A Description of Drifting

Saw this description of Drifting on a local drift message board. I thought it was hilarious, and think you all might appreciate:

Seriously though, outside looking in perspective coming up- Drifting is big boy Pokemon cards. Drifting isn't about actually drifting. It's about collecting the new hot holographic Japanese crap to show off. No one actually played Pokemon cards. Maybe you did a tournament like once. Like how everyone does like one drift event every year. The rest is spent building a sweet Pokemon deck with all the shiny new E36 M3 and Charizard engine. And when the time comes to actually play, you're out of money to drive to the Cow Palace, or you're out of practice and lose in the first round to the guy with the Stock S2000 deck. Those are the winners in Pokemon and drifting: The kids who spend all their time and money practicing with their Stock S2000 deck, or the kids who have so much money and hologram rare cards that they can't possibly lose. Everyone else is stuck in the middle, broke, wondering why they're never satisfied.

I would tend to agree that the "drifting scene" is certainly about looks.

Although I have to say "real" drifting is one of the more watchable motorsports (the viewer can actually tell what is going on / what the driver is doing).

I agree. I enjoy drifting. Lots of people spend a lot of time and money to throw crap on their cars. I look at what people have done and want to ask "WHY?!? Why are you using such big rims? Why do you have that stupid body kit?"

Then, the last competition around here was won by an HPDE instructor in a mostly-stock S2000.

Good drifting is fun to watch.

Salanis wrote: IGood drifting is fun to watch.

... and bad drifting is hilarious!

I like drifting in the big Chevy Caprices at Summit Point on the skid pad. Around and around we go! One of the instructors just lets me do that. The other one still teaches. I won't tell which one is which.

You're all right. It is stupid-fun to do and pretty cool to actually watch. I don't know about the actual description. It sounds right, but I don't know that many drifters and haven't actually been around it enough to have an opinion.

Salanis, you've done it in your Miata, right?

That description sounds like pretty much anything I do, automotove-wise. Spend lots of time dreaming, planning, making lists, collecting parts, etc, but never really getting to have the fun that I somehow perceive to be the result of it all.

That was, until I realized that beating on cars in a field fits the bill just fine for now...

Clem

confuZion3 wrote: Salanis, you've done it in your Miata, right?

Yup. That's one of the uses I put the Miata to. I'm doing a full-track drift at Thunderhill on the 20th.

The Miata is still a Miata when drifting. It does not have an excess of power, but it's chuckable, goes along with what you want to do, and just wants to play. Actually more fun than in the BMW.

The auto-xer's were in the corner play Magic while all this was going on...

Dang some of you are some drifting haters. Go pick on the hot import night scene if you want to rag on something lame.

SupraWes wrote: Dang some of you are some drifting haters. Go pick on the hot import night scene if you want to rag on something lame.

Who's ragging on drifting? That description was written by a local drifter. We're talking about having fun drifting.

If anything, we're making fun of the people in the "drift scene" who spend money to make their cars "tyte n sheite y0!" And then don't have the money to actually drift.

I love drifting a stock-powered Miata on 15" wheels. 2 track days on a set of tires, show up to a drift, go nutso on the skidpad, drive home with 50% tread left. Then listen to people grumble about how much their 18" tires cost.

Oh, and Magic > Pokemon

As has already been stated, drifting is about drifting, but the drifting 'scene' is very impacted by looks. And I'm glad it's that way. Because it's the only motorsport where people build really cool and nice looking cars, and then ACTUALLY USE THEM!

I think that this group here understands that more than most. Driving your car hard is cool, making it look sweet is cool, driving a your sweet looking car hard is AWESOMUS MAXIMUS!

I dunno, many of the drag racers have always amazed me at the quality of the finish work on their rides and the speed they get out of them. So, paying attention to the aesthetics and the performance is not just in the drift "scene"

How is it to drift a P71, that would be sweet

I attempted to watch the drifting show on Speed the other night. I almost got sick listening to the announcers.

I deleted it from my DVR list. I've seen it in person on a local level and figured the reason I didn't like it was the local talent, but now that I've seen the professional talent I find I just don't like it period.

If I want to watch figure skating I'll watch the Olympics. Anything that has to be judged is too subjective to be meaningful.

funny description of drifting, I recently noticed drifting is very boring to watch on tv, had to turn it off. Much better to watch in person. .

fiat22turbo wrote: I dunno, many of the drag racers have always amazed me at the quality of the finish work on their rides and the speed they get out of them. So, paying attention to the aesthetics and the performance is not just in the drift "scene"

I really don't put strait line anywhere near the level of any turning motorsport. Maybe I'm just prejudice, but brag racing is not driving your car hard, it's driving your engine hard and being crazy cruel to a manual trans.

neon4891 wrote: How is it to drift a P71, that would be sweet

I've done a couple practice events in my 86 5 speed Vic.

