Event: Drift Union Invitational Part II

Let me start by introducing myself: My name is Dylan Evans and I come from the great Evergreen state of Washington. This will be my first post as an official contributor for DODO. Benoit approached me about the idea before I headed off to Formula D Long Beach earlier this year and I was ecstatic. After the feature I wrote for my dear friend Rob Primo’s FD car, Benoit and I talked about making it a more official thing and I loved the idea. So here I am, American ambassador for DODOlogic, and I couldn’t be happier to be here.

Enough of that crap; on to the action. Last year’s Drift Union Invitational was one of the best weekends of my life, so obviously I was stoked about this year’s event. Two days jam-packed with drifting, best friends, and the Canadian wilderness? Sign me the hell up.

I drove my Miata up Friday night after work. Bright and early on Saturday morning, I was off to the track.

I immediately stopped off at the Hotboyz pits to greet my best friends who I hadn’t seen since All-Star Bash last year. Parked next to the Hotboyz were a few other Alberta natives, and Devin Horsley and Kurtis Goat’s cars caught my eye immediately

I met Devin last year and since then he’s been one of my favorite drivers to watch. Coming from a place where most have abandoned the Hachi-Roku in favor of a more competitive chassis, it’s really cool to see talented guys like Devin Horsley and Matt Tregear making a chassis that many think is obsolete look so good — on and off track.

It seems I’ve subconsciously developed an almost romantic attraction to S-chassis’ that have been fitted with a Toyota JZ engine. Though usually it’s an S14 piloted by a guy standing at least 6 feet tall, or an S13 hatch driven by a dude named Eric(h), this S13.4 Silvia ignited the same sort of wide-eyed excitement. If you’re ever having trouble waking up in the morning, hop in Kurtis’ car for some open track practice. I can say from experience it’s sure to get the blood pumping.

Another unlikely contender in the top-level of drifting competition is Ian Fournier’s 4-door R32 Skyline. It seems Canada is home to unconventional chassis selection. I’ve been able to watch Ian compete (and absolutely dominate!) in our local Pro-Am series at Evergreen Speedway this year. I’m pretty confident Ian will earn that elusive Formula D license again this year, and with the talent and program that stands behind him, he’ll be quite the competitor in the Formula D pro circuit.

A truly refreshing sight was this white Rocket-Bunny kitted S13 piloted by Ian’s Independant Speed Shop teammate, Brody Goble. I’d always heard good things about Brody, so seeing him drive in four-car tandems with his ISS teammates was especially excellent. This car has quite the bright future and I’m looking forward to its return to Evergreen Speedway for Evergreen Drift Pro-Am Round 4. I’m pretty confident Brody will be able to keep all four wheels on the car, and in the lines.

The amount of smoke coming from Cole Chalmers’ single-cam equipped S13 seemed to be some sort of witchcraft. Cole was one of my first Canadian friends, and one of the main reasons I made the seven-hour trek to the Great White North was to be reunited with awesome guys like him once again.

What really made the weekend for me was guys like Josh Whitehead. Pictured above driving his BMW E30, Josh is a member of the DEADBEATS drift team. What I loved most about the weekend was how guys like Josh, and many others, greeted me with a smile, a handshake, and a “Hey, lookin’ to trade some stickers?” As you may have noticed from my car, I love stickers. To be so welcome in a community like this one, hundreds of miles from home, was so goddamn awesome.

 

How often do you meet complete strangers who feel like longtime friends? Canadians really are the friendliest people and that was proved to me time and time again throughout the weekend. DUI is definitely Canada’s All-Star Bash. Guys came from all over the country just to slide some cars around a tiny racetrack perched on the side of a mountain, surrounded by the truly beautiful British Columbia scenery.