Drift Diary

“Flick the steering, gas it, feel the rear kick out, and then leave the steering,” were precious words of advice from my instructor, Stanislav, from www.letsdrift.ru, who was giving me instructions on drifting on a snow-covered racetrack in Saint Petersburg, Russia. I followed his instructions to the T and soon enough the tyres were screeching and I could feel the rear sliding out. As the smell of rubber began enveloping the car, everything in my head, for a brief moment went into slow motion, and as my car began its sideways slide into paradise, the grin on my face kept pace and kept getting wider. Never in my wildest dreams had I imagined that the drifting trend from Japan, popularized through the anime series Initial D, that had me hooked as a teen, would be something that I’d be trying my hand at, someday. Yet, here I was, on a snow covered racetrack, in -2 degrees Celsius, on a crazy cold evening, pinching myself in disbelief. Having watched the Master drifters, perfect their art over the years, not to mention, in the film, Tokyo Drift, my day had finally arrived! I was finally going to be drifting! The feeling was truly indescribable!  Upon arrival, I