It does sweepers like a dream! But it get's harder to do the technical stuff because I need some more distance to get the car oriented the other direction, thanks to the 3750lbs (which is a lot better than the newer Panthers with their 4100-4200lbs.) Once I get my PS working better (IE not fighting me) it should be a lot better.

You need to go drag racing more. Drag racing will teach you how to launch a car and shift properly and deal with side-by-side racing at insane speeds. Not to mention the sheer amount of car preparation required! The safety checks for even HPDE's pale in comparison to what's required of a fast drag car. You will know your car is fully sorted if it can handle a test-and-tune night without breaking.

Most of the cars that are considered "fast" in the world of autocross would get stomped a drag race by nearly everything. Take an RX-8 for example, one of the premier sports cars out right now that can literally run circles around most things. Mid 15's in the drags, which is dog slow.

You're not even remotely quick until 13.99 (helmet required) and even then you're middle road. 11.99 requires a 4-point roll bar, 11.49 a 6-point. To give you an idea of the sheer speed that this is, here's an example. At 60MPH you travel a 1/4 mile in exactly 15 seconds. So if I was sitting still on the shoulder of a highway in my P71 (high 14's) and you passed me doing 60 in cruise control, in 1,320 feet I will have caught and passed you at well over 90MPH. And that's slow.

Get a ride in an 11-second or better car and tell me what power feels like. Then get a ride in a 9.99 or better car. If you can even talk after the run is over I would love to hear the words. The vast majority of these cars are built to the hilt and are amazingly good looking. Show quality paint, fully detailed engine bays, painted and polished suspension pieces! These guys and girls pour their souls into their cars and it shows!

Just because they don't turn corners doesn't mean it isn't hard to do.

/rant

PS - Drifting a P71 is fun

Blaze86vic, we have to get you down here to a few competitions, at least one! I would love to tandem with that thing!

On the subject: I don't know, other than my vinyls my car is bone stock as far as looks. The only "upgrades" are other OEM wheels that I've bought for tire replacement ease. My sponsors take care of me without looking flashy and that's what I love about this sport.

Then again, I'm a hardcore drifter to the end, I really don't care about anything else, at all. I drift, work, sleep, work, drift . . .that's pretty much it. When I'm off from work, not sleeping, I'm practicing in Enthusia. I stay home, save money, eat Ramen. LOL!

My art, my passion, my life. That is all. It angers me when I see the people out there with the wings, kits and stickers who say "Yeah I'm a drifter" then when you ask them where they've drifted they start naming streets and parking lots. Like . . wow, really?

I digress: I can agree with what the quote in the OP said about the scene. . .but coming from someone who has done 12 events this year and plans on doubling it for 09, there's nothing further from the truth with the real drivers out there.

-Dave

P71 wrote: You need to go drag racing more. Drag racing will teach you how to launch a car and shift properly and deal with side-by-side racing at insane speeds. Not to mention the sheer amount of car preparation required! The safety checks for even HPDE's pale in comparison to what's required of a fast drag car. You will know your car is fully sorted if it can handle a test-and-tune night without breaking. Most of the cars that are considered "fast" in the world of autocross would get stomped a drag race by nearly everything. Take an RX-8 for example, one of the premier sports cars out right now that can literally run circles around most things. Mid 15's in the drags, which is dog slow. You're not even remotely quick until 13.99 (helmet required) and even then you're middle road. 11.99 requires a 4-point roll bar, 11.49 a 6-point. To give you an idea of the sheer speed that this is, here's an example. At 60MPH you travel a 1/4 mile in exactly 15 seconds. So if I was sitting still on the shoulder of a highway in my P71 (high 14's) and you passed me doing 60 in cruise control, in 1,320 feet I will have caught and passed you at well over 90MPH. And that's slow. Get a ride in an 11-second or better car and tell me what power feels like. Then get a ride in a 9.99 or better car. If you can even talk after the run is over I would love to hear the words. The vast majority of these cars are built to the hilt and are amazingly good looking. Show quality paint, fully detailed engine bays, painted and polished suspension pieces! These guys and girls pour their souls into their cars and it shows! Just because they don't turn corners doesn't mean it isn't hard to do. /rant

I dunno bro, while I agree that drag racing can be fun, it can't compare to what drifting is. In my opinion, you guys are next to each other, but you're going straight. Plain and simple. Not to mention you can fit a car between you.

In drifting it's all about getting as close as possible, traveling sideways at speeds over 60mph. While that's not fast if you're going forward, flip the axis on it's end and now you're in a different realm.

