Drifting
 

Is it me or does drifting seem like a Hallmark holliday? An event created by the tire manufactures to drum up new business.

...just a thought, not a sermen.:D

Dunno but I sure don't see the thrill.

Or in a way I do. It's easier/cheaper than track racing and kids look like pro's, drifting those cars around. "looking like a pro" seems to matter a lot. Entry of new "fast and hilarious" culture obviously plays it's role as well.

Drifting is the new Burnout. Going in a straight line is boring. make a figure 8, well that takes a little talent.

it's the special olympics of auto racing.

It's not for me, but I will admit the pros that do it for a living have exceptional car control. Better than most of us, I'll bet.

Hell on suspensions...not designed for extended lateral loads....

i was watching a show on this last night. The guy said he goes through a set of tires in 15 mintues. That ain't a cheap hobby...

I watched an exhibition at the San Jose Grand Prix. Fans stood on their feet the entire time - Nascar-ish. Gotta give those guys credit - a walled race track and they throw the car sideways at speed. Cohones grande.

Quote of the day.

-Z

A couple od drifters checked out CMP last weekend. They attended a track-day to see if the complex was suitable for drifting. I rode with one of them as a 'check out" instructor.

Here's what I found.
[*]Drifting is way fun to watch. [*]Speeds were lower than I expected.[*]I bet it was quite a ride inside.[*]The guy's car made oodles of power. [*]The car was sprung quite a bit softer than I thought it would be. [*]I'd never seen anyone power-oversteer half the short track before.[*]Tire life is measured in minutes.[*]I'd give it a try.[/list]

I attended a Pro Drift Event at the Miami/Homestead Raceway a couple of years ago. The Mazda Rotary club I belonged to got us in for a discount and our cars displayed inside the show.

I was VERY interested in the car setup of the Pro's. Falken was the event sponsor and Falken Team Drivers were the feature.

They ran Azenis in the front, and Ziex's in the rear, the rear tires were garbage passanger tires the cheapest Falken makes and lowest traction rating. The fronts were 225's on 17 inch rims. The rears were 205's on 16 inch rims.

They set up the rear tires so they will get no traction. I also noticed the Pros would do very long burnouts at the beginning of their stint to overheat the rear tires and render them to have virtually no traction at all. It was almost like magic to watch the cars spin around like they were on casters defying everything I knew about car control.

I thought that until I saw the specifics of their tire setup then it made perfect sense how they were doing it.

I thought it would be cool to learn how to drift for no other reason but to be more confident in a grosss oversteer situation.