Drifting - Licensing, training and safety standards?

[Al Weyman]

Don't happen like that though does it? For a start they would have to do a course to get their licence so they would have had some track experience.

[MagnetON]

Originally Posted by Al Weyman

Don't happen like that though does it? For a start they would have to do a course to get their licence so they would have had some track experience.

Depends really.... Up until 2005 to get a beginners (Class C) license in Ireland all you had to do was submit the forms with a medical certificate. There wasn't a requirement for the equivalent of an ARDS course.

[Al Weyman]

Because I thought that was what the Formula Woman debate was all about (lets not start it again though Pleeeeaassee), did'nt one of the better girls get disqualified because although she had never raced she sat an ARDS test and got a race licence.

[MGDavid]

Originally Posted by MagnetON

Depends really.... Up until 2005 to get a beginners (Class C) license in Ireland all you had to do was submit the forms with a medical certificate. There wasn't a requirement for the equivalent of an ARDS course.

And I believe it's still like that in certain other EU countries...

[BigDaddy]

Drifting is a non speed event, therefore it only requires a basic licence or club licence as they are called here in Australia. Fill in the form, answer some medical questions and pay the money and its yours. Ready to go drifting.

[nihil]

To do hillclimb or sprint isn't any different... As I understand it, you can simply pay for an MSA license, comply with a few scrutineering rules, then race up a hill.

To my mind this is a 'good thing', a liberty to be cherished. Any sport needs to have a broad range of entrances. For a local drift event, the barriers to participating should be low, but the D1GB championship, for instance, has a well monitored licensing process:

http://www.driftworks.com/index.php?...s&articleId=15

[s-crutineer]

I can only comment on the D1GB but Yes there is a structured licence testing and the standards of car preparation/scrutineering are generally as strict as in a comparable MSA event

[JimW]

Mistaken post deleted.

(100 x I must read the previous post. . . )

[kelvin88]

*Stealthly bumps thread* So, I'm English, want to go drifting in the U.K, I have an International C competition license and a knackerd 5 series BMW. What do i do now?

Do i need to pass some kind of license test?
Do i need to put a cage in the said Bmw?
Will i need my fireproofs and helmet?
Is there more than one governing body for the sport?
What is the class structure?
Will MagnetON send me to the search button at the top of the page because this subjuct has been covered already?

[s-crutineer]

Originally Posted by kelvin88

*Stealthly bumps thread* So, I'm English, want to go drifting in the U.K, I have an International C competition license and a knackerd 5 series BMW. What do i do now?

Do i need to pass some kind of license test?
Do i need to put a cage in the said Bmw?
Will i need my fireproofs and helmet?
Is there more than one governing body for the sport?
What is the class structure?
Will MagnetON send me to the search button at the top of the page because this subjuct has been covered already?

There are practice/practice/licence days available at various levels licences are needed for the higher championships
have a look on:
http://www.driftworks.com/forum/index.php
details of the days and other useful information available.

To start off you can use the car without a cage but as you progress it will be needed

yes in any form of motorsport they are needed

there is not an overall governing body as such its currently run by independant bodies......i can only talk about the ones i am familiar with -

BDC (http://www.britishdriftchampionship.com) have two classes - amateur and pro-am.
Start in am and as you and the car progress, move to pro-am then the best drivers in pro can progress to EDC which is the top of the tree in Drift here ( but i would say that wouldn't i) http://www.europeandriftchampionship.eu is the site for EDC

[Doughnutter]

I think this has changed slightly recently. The BDC now classes drivers as Semi-Pro and Pro. The Semi-Pro's do points based runs in qualifying and then again once they go into the final rounds they compete against each other, separately, with the higher point score going through to the next round.

You do not currently have to have a cage to compete in this class although it is highly recommended and I believe will be mandatory for next season. Its not only worth having one for your safety but also if you qualifying score gets you into the top 16 of the Pro scores you get the option to run with them in the finals if your cars of appropriate spec for that class.

The Pro's run together in the final rounds in pairs. They get 2 runs. Each car has the chance to be the lead car and the other the chase car. They lead car's aim is to open a lead up over the chase car whilst still keeping maximum speed and angle through the course and taking the line the judges specify in the briefings, getting as close to the specified 'clipping' points as possible. The 'chase' cars aim is to keep as close to the lead car as possible without touching, put pressure on them to make a mistake and if they go clearly off line and leave a big enough space, to drift past them.

Currently licence days are held in the 'off' season. The format is typically an open pit lane practice day in the morning with the hour after lunch being judged runs.

Drivers are expected to show a good degree of skill and a consistent ability to drive without spinning out. If you full fill these criteria then you will usually get a semi-pro license. If you show an exceptional skill level they may offer you a pro-license.

It is not just as simple as this though. The BDC judges will also take into account other factors in handing licences out, such as your overall attitude on the day, preparations etc

When I took my license at Teesside it a was a £70 charge for the days practice (about average for a drift practice day in the UK) and a further £25 if you choose to accept the license offer if you were successful. The standard to gain a license is quite high and I think it will get harder and harder each year.

I know very little about the ProDrift and EDC series but I believe it is a similar format.

JDM All stars are invite only and you have to be a recognised drifter having proved your self to be invited. I believe the Red Bull World Championships is similar inviting the best of the best championships to compete in the USA.

If you are interested in gaining a licence for the BDC there is a PDF download of the regulations on their site and information on license days come up on Driftworks in the off season. I would guess that for EDC and Prodrift you would need to look on their home pages or again Driftworks forum as most major competition information does get posted up on there.