Now you mentioned power, 13.99 . . .my car can do that with a good driver. I'm no drag racer but I know my car can do it. Then there are the "powerful" drifters out there pushing 400 and 500hp. Geared for drifting! These guys could run 12's and 11's. Drifting isn't about speed, it's about precision, car control and driver's skill.

A wise man once said, Drag Racing tests the machine, autocross tests the driver. The same thing holds true to drifting. I've gotten RIPPED on by stock Miatas and slightly tuned AE86's simply because they're a better driver than I. On a drag strip, it doesn't matter how good of a driver someone is in a stock Miata, down the straight, I'm going to kill em. I can honestly, without any remorse, say that drag racing proves nothing except who has the faster car, can launch with minimal wheel spin and who can shift "properly". "Properly" put in quotes because my drag racing friends tell me that all the fastest cars are automatic, which kinda takes the "driver" factor out after the launch.

Stomp and steer.

-Dave

At this point, we can all agree on one point, Pousers suck!

Stig,

I think the OP (not me, the guy I quoted) nailed the guys like you in his post. The ones with cheap body kits, wings, and massive vinyl get spanked by guys like you who are running mostly stock cars, and put their time and money into practicing.

I drift, but don't consider myself a "drifter" because that's not my main focus. I see plenty of guys who are way more into drifting, that's their focus with their cars, but they make drift events less frequently than I do (and I go to more track days). They get on message boards showing off their phat ride that they've totally slammed, keepin' it flush, with hell stretched 18's, and have a sweet body kit zip-tied on. Then when an event rolls around, they have no money and/or their ride is out of commission.

Edit: oh, and I don't get the style of tires stretched as wide as absolutely possible, and sitting completely flush with the fenders while the car is at rest. Wider wheels are heavier. Stretching that much seems like it can't possibly help performance, even when you want to drift (I can see a bit of stretch helping, but not THAT much stretch). And doesn't your suspension deflect? What's going to happen when it does?

Talking smack and collecting trick parts to build a period/scene correct car is half the fun for those guys, though. It's neither grassroots, nor an endeavor that commands much interest among the guys such as yourself (and myself) at the other end of the spectrum, i.e - the drivers. Rather, it's an entirely different hobby altogether, and more often than not, the cars built by the poseurs are pretty damn cool.

Salanis wrote: Stig, I think the OP (not me, the guy I quoted) nailed the guys like you in his post. The ones with cheap body kits, wings, and massive vinyl get spanked by guys like you who are running mostly stock cars, and put their time and money into practicing. I drift, but don't consider myself a "drifter" because that's not my main focus. I see plenty of guys who are way more into drifting, that's their focus with their cars, but they make drift events less frequently than I do (and I go to more track days). They get on message boards showing off their phat ride that they've totally slammed, keepin' it flush, with hell stretched 18's, and have a sweet body kit zip-tied on. Then when an event rolls around, they have no money and/or their ride is out of commission. Edit: oh, and I don't get the style of tires stretched as wide as absolutely possible, and sitting completely flush with the fenders while the car is at rest. Wider wheels are heavier. Stretching that much seems like it can't possibly help performance, even when you want to drift (I can see a bit of stretch helping, but not THAT much stretch). And doesn't your suspension deflect? What's going to happen when it does?

Stretching the tires a bit effectively stiffens the sidewall, which is helpful, but I agree that to the point most "drifters" do it, it's overkill.

That being said, there was a pretty good discussion on what's probably the same board you're on about how drifting is about LOOKING good over anything else. A good drift is one that looks awesome and wows a crowd, not necessarily one that's quantifiably better. The exact same drift done by a stock looking car will look ten times better when it's done by a slammed, bodykitted car with an awesome flashy paintjob, or even just an unusual car for the scene (i.e. P71 vs a 240SX).

blaze86vic wrote: As has already been stated, drifting is about drifting, but the drifting 'scene' is very impacted by looks. And I'm glad it's that way. Because it's the only motorsport where people build really cool and nice looking cars, and then ACTUALLY USE THEM!

Not around here. Around here, the drifters are the ones with primer body panels and kits held on with zip ties because they get destroyed so often. The typical track day or autocross car looks, at worst, like a good daily driver. The typical drift car looks as if it's just been sold for under $1000 on Craigslist.

But the whole bit about spending loads of time pimping up the car and then never competing is completely true around here. Or it was, when there was only one or two track events a year. People had to have their car reworked completely before they'd go to one. Nobody seemed to understand "it's safe, just drive it as it is". Who cares if you don't have the big turbo you were planning to buy? It's going to be more fun driving your low power car than sitting in the pits talking about how awesome your high power car is going to be.

Then we started getting regular events, and now people are more willing to just get on the track and do it.

I tried drag racing. In my Mini. Perhaps that didn't give me the full experience.