Yes I know it’s after Christmas, but in the spirit of the holidays I thought I would post up one more Christmas video. This time it comes straight from the guys at Driftworks and while I don’t condone what they’re doing, I have to say that it looks like one helluva lot of fun! Enjoy!
Source: Driftworks.com
Mike Ryan knows a thing or two about going fast in semi trucks: he is, after all, the nine time Pike’s Peak class winner in his custom built Freghtliner race truck. Despite the fact that the truck weighs in at 5 tons, it’ll still turn a 13.2 quarter mile, thanks to the 14.7 liter, compound-turbo Detroit Diesel engine that puts out some 1,950 horsepower. In its current gearing, the truck will top out around 108 miles per hour, but you get the feeling it’s capable of much more with shorter gears. Not bad for an oil burning inline six.
Ever watch a sport and think to yourself that it’s simply not right? That’s how I feel about semi-truck drifting. Watching big rigs slide around a race track is like watching a bunch of overweight chicks fight it out for a spot on the dance floor. I mean sure they can dance, but in the end it’s just not an attractive thing to watch. Big rigs, unlike cars, are built specifically to haul large quantities of goods and merchandise from Point A to Point B, so when they’re modified for racing I just have a hard time buying into it. Take this big ole’ Scania tractor in the above video for example. Yes the truck is powerful and yes it’s drifting, but the friggin’ thing is so damn slow that it’s not even exciting to watch. The reason that drifting automobiles works is because of the high speeds, tire smoke and slip angles that the cars achieve during the competition. In short, it’s full of high octane adrenaline and is exciting to watch. Sitting through this however is just painful. Hopefully the majority of the people out there agree with me, because this is one sport that I would hate to see become mainstream.
Source: Youtube.com
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You may know Sabine Schmitz as the Wonder Woman of the Nurburgring, or as some folks like to refer to her, The Hottest Woman On The Planet. Sabine is best known for her skills piloting the Ring Taxi around the Nurburgrings many corners, but when not giving people paid tours around the Ring, she’s out test driving the worlds latest and greatest super cars. For example here we see Sabine taking CAR magazine’s Juliet McGuire for a little run in a BMW M3 Frozen Edition. Ms. Juliet is right on the edge of her seat for the entire ride and truth be told, Sabine looks as though she is totally enjoying making her passenger freak out. All I know is that Juliet McGuire is loving being in the passenger seat of that BMW, and I have a feeling that after that ride she’ll be satisfied in more ways than one.
Source: Carmag.co.za
This past Saturday at Irwindale Speedway in Irwindale, California, gymkhana Drift King Ken Block got his ass handed to him at his own event. You see the Gymkhana Grid Series was launched by Block as a way to help bring the sport of gymkhana further into the mainstream media. Competitors such as Tanner Foust and Vaughn Gittin Jr. were on hand not only to support Block, but to compete as well. A problem arose however when drift champion Tanner Foust, not only beat Block at the sport that he made famous, but beat him at his own inaugural event. Now I don’t know about you, but if I were Block I’d be feeling a bit sheepish right now. The video is a bit long but totally worth the watch, it should also be noted that Mr. Foust is a total class act. Click play and you’ll see why…
Source: Youtube.com
Not too long ago we showed you a video of the new 2011 Dodge Charger with the police pursuit package. We went over its shape, its nostalgic queues and how much we liked it. Up until now we haven’t seen one doing its thing on the road, thankfully for us though Dodge was kind enough to release a video of the 2011 Charger ripping it up at Grattan Raceway in MI, a racetrack that just happens to be one of my favorites. Police cars need to be beefy units. They need to be able to sit and idle for hours, have enough space to put the bad guys in the back and at the end of the day, put the pedal down in case a pursuit takes place. The above video illustrates to us that the new 2011 Dodge Charger seems more than capable of getting this done. As mentioned, I’ve driven the above circuit many, many times and I can tell you from first hand experience that watching them toss the big Charger through some of Grattan’s tight turns is quite impressive.
Source: RedLetterDodge.com
It had to happen eventually I suppose. Ken Block, the man who introduced the sport of Gymkhana to the United States, has finally gone and set-up his own race series for the ba-billions of fans that have watched his videos on Youtube. The race series is called Gymkhana Grid and pits competitors against each other in a ROC (Race of Champions) style competition. The above video is entertaining enough, but it also begs one seriously important question. Does anyone out there, aside from Ken Block, actually participate in the sport of Gymkhana? I mean we’ve got people who run autocross, road courses and drag strips, but Gymkhana… not so much. The first event will take place this Saturday, December 4th at Irwindale Speedway in Irwindale, California and includes such competitors as Top Gear host Tanner Foust, Vaughn Gittin Jr. and X-games multi-medal winner Bucky Laskek. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Block is going to walk away with top honors, after all, it is his event and like I said, who the hell really knows how to do this sport anyway.
Source: Youtube.com / Gymkhana Grid
Let me start by clarifying one thing: this video is for show, and is not an attempt by Rhys Millen to set the fastest time up Brazil’s Serra Do Rio Do Rastro. It is, on the other hand, an attempt to show off his skills at drifting, as part of Red Bull’s Xtreme Drift series. The cinematography is beautiful, and the road looks like an absolute blast to drive, sideways or otherwise. Like Pike’s Peak, there isn’t much margin for error, and I wouldn’t count the ability of a steel guardrail to keep you from launching over the edge.
The Race of Champions is an event that brings together some of the best race car drivers from around the globe and pits them against each other in a one-of-a-kind, head to head event. Being invited to compete in the ROC is a pretty big honor, so it’s no surprise to see competitors running at full tilt during the event. Sometimes though accidents happen, as was the case with Formula 1 driver Heikki Kovalainen and his race prepped Audi R8. Kovalainen was running against reigning WRC Champion Sebastian Loeb when his Audi suffered a suspension failure coming out of a tight left hand corner, thus forcing him into the barriers. When Kovalainen made contact with the barriers they exploded in a pretty spectacular fashion that no doubt pissed off organizers but delighted fans everywhere. The poor R8 was pretty much wiped out during the crash as was any ego that Heikki Kovalainen may have had before the race.
Source: Youtube.com
I don’t even own a copy of Gran Tursimo 5 yet but I’m already starting to get pissed off at it. Some of you may say that I’m splitting hairs, but I disagree. You see GT5 touts itself as the real driving simulator, but after watching this video, I’m not so sure. First off let me say that the graphics are stellar, but we knew that going in. Second we see that they also nailed the sounds and driver movements, but then it happens… we hit the 1:53 mark in the video and then it all goes to shit. Here we see a classic Corvette roadster bounce ass over tea kettle only to land flat on its wheels like nothing ever happened. Where is the DAMAGE?!? Now I know that there is some damage in the game, but seeing this happen, on the same old track that’s always been in the game, just seems weak.
Source: Gametrailers.com
