More Sidewayz!

VDC_OFF · 10-23-2012, 04:40 PM

Sorry guys, havent been updating this as I find myself running out of time a lot lately. But to catch you up quickly (or not so quickly)....

Last event at GGP in August was a blast. I went to a Drifting 101 class taught by Chelsea Denofa and Stewart Leask where they went over basics of how to drift. Got a lot of nice pointers, and some that didnt help me much. Guy on the left is Stewart Leask who is semipro now and maybe future pro, guy on the floor is Aaron Losey who puts on the events who has run at some pro events at some point, and the guy on the right is Chelsea Denofa who is now running in Formula D as a rookie.

One pointer they taught me was using my ebrake. I have found in the past that clutch kicking is the easiest for me but I really wanted to go out and try this. So I did and failed miserably spinning out everytime. I think it may work for Chelsea's crazy steering angle BMW but my car is spin happy. After about an hour of trying I just went back to clutch kicking and nailed it. Was drifting the entire course. Even my wife who got to ride along with me looked at me and asked what happened? How did I get so much better? I dont know the answer, I just feel like I figured it out.

I also learned a lot about my car in the process. I had bought some slightly used tires for about $50 a piece to try out which was a good deal I thought.

Until I drifted in them. Stupid tires only lasted about 10 laps each before they started cording and slapping my inner fenders. At one point I had to limp to NTB to get them to swap out to the next set. Here is what they looked like when I was done.

After the event I noticed a bunch of grease inside my rear tire. Taking off the wheel I saw that the tire cords were completely wrapped around my suspension arms choking them. Had to cut through them with a knife. Then I noticed a torn boot. Had to order a new boot and replace it myself. Ill be making a DIY on this shortly.

So here is what I learned.

1. Buy good tires, next event I will try Kenda Tires which people say last long, have good grip and are cheap.
2. I need camber arms in the rear to adjust my degree to zero. Im waisting good tire which is probably why I spin out too easy and not making enough smoke.
3. I need a way to adjust camber in the front. Stewart told me he runs a negative 5 degrees of camber on the front which I thought was crazy until I saw my front tires after this event. They actually wore on the outside even though my car is dropped.
4. Bring scissors just in case your tires start cording, you dont want to mess up your axle boot.
5. I need to get some modified knuckles for more steering angle. This will help me adjust in a time when my car has too much angle I can use the extra steering to prevent me from spinning out.

10-23-2012, 04:40 PM	#11 (permalink)
VDC_OFF A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Houston (Pearland) Age: 45 Posts: 1,205 Drives: 2011 370Z M6 Rep Power: 17	Sorry guys, havent been updating this as I find myself running out of time a lot lately. But to catch you up quickly (or not so quickly).... Last event at GGP in August was a blast. I went to a Drifting 101 class taught by Chelsea Denofa and Stewart Leask where they went over basics of how to drift. Got a lot of nice pointers, and some that didnt help me much. Guy on the left is Stewart Leask who is semipro now and maybe future pro, guy on the floor is Aaron Losey who puts on the events who has run at some pro events at some point, and the guy on the right is Chelsea Denofa who is now running in Formula D as a rookie. One pointer they taught me was using my ebrake. I have found in the past that clutch kicking is the easiest for me but I really wanted to go out and try this. So I did and failed miserably spinning out everytime. I think it may work for Chelsea's crazy steering angle BMW but my car is spin happy. After about an hour of trying I just went back to clutch kicking and nailed it. Was drifting the entire course. Even my wife who got to ride along with me looked at me and asked what happened? How did I get so much better? I dont know the answer, I just feel like I figured it out. I also learned a lot about my car in the process. I had bought some slightly used tires for about $50 a piece to try out which was a good deal I thought. Until I drifted in them. Stupid tires only lasted about 10 laps each before they started cording and slapping my inner fenders. At one point I had to limp to NTB to get them to swap out to the next set. Here is what they looked like when I was done. After the event I noticed a bunch of grease inside my rear tire. Taking off the wheel I saw that the tire cords were completely wrapped around my suspension arms choking them. Had to cut through them with a knife. Then I noticed a torn boot. Had to order a new boot and replace it myself. Ill be making a DIY on this shortly. So here is what I learned. 1. Buy good tires, next event I will try Kenda Tires which people say last long, have good grip and are cheap. 2. I need camber arms in the rear to adjust my degree to zero. Im waisting good tire which is probably why I spin out too easy and not making enough smoke. 3. I need a way to adjust camber in the front. Stewart told me he runs a negative 5 degrees of camber on the front which I thought was crazy until I saw my front tires after this event. They actually wore on the outside even though my car is dropped. 4. Bring scissors just in case your tires start cording, you dont want to mess up your axle boot. 5. I need to get some modified knuckles for more steering angle. This will help me adjust in a time when my car has too much angle I can use the extra steering to prevent me from spinning out. __________________ DRIFTING JOURNAL \| Follow me on Instagram \| Facebook \| Houston Halos Last edited by VDC_OFF; 10-24-2012 at 09:55 AM.