Help me understand....

[ThePrincessx10]

My bf and I are car freaks. Kind of what brought us together. But with one HUGE issue.... He's totally into drifting and I'm totally into and raised around 1/4 mile drag racing. I've seen the most talked about popular movies, I get the basic concept of how to do it. But there is one huge question I have and don’t understand. Is what’s the point???

I'm not looking to get a bunch of heat on this topic but I've tried to do some research on the said topic and I don’t understand. I've asked the bf why he's into it so much (I’ve never doubted his love for it or been negative about it) but all he says is its "fun!" But with drag racing I get the point and fun, of course I love it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drifting_(motorsport)

I read the article and it’s been most helpful in getting the how to's and history. But to me drifting costs a whole lot of money and what’s the likely hood of winning? Is it like DR where you travel all over to tracks and either build points or a one time event with a decent amount of money or trophies is the winnings. Or is the thought being it’s not about winning and about enjoying the sport?

Can someone shoot me with a helpful link or an answer also on how the actual competitions work?

How often are competitions usually local? (I’m sorry if that’s really dumb I’ve never attended one and maybe that’s where I’m at fault)

When the bf and I started talking about buying a 240 I was all psyched about rebuilding it and its performance and the show quality I could get it to, maybe even how fast I could get it running at the 1/4 mile. It really didn’t dawn on me that he didn’t care what it looked like because he wanted to drift it!!! I was assuming it would be garage kept restoring it to its original look and condition to hang on to because of how awesome they were built.

[driftnslide1]

have you ever almost crashed. if you have you know the adrenaline rush you get from the feeling of being out of control. its just like that except you know you are doing it on purpose. or if have ever lined up at the drag strip and felt over anxious waiting for the yellow light. its that same feeling except at every corner.

in drag racing its all about who wins, who made the most power with the right setup and didnt screw-up. in drifting you can take a relatively stock car, even an obsolete car like an 86' corolla with probably under 100 horse power and have a blast throwing it around corners.

while the most important thing a drag racer can do as a driver is launch well, a drifter has to run every corner with a precision and preciseness that lasts untill you enter that last corner. there is a lot of pride in knowing that you control every aspect of the car. not just using wheel and the gas but the way you shift the weight and use the brakes and just how much you can push the car to get as close to the edge of distruction that.

but my favorite reson is that people dont get it. like you. you are interested but dont understand. jump in a resonable drag car with a GOOD driver built to go pretty fast for a few seconds. then jump in a resonable drift car with a a good driver built to go 0-scary even faster and you will understand. if not thats ok too. to each their own. i hope you come around. the sport is growing rapidly and there arent enough supportive girlfriends out there. tell you boyfriend that he is very lucky..... that bastard. lol j/k

[Joe]

ive been around racing all of my life. ive been drag racing and autocrossing since 18, road racing since 21 (now 25). the first time i drifted i was 22.

"drifting is a joke only we understand"

if youve never tried it, you wont understand it. there is no point, its just fun. its more fun than ive ever had in a car. while i dont get nearly the rush like i used to, its still a hell of a lot of fun.

i used to hate drifting. "thats stupid, you cant win based on time" until i tried it.

ive been hooked ever since.

[ThePrincessx10]

have you ever almost crashed. if you have you know the adrenaline rush you get from the feeling of being out of control. its just like that except you know you are doing it on purpose. or if have ever lined up at the drag strip and felt over anxious waiting for the yellow light. its that same feeling except at every corner.

in drag racing its all about who wins, who made the most power with the right setup and didnt screw-up. in drifting you can take a relatively stock car, even an obsolete car like an 86' corolla with probably under 100 horse power and have a blast throwing it around corners.

while the most important thing a drag racer can do as a driver is launch well, a drifter has to run every corner with a precision and preciseness that lasts untill you enter that last corner. there is a lot of pride in knowing that you control every aspect of the car. not just using wheel and the gas but the way you shift the weight and use the brakes and just how much you can push the car to get as close to the edge of distruction that.

but my favorite reson is that people dont get it. like you. you are interested but dont understand. jump in a resonable drag car with a GOOD driver built to go pretty fast for a few seconds. then jump in a resonable drift car with a a good driver built to go 0-scary even faster and you will understand. if not thats ok too. to each their own. i hope you come around. the sport is growing rapidly and there arent enough supportive girlfriends out there. tell you boyfriend that he is very lucky..... that bastard. lol j/k

ive been around racing all of my life. ive been drag racing and autocrossing since 18, road racing since 21 (now 25). the first time i drifted i was 22.

"drifting is a joke only we understand"

if youve never tried it, you wont understand it. there is no point, its just fun. its more fun than ive ever had in a car. while i dont get nearly the rush like i used to, its still a hell of a lot of fun.

i used to hate drifting. "thats stupid, you cant win based on time" until i tried it.

ive been hooked ever since.

I really want to Thank You guys for taking the time to write all that out. I really was afraid I was going to get super flamed for asking. No, it doesnt make me go WOW I totaly get the point but I totaly respect that I need to just get in and experance it. I've never seen him "drift" nor have I ever seen anyone in person do it.

Where and how do I find tracks or where ever its held at so I can go watch some rubber get burned....?

How do drifters keep the car from rolling? I was in a car accident recently t-boned and spun into a 180. I felt like I was going to roll over I thought my life was gone... Honestly, I was so scared.... I dont know how drifters do it with out rolling the car. Is that why they install those bars in the front and trunk of the cars to make them more stable so they wont roll?

I think 240's are beautifull cars. I dont get the consept of wanting one to possably trash it drifting... I'd want to restore it and keep it in perfect condition. I've seen alot of cars in videos in just primer and bland rims or front bumpers missing, Is that because of mistakes or just keeping it like that because of what the car is being used for?

[Joe]

rolling is incredibly rare. to roll a car on pavement you need SUPER high speed (faster than drifting will ever go) with SUPER sticky tires. its much easier to roll a car off track but thankfully its a VERY rare occurance.

my friend josh just started this site, http://www.wheretodrift.com/

its going to be a running update on ALL events in every state throughout the country. florida has a pretty good following so dont worry, you should be able to find lots of ****.

when you spun around do you remember that adrenaline rush? how your hands lost feeling and your heart was pounding? thats why we drift. we are speed and adrenaline junkies. its a rush that NO other form of driving will ever match except maybe rally. like i said ive been road racing for some time and now when i do it, it feels like taking a sunday drive on the freeway.

and a car with primer, and missing bumpers, and busted stuff is BEAUTIFUL. you know why? because it gets driven. show cars are gay. ive had more fun with my car on track than any show car owner ever will. for gods sake just look at my sig picture. i shot rocks at people and show cars on that corner. who can say they have done that and not gotten arrested?

[thefro526]

We, as in those who like drifting(spectators, drivers, vendors), believe that drifting is more of an art than anything else. Drivers tool is his car and the track is his canvas. It's need for skill is the same as art though. You can give a good artist crappy brushes and he will still make a beautiful work, but if you give someone with no artistic talent the most amazing brush ever he'll still suck. The same is true in drifting, money can't win here because skill (and luck) almost always prevail.