A Quick Post on Why I Think Drifting is Ruining Motorsport
I’ll start off by saying I simply don’t understand the fascination with the current fad of drifting; the following are a couple of my reasons. Perhaps some here will agree, but it will probably just start a lot of hate.
Thrashing Cars
The only other type of “motorsport” that promotes thrashing on cars in a similar fashion are demolition derbies. That being said, nearly every individual I’ve met that performs in demolition derbies finds cars that are at the end of their life and there is no limit to what model is used. They choose simply whatever is available. Their cars are no longer road worthy and therefore find a fitting end.
The drift crowd, however, finds their “dream cars.” These cars, most sought out in unmolested stock form, are then modded to the owner’s taste. Nothing wrong with that. However, after an event or two is when problems start…
The Dreaded Wall Tap
Simply - why?
“Drifting” is the only “motorsport” where hitting a wall is considered “cool.” I’ve attended many Formula 1, Indycar, GT3, Ferrari Cup, dirt track, and 1/4 mile races as a spectator as well as driven quite a few track days myself (road course and drag). Touching a wall is never a good thing; in any way. This leads to drifters being done with cars with the likelihood that they will never be used again.
The Drift Stitch
Another thing that, to me, screams “I just can’t drive, and I’m too poor to fix my own car.” It is a common misconception here on CT that drifters started this, hence the name, but I know it was popular amongst the moto-x and offroad crowd a long time ago. In that arena, this type of fix makes a bit more sense.
Plastics get expensive, it’s (usually) a muddy, off road environment where having protective fenders is necessary to keep the rider from constantly being pelted with dirt. Doing whatever it takes to keep them on makes sense. Still, I never wanted my quad to look beat up in the same way that drifters take pride in their juvenile “fixes.”
Anyone I’ve ever known from a track day always properly repairs their car if “battle damage” is received…
There is No Clear Winner or Loser in Drifting
It is the Synchronized Swimming of motorsport. Real racing is determined by seconds, not judges. There is always a clear-cut, undisputable winner; definitely not the case with drifting.
I won’t say drifting doesn’t require skill, but I strongly believe that setting fast, consistent lap times takes humongously more skill than any drifter (from amature to pro) possesses. Pacing against a solid benchmark, competing with your own times, always striving to be faster will be infinitely more fun than sliding around a bit. I attribute this to the fact I wasn’t raised when everyone gets a trophy and I find it more enjoyable to work hard, push myself, and reach goals.
I’ll see how this goes and may go more indepth with my thoughts on cars and motorsport in the future. I know I often go against the grain here which often receives many negative comments from the hive-mind that is CarThrottle.
And I’ll just end this quickly thrown together post with my favorite quote from James May - “Drifting is for the Unintelligent.”
Comments
Also I disagree with the who racing takes more skill than drifting thing. F1 is all safe and has driver assists. Drift cars have nothing to help the driver.
And they also run at 1/3 the speed.
Lol i’d like to see you race F1!!! It takes a lot more skill than drifting.
I’m with you on the destroying choice cars bit. Try finding an unmolested S13, S14, or AE86 in the US for under $5k — you can’t. Because Drift Tax.
And finding those cars in another 10, 20, or 30 years will just get worse and worse.
I’ve personally seen track cars from the 60’s go through countless owners and they are always kept in a condition that is suitable for the track. That’s 50+ years of tracking for the enjoyment of who knows how many owners.
We can’t really tell yet, but I’d be willing to bet the average life of a drift car is 3-5 years from the first event is is used in until it is unrecognizable/unusable.
As if people who track and drag race cars don’t wreck their cars too…
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/story_images/1/1911/2541/4776270001_large.jpg
Yes, but that isn’t considered cool at all. It’s an accident. It sucks. No one wants to wreck their car but drifters take pride in beating there cars up to the point of being completely wrecked.
I also don’t quite care for drag racing so I don’t really understand the point you were trying to make here.
What is wrong with you, drifting is about being able to not be juged for what you bring to track and it’s just to have fun, and there is a clear winner in drifting just because you don’t understand it doesn’t mean you have to call it dumb, and with wall tapping is jut as skillful or even more than hitting the apex right or braking at the perfect time, as well with the “drift sinch” the reason people do it because they don’t have new cars or a full new front end like the million dollar f1 cars do
Drifting is not about that, and it doesn’t take skill to break traction…
Except when you hit the apex your rear bumper isn’t sheared off. and the drift stich is just a way of saying “its fixed, sorta” because you just expect it to be sheared off again. If you do t have the money to replace a body panel with a good one. You shouldn’t be putting your car in that type of danger.
I think you can’t drift.
Getting sideways on a track is easy…it also causes lap times to go way up - no thanks.
That is very true. They are well justified points. And it does make for a interesting discussion. I still think though this post is like saying “10 reasons why TopGear is stupid”.
Why you don’t just say:
But it isn’t.
I think you should look at the 24 Hours of LeMons.
Those cars always have a cost limit if about $500, they’re already at the end of their life, and that’s the only race they’re used for.
Thank you for writing this! Too many 14 year olds without cars treat drifting like its the best thing ever. This is a great perspective to add more variety to CT!
I think age might be one of the larger reasons for the obsession here on CT but I’ve been warned before about “hurting wittle babies feewings” before so I left that outta the post. Haha.
It is fun, that’s why people do it
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You can talk like that, until you meet Tsuchiya-san, the Godfather of drift! :)