The only thing better than watching a car whip around a wall sideways at eighty mile an hour is being in one. The rush that fans get watching these drivers pilot these beasts of cars inches from walls and other cars in unreal. Spectators get goosebumps, start to sweat, and even have to look away because of the intensity of the sport. The drivers, on the other hand, have to stay calm, cool, and collected until the run is over, or they may go face to face with a cement divider.
Everyday there are people pushing the limits of what can be done in motorsports. One of the newest (yet very old) sports in this category is drifting. Drifting started back in the 70s and 80s in the Japanese mountains where people with rear wheel drive cars would try to drive down them as quickly as possible. This led to the back end of the car swinging out, causing them to "drift." They quickly caught on to this and made it work so they could meander down the mountain faster than ever.
Fast forward 30+ years and now we have drifting on the largest stage, Formula Drift. This corporation started a racing series that has swept the country, starting from teenagers up to parents. Every single young kid that sees a video or even who is lucky enough to go to an event, wants to instantly go buy a car and start to rip up the streets. I was and still am one of them. At my "wise" age of twenty, I still drop way too much money on a car that I plan to one day take to the track and tear it up with some friends. This sport gets into your blood and it never goes away.
Whether it is at the amateur, grassroots level, or at the professional level, drifting is the absolute most exciting motorsport on the planet. Unlike NASCAR, each run is only thirty to forty seconds long, not three hundred laps. This keeps all fans on the edge of their seats every single time the drivers leave the line. Drifting also has a different way of winning. It is not a race through the course, but rather a methodical dance through it. Only two drivers go at a time. The lead driver has to follow a certain line put out there by the judges and get as close to they can to "clipping points," the set spots to put their car. The follow driver must maintain proximity to that lead car and follow him everywhere he goes on the track. They then switch positions and do the same thing.
At times, these thousand horsepower cars can be doing 75 miles per hour while being five to six inches off of a concrete while, while having another thousand horsepower car be just four to five inches from their door to the other side. There is absolutely no sport out there like this. Drifting inspires everyone who comes in contact with it.
This past June, I took my parents to their first event. They were blown away with the skill and talent that these drivers posses. My mom never realized how quickly they drove around the track and how much control the pilots had over their cars. One little mishap and you could total a quarter million dollar car into a barrier and be done for the season.
What my parents found most amazing about the professional level of drifting that they did not expect was how friendly all of the drivers were. They all have open pits that the fans can walk around and all of the drivers take the time to talk to anyone who comes up. What is special about this sport at the professional level is that the drivers and teams still need the fans more than the fans need the sport. Tons of teams still rely on sales of their own merchandise to fund part of their program for the season. This puts the pilots in a position to interact with us spectators more, and its a win win for everyone. No matter how intense the battles get, there is always a friendly atmosphere around all of the drivers, who I have actually seen help out someone they are about to face so it can be a fair fight.
Grassroots. Going back to the origin of drifting. Going back to the main reason people drift at local track days or travel to drive with friends. FUN. Drifting is fun for everyone. Local drift days are just as much fun, if not more, than going to a Formula drift event. Seeing beat up cars whip around a course with nothing but smiles in the crowd is bound to make your day. You can even catch some professionals out there making smoke clouds from their first cars when they started just like everyone else out there. That is what makes this sport as enjoyable as it is today, everyone wants to have fun and no one judges what your car looks like, sounds like, or even how poorly you drive. If you are having fun, that is all that matters.
Overall, the reason drifting is getting into homes everywhere is because it is cool and fun and there is no reason not to like it. The drivers are awesome and love all the support they can get. The grassroots events pull people that may not have the most money, but absolutely love driving and having a blast with their friends. And no matter what, the sport is exciting. Whether it is an eight hundred horsepower Mustang riding a wall at crazy speeds, or a one hundred horsepower Miata meandering its way around a parking lot course, all spectators will have a smile and go home wanting to start drifting themselves. That is why drifting is here to stay. That is why drifting is the most exciting motorsport at this very moment. If you do not believe me, go out and give it a try.
