010 he saw that RTM Studios was looking for "The Next Big Wrench" to host one of their shows. He sent in a video resume, but never heard anything back.

Seven years later, out of the blue, he was contacted by RTM Studios, who said they had liked his video but were waiting for a show they thought would fit his skills. One of their shows, XOR was looking for new hosts for the 2018 season.

He went down to Tennessee for an audition, and they offered him the job. He and his wife talked it over and decided to take the chance. Jeremy signed a twoyear contract.

Jeremy, along with his wife Brittany and their three children, moved to Franklin, TN, in August, 2017, when they began filming the 2018 season. The show is televised on several cable channels, including NBC Sports, and new this year, the History Channel, where it can be seen Sunday mornings. It can also be seen on several online platforms and at powernationtv. com.

"Getting on History Channel is huge. It really expands our audience," Jeremy said.

The premise of the show is simple, Jeremy says. He, cohost Eliza Leon and others "Build and fabricate any type of off-road vehicle… Then we go out and play with them. It’s how-to type work. We tell the viewers what we’re doing and show them how we do it. The draw is, the viewers can follow along and maybe build the same type of project.

The key is to explain what you’re doing and why, keep viewers entertained and engaged.

Jeremy said the hardest part in hosting the show is......

To see more on this story pick up the February 7, 2019 print edition of The New Prague Times.