No matter how many times I attend the Drift Matsuri I just can't get enough. Each one has it's own energy and you can always expect to find a nice and chilled out friendly atmosphere. This is what grassroots events should be all about but unfortunately that isn't the case around the world. Most of the foreigners that I talked to were surprised at the "anything goes" attitude…
…where crazy missiles are allowed out on track until they have been drifted within inches of complete destruction. Check out this RPS13 up in the Kita course with sparks flying high in the air after hitting the pit wall. This image sums up what the Matsuri is all about, drifters taking their practice cars beyond the limit, enhancing their skills in a way they could never do with their proper drift machines. Once the fear of wrecking your pride and joy is no longer there you will be surprised at how far you will be able to push yourself.
Every time I spotted Alexi from Noriyaro.com out on track he always seemed to be doing tandem runs with cars he "teamed up" with. It was cool to watch as he edged closer and closer to the leading car but a few laps after this shot he had a minor impact as a three car drift tandem went wrong. Still, I think the damage wasn't so bad, as he was out drifting the rest of the day.
This must be the most famous Celica in the world. I was very happy to see it out drifting in Ebisu, and I'll show you some pictures of it in action at Minami in Part 3, as well as some detailed shots of its rather "ghetto" rear suspension arm set up. Running monster negative camber like this has called form some pretty wild upper arm mods!
Old-school Advan three-spokes.
When Daigo Saito took his Mark II out for some full on D1-like passes at Minami I simply watched in awe. Simply put, the guy is a drift God. The way he threw the car over the crest at the top of the pit straight was insane, coming inches from the wall where I was shooting from…
…to then kick the clutch and throw the car at a more aggressive angle straight for the outside of the main judged corner. His entries were borderline spins, the car literally entering the corner rear-first to then be smoothly collected and pulled out by a boot-full of power. Absolutely mind-blowing stuff!
Most people keep their drift cars unregistered and stick on temporary slash-number plates for a few days to allow them to legally drive them on the street. Even shops like Autobacs can organize these plates for you. Beats paying the silly costs of the shaken to keep the car road-legal.
Very clean brown S14 with matching Nissan Serena support vehicle. This guy does the drift thing in style!
Fully fledged D1 Street Legal cars are often seen at Matsuri events. Can't recall who was driving this particular one but it was rocking a very cool Kazama Auto wide body kit.
Yellow AE86, part of the big Aussie group.
Back at the Nishi course I spotted a very familiar looking matte brown FC3S…
…and upon a closer look I noticed it was Drift Samurai behind the wheel, out to have some fun as well as a bit of practice.
I'm so glad so many AE86 were present at this Spring Matsuri, obviously still a very popular chassis to go for in the grassroots scene.
The MotorFIX Corollas are always great cars to check out at events like this…
…combining a rat-rod rusted-out look with serious performance.
The owner of the famous KE70 Corolla Wagon conversion is a great fan of Speedhunters.com and was really thankful when I presented him with a few stickers. He was so appreciative he hooked me up with a bunch of motorFIX stickers that are going straight onto my Pelican camera case! I think these cars are so cool they deserve their own Spotlight, don't you agree?
Next to Goto-san's AE86 was this old-school Corolla SE Coupe…
…showing off a beautifully angular 80's profile enhanced by excellent wheel fitting. Notice the perfect offset on the front Watanabe and the sticky RE-11 rubber. Oh and the fender-mounted side-mirrors, how cool are those!
An N2 racer look. I never got to see this out in action, I wonder if it was gripping or drifting!
When all else fails to get a car sideways, pull the side brake!
I couldn't believe the speed this JZX110 MarkII was achieving coming up the hill onto the main straight at the Kita course. The driver was obviously very comfortable with his skills to be drifting such a spotless valuable car.
More to come in Part 3!
-Dino Dalle Carbonare