Mannykillers/ AAPARKAH Street/time Attack/Drift Build (heavy Pics) #Thisisthewolf
07-28-15, 02:50 PM
#2352
Mannykiller's Street/Time Attack/Drift Build (Heavy Pics) Project: Le'Wolfe
Haha seen there was a new post and got ready to sit down and read about your Seattle adventures lol. Looks like you and the crew really earned your keep in the weekend
07-30-15, 02:18 PM
#2354
Update: “Formula Drift Seattle”
If you’ve got time… Look up This band on Youtube and check out this album… Listen to it while you read through the post below. Just about sums up the feeling of the trip. I wish I could share every single moment of this experience with you guys!! Feels like a dream… So plug in turn it up and read through!!
Easy Access:
Let me start off by saying, Seattle is probably one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been. Granted it IS summer and the weather was damn near perfect… (Even with the rain). After my 4th place Finish at Just Drifts Top Drift a few days before I was a little bummed but pumped up to Meet up with Mike and the Rad Bull Team up at Evergreen Speedway for Formula Drift Seattle!
I got to Burbank Nice and early on Wednesday for my flight. Was able to grab some coffee and Talk to a complete stranger…..this lady who was a physical therapist .. talking about life in general. It was pretty cool to be able to tell our stories of how we’ve ended up where we are currently. She was in LA on Business.. and I was leaving LA…….for Business I guess haha.
I came across “Blue Sky Black Death – Noir” on Pandora… but liked a couple of their songs so decided to download the album. Glad I did. I listened to it the entire week and got a couple buddies hooked on it as well. Although I love the road, it was nice to fly out this time around. I enjoy flying, unless you get stuck next to someone who hogs space and staaaanks…or someone who wants to constantly talk to you even though you’re obviously just trying to chill out or sleep haha. Luckily, that wasn’t the case. We landed in Seattle and Mike and the team were already circling around the terminal in the rental van waiting for Warren and I to arrive. It’s always good to see the team. Warren arrived an hour or so after myself, so we spent the majority of the evening cruising through Seattle traffic, trying to get out of the city and to our Hotel. But not before we had a quick grind at 5 guys to down some burgers and the most massive paper bag full of fries you’ve ever seen.
The next morning we arrived at Evergreen Speedway and had everything un-loaded and set up before most of the other teams had even gotten to