Drifting Can Save Lives

[HasNoTiresLeft]

Yknow ive been reading a few articles here and there, and it seems that everyone is focusing on the fact that you can die or be seriously injured while drifting. Now this is true but knowing how to drift could also save your life.


One Example.

I got a call from my mother one night, she told me she thought she was having a heart attack, so im rushing to her house. This guy in front of me is driving a big, old cadillac with no tailights, and he hits his brakes and comes to a complete stop in the middle of the road, i was about 1 1/2 car lengths behind him and when i realized he wasnt moving, it was to late to stop.
I e-braked it, countersteered and and slid into a nearby driveway. ( i turned around and looked to see this guy grabbing at somthing on the ground that wasnt there) I wanted to get out and beat this guy into the ground, or get an on duty officer to arrest him, but it was kind of an emergency. Needless to say, i probably would have hit this guy if i didnt know a thing or two about drifting.


Now the next example i can think of, is the reason why i hate April fools day.

It was April 1st 2002. My brother who was 24 yrs old was riding with a friend of his on their way to work, they were traveling along 4 lane bridge, when some *female* decided to stop her car in the middle of the road. She came to a complete stop and got out of her car, left it and started walking. (drugged, they found her at her house the next morning with a needle in her arm) This caused a 4 car pileup. My brother was in the passenger side of an S10 sleeping while his friend was driving. The guy saw the wreck, panicked and pulled hard to the left which sent the truck sliding towards the wreck. The side where my brother was sleeping was headed straight for the pileup. He died in an instant.

Now, the guy who was driving told me "I tried to make the truck go left to avoid the wreck, but it didnt turn" understeer. Now what bothers the living sh!t out of me is that if he knew how to drift he may have ben able to avoid the wreck, and maybe my bro would still be here today.


Mostly this is just me ranting because im always pissed around this time of year, but i just got tired of hearing all this stuff about how youll die if you go drift.

ok im done....

[TokyoDrifterxo7]

i agree man. Sorry to hear about your bro dude.

[sobe]

yeah, he's right, they are having more and more classes on driving during emergencies...like braking and stuff...or atleast i've heard

[Emagdnim]

I agree as well.

[TRusst]

Car control is car control...whether it's drifting, accident avoidence or emergency braking. The principles and theories are the same. A person wouldn't have to know how to drift to avoid an accident, they just need experience and practice to know what to do in those situations. As a drifter you study these theories and principals and so you have a better understanding of what to do than the average (who are we kidding? They are below average) driver

The biggest problem is driver education in this country. We focus on reading about it, and taking simple little tests on it. I've always said that there is a major lack in hands on accident avoidence and basic control education. I was aware of this when I was 16 taking drivers ed in highschool. All we did was read about how to control a slide, or how to modulate locking brakes...but we never actually got to experience it.

I've been saying for years, that every town and city has an empty parking lot some where. Every year old police cars are retired. I say put them to use. Get the kids in drivers ed, (and others as well) out there and teach them car control, by actually putting them in the car, and in the situations that they will experience. Sure it would cost the cities some money, but I don't see how you can put a price on human life.

[Weapon X]

Originally posted by TRusst
Car control is car control...whether it's drifting, accident avoidence or emergency braking. The principles and theories are the same. A person wouldn't have to know how to drift to avoid an accident, they just need experience and practice to know what to do in those situations. As a drifter you study these theories and principals and so you have a better understanding of what to do than the average (who are we kidding? They are below average) driver

The biggest problem is driver education in this country. We focus on reading about it, and taking simple little tests on it. I've always said that there is a major lack in hands on accident avoidence and basic control education. I was aware of this when I was 16 taking drivers ed in highschool. All we did was read about how to control a slide, or how to modulate locking brakes...but we never actually got to experience it.

