As I said before, drifting is a controllable slide. Professional drifting competitions are won not by the fastest drivers, but the ones who pass as close as humanly possible to the so called clipping points.

Although it may look like that drifting can’t be controlled, drivers are actually exercising precise control over their vehicles. They need to avoid oversteering and understeering or they will crash. Drifters are able to control the direction in which their car is sliding. To do that the need to have refined motor skills and to think lightning fast.

The majority of professional racing drivers (not drifters) can drift without much training. So, why is that so easy for them and that hard for us normal drivers? Well, pros have already mastered all car control techniques. Drifting is basically the next level. There isn’t room for errors, so the drivers control over the car and knowledge about driving are of utmost importance for a successful drift.

Have you ever heard of the well known saying- you need to first learn how to walk and then to run. Well, drifting is no different from walking and running. The first thing that drifters absolutely must learn is to control their car in all situations.

Every bmw drift driver needs to be proficient in grip driving

He has to be perfectly aware of what racing trajectory, turn-in point, turn apex, early and late apex, steering wheel techniques, throttle control and etc. are. He also has to be quite familiar with heel-toe shifting, threshold braking, trail braiking (simultaneously turning and releasing the brakes), and how to deal with under- and oversteer.

Knowing the basic terminology about car dynamics, such as slip angle, friction circles, contact patches is an absolute must. Without learning the basic driving theory and mastering your vehicle, you surely can’t expect to become a good driver, let alone a pro drifter. In order to control the almost uncontrollable, you need to first learn how control works. Afterwards, you have to beat the competition!

Drifting isn’t an exactly new driving technique.

by WillVision Photography under CC-SA If you are proficient at grip driving, then you will surely have an easy time mastering drifting. After all, physics and car dynamics are still applicable  here.
Although drifting looks easy to master and understand, in reality, it isn’t. There is a pretty thin line between successfully maintaining a drift and losing control over the car. That’s what makes this a spectacular and fun sport.

“I drift through turns, not because it’s the fastest way to turn, but the most fun one.”

“Press the brake, turn the wheel, press the clutch and use the hand brake. The release it, counter the slide with the steering wheel and wait. Wait only until you are absolutely sure that the car is sliding out of the turn. Now smile and press the pedal to the metal- you are out of the turn!”

Keiichi Tsuchiya (Dorikin or Drift King)

Incoming bmw tuning search terms:

• bmw drifting hard
• BMW M1 drift

Related posts:

1. A Not So Brief Introduction to the Amazing Art of Bmw Drift Part 1
2. Race Driving Guide – Start to drift