competitive Drift races

I'm considering starting up a set of organized Drift races. These races are not D1 races, these races are based on my experiences with Japanese drifters on the mountains. 2 or more drifters race through a series of sharp hairpin corners to the finish. Drifting is a true competitive motorsport and I'm tired of people saying its not a sport because it is based on judging. Drifting is not only D1. The skills taking these mountain corners are amazing. Drifting is to curves as Drag is to 1/4s. Drifting evolved on tight winding Japanese mountain roads not on race tracks. I would like to see Drift races on tracks resembling Japanese mountain roads. I'm still considering how to do this when I get back to the States. But, I hope to create an amateur track designed specifly for drifting.

good luck finding something resembling that here...

but other then that...i think it sounds kinda cool. :iceslolan

Thank you! I noticed that alot here in this forum. This must be the only forum i know that thinks that Drifting is not a sport. Drifting is a sport. And Drifting originated in the mountains of Japan. They call it "TOUGE" people. Geez... I would like to see anyone here has the balls to race downhill on a really tight road and DRIFT that tight turns. Street_R im from SoCali. and I do Touge runs here in the local area. I would like to participate in your organize Touge run if you can. But i have to warn you, its not easy to organize it here. There's not alot of Mountain trails here. And there's not alot of parking lot (well in California though) that's willing to rent out their space for drifting. There's alot of factors to consider. Such as, Liability, Tire marks and Noise level. But Keep this thread updated, if you have any good ideas for location.

Thanks.

Yo FC! Lemme 'splain some things to you.

A: Drifting didn't start in Japan. It started with racers in Europe working to maintain momentum around corners because of the limited grip of their tires. I can quote Enzo Ferrari talking about the prewar F1 maestro Tazio Nuvolari using the technique years before the motorcar was common in Japan, let alone being mass-produced in Japan.

B: D1 is recognized as a sport unto itself amongst the drift fans here. And Touge is a well respected form of motorsport too. However, there is touge racing in the states and in Europe. It's called "hillclimb" and it's been going on a lot longer than touge racing. Here's a good example of a Porsche hillclimb special.

http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/large/552-1.jpg
Porsche 909 Bergspyder.

C: I'll gladly slide my 170hp MGB GT around a mountain pass against any and all takers (once I get the floorboards welded in). I've got the balls to do that.

Do you have the balls to strap yourself into a 900lb cage of tube steel and aluminum paneling with a direct drive (aka: no transmission, just an in-out box and locker rear axle) 800+ horsepower aluminum Chevy V8 (mechanical fuel injection and methanol for fuel do that) and drift for 20+ laps on a 3/8th mile high banked dirt oval surrounded by 23 cars doing the exact same thing?

http://www.angelfire.com/pa/410racing/side_by_side.jpg

Now those are drifters.

Yo FC! Lemme 'splain some things to you.

A: Drifting didn't start in Japan. It started with racers in Europe working to maintain momentum around corners because of the limited grip of their tires. I can quote Enzo Ferrari talking about the prewar F1 maestro Tazio Nuvolari using the technique years before the motorcar was common in Japan, let alone being mass-produced in Japan.

B: D1 is recognized as a sport unto itself amongst the drift fans here. And Touge is a well respected form of motorsport too. However, there is touge racing in the states and in Europe. It's called "hillclimb" and it's been going on a lot longer than touge racing. Here's a good example of a Porsche hillclimb special.

http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/large/552-1.jpg
Porsche 909 Bergspyder.

C: I'll gladly slide my 170hp MGB GT around a mountain pass against any and all takers (once I get the floorboards welded in). I've got the balls to do that.

Do you have the balls to strap yourself into a 900lb cage of tube steel and aluminum paneling with a direct drive (aka: no transmission, just an in-out box and locker rear axle) 800+ horsepower aluminum Chevy V8 (mechanical fuel injection and methanol for fuel do that) and drift for 20+ laps on a 3/8th mile high banked dirt oval surrounded by 23 cars doing the exact same thing?

http://www.angelfire.com/pa/410racing/side_by_side.jpg

Now those are drifters.


Yes I would, I would Love to have the chance to do that. I've been looking at that race for awhile (im assuming you race at this league). Is it called OutLaw racing? Im not sure. Anyways. Have you done downhill touge? Just a question? I do that alot here at my neck of the woods. Anyways. I dont try to start an argument here. I just want to clarify to Muscle cars fanatics or other sceptics out there that Drifting takes alot of skills than just 1/4 mile at a time and it takes more than just Reaction time.

Its more than just a STYLE. Or because its NEW (most of the new kids think that drifting is new)

I'm not talking about hill climbing. I'm talking about drifting. To slide on purpose, the act of sliding around the corners. If the purpose of the hillclimbers is to lose traction the whole way through the winding course then Drifting and hill climbing are the same.

Majority of Drift racing is basically follow the leader between the highest powered car and the lowest powered car. The low powered car must keep the speed of the high powered car to the end or until the low powered car passes.

I've done sprint and quarter midget racing, and drift my MGB GB on occasion. A lot of what I've learned from my seat time in open wheel cars transfers over.

I'd still like to figure out how to rig a dual Jacob's Ladder for my B. For the unknowing, the Jacob's Ladder is a suspension part on the right rear axle of a sprint car. It's a complex lever that is designed to counteract the car's natural weight transfer. When the rear suspension loads up on the right rear in a corner, the Jacob's Ladder pulls up on the left rear to tilt the car leftwards, thus naturally performing the weight shift necessary to sustain those race long drifts.

I'd like to figure out how to rig a pair of those onto a solid rear axle car to get crazy long drifts on either side.

And, for the record, there aren't any "mountain passes" here in Ohio. But there are some twisty roads that many of the sports car guys still like to run hard. The most popular is Nickel Plate Diagonal out in Elyria.

I'm not talking about hill climbing. I'm talking about drifting. To slide on purpose, the act of sliding around the corners. If the purpose of the hillclimbers is to lose traction the whole way through the winding course then Drifting and hill climbing are the same.

Majority of Drift racing is basically follow the leader between the highest powered car and the lowest powered car. The low powered car must keep the speed of the high powered car to the end or until the low powered car passes.


Im with you StreetR. Initial D style racing. Down hill racing. :D