I've been saying for years, that every town and city has an empty parking lot some where. Every year old police cars are retired. I say put them to use. Get the kids in drivers ed, (and others as well) out there and teach them car control, by actually putting them in the car, and in the situations that they will experience. Sure it would cost the cities some money, but I don't see how you can put a price on human life.

TRusst for president!

[TRusst]

No thanks.

[nissanguy_24]

I've said the exact same thing. We have a race track not far from here, Buttonwillow raceway, i've long been saying they should take kids out there who are learning to drive and let them experience understeer, oversteer, spinning out, emergency breaking, let them lock the wheels up, let them go off the road. Because its better for them to do it there then find out what understeer is next time there on the highway

[Drift For Food]

Yep, car control and understanding is key. I agree that everyone should learn far more than they do when learning to drive. One thing I pride myself on is my driving ability. The only way I got it was through experience, years of pushing myself and my cars. That's what you have to do to truely know your cars and yourself.

[PearlBlueSoul]

Originally posted by Drift For Food
Yep, car control and understanding is key. I agree that everyone should learn far more than they do when learning to drive. One thing I pride myself on is my driving ability. The only way I got it was through experience, years of pushing myself and my cars. That's what you have to do to truely know your cars and yourself.

I wish we could separate the noobs from the average. Even in other countries a mechanical exam is required to get your license so you can properly identify problems with the car. Out here, if you can drive stoned and recognize words on a sign *no merit to what they say however* you're awarded with the freedom to do serious damage. yay!

[/rant] we as a country don't take driving very seriously. 's why you'll never see an autobahn in the US, and why Nascar will remain the motorsport of choice in the states. don't ask me why. I'm sure there are those here who like it but I need more than left turns to make it interesting.

[Chas]

Thats so sad.

[Tsunami]

Yeah in every other part of the world they actually have to PROVE you can drive before getting a license. Not here, we give licenses to anybody that turns 16. I mean nowadays you can't protect yourself because people run up within a foot of you at 85mph in their SUV's, Minivans, and Grand Ams, then they swerve into the other lane and cut you off. Not to mention the people that take 15 miles to pass people. Now I'm not perfect but these people are driving like race car drivers and they're not even in performance cars with capable brakes or suspension, they just have the car cause it's big and looks nice. And it seems like the younger they are (no offense to any teenagers who may read this) the less they care and pay attention. Like I said I'm not perfect and I've had my share of brain freezes out there, but heck sometimes it's just amazing the amount of idiots out there you have to share the road with.

[prodigy]

I agree. I shouldn't of even passed drivers training or passed my road test but I did. Man, have I paid for it with a stupid wreck or two, but I am kind of glad that I got into the wrecks that I did because I learned so much from them. I have never hit anyone and have avoided a lot of accidents by having the driving skills that I have, which I learned by pushing the boundaries of addhesion, yet that doesn't mean that someone isn't going to go correaning into me. The one thing that I hate is when people say that I can't drive because of my bad driving record and my accidents. I just kind of laugh because one day they will be in a situation where they won't have the driving skills to get out of.

[soarer,chaser]

Yeah there are a lot of bad drivers out there. I agree that there needs to be (cheap if not free) driving courses that teach basic brake, ebrake, under and oversteering characteristics of a car. It will help build more confident/smart drivers.

[i]

[/rant] we as a country don't take driving very seriously. 's why you'll never see an autobahn in the US, and why Nascar will remain the motorsport of choice in the states. don't ask me why. I'm sure there are those here who like it but I need more than left turns to make it interesting. [/B]

I don't know why people like Nascar so much, it's so boring! I remember when I was younger i'd go over to my friends house and his grandfather would be asleep on the couch with the t.v. on, and guess what was on...Nascar.

[NET MR2 AW11]

I don't know why people like Nascar so much, it's so boring! I remember when I was younger i'd go over to my friends house and his grandfather would be asleep on the couch with the t.v. on, and guess what was on...Nascar. [/B]

lol...well its the truth, it is boring, but thats why ur at drifting.com
-_^