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Formula DRIFT in USA TODAY

Action-packed drifting starting to take off

By Nate Ryan, USA TODAY

If you have seen The Fast and the Furious movies, you probably are familiar with the Japanese import known as drifting, which pits highly modified street cars in a frenetic battle of technical skill on tight courses.

But those who have watched NASCAR highlights on ESPN might have a good grasp of the sport, too.

"When someone turns on a Sunday night sports show, they show guys going out of control and crashing, crossing the finish line and doing a burnout," says Ryan Sage, co-founder and vice president of marketing for the Formula Drift series. "That is essentially what happens every single run in drifting."

If it seems tailored for the extreme-sports sensibilities of Generations X and Y, its demographics confirm it. Series data shows 95% of its fan base is in the 18- to 34-year-old demographic; 93% own a video game. It got exposure on ESPN2 in 2007 and, Sage says, is finalizing a 2008 deal with another network.

Fans also find time to attend Formula Drift, which just began its fifth season. Crowds increased by 15 to 20% at each of its seven events last year; this season's opener brought a sellout of about 12,000 to the streets of Long Beach last weekend. They were drawn to watch several dozen drivers judged on how smoothly they toss their cars around the track without losing control. At Long Beach, drivers were 6 inches from the wall on a 100-mph slide into Turn 1.

"It's everything exciting about traditional motor sports condensed," says Vaughn Gittin Jr., the highest-ranked American in the world last year who defeated the world's best Japanese drivers in an event three years ago. "There's screaming tires, smoking engines and cars totally out of shape."

His Falken Tire Ford Mustang is a rear-wheel drive, 650-horsepower muscle car. But Gittin, 27, says handling is more important than motor, noting he has competed against 150-horsepower Toyota Corollas.

"That proves it's driver-oriented and not defined by how much money you have. Compared with other racing it's very affordable," says Gittin, who believes the sport can appeal to "a 16-year-old kid or a 60-year-old man."

Gittin estimates a full-time team (including a handful of crewmembers) needs an annual budget of $350,000 to $500,000. Because drifting requires street-legal tires, replacing rubber is among the biggest expenses (14 rear tires per event for Gittin).

He scraped together $7,000 by maxing out credit cards and exhausting bank accounts for his first exhibition five years ago. But last year Gittin quit his day job as a computer administrator in Arlington, Va., to race full-time.

He estimates a few drivers are making "over six figures" off salaries, endorsement and exhibitions, and most of the top 16 seeds for each race (eliminations are conducted in a ladder bracket like a baseball or tennis tournament) earn enough to make a living.

The series holds five of seven events on the West Coast, but Sage is optimistic of growing slowly to 14 nationwide.

"Drifting's subjective nature (three judges per event) can be confusing at first to those used to a checkered flag," Sage says. "But it only takes one event to understand how skilled and exciting it is as motor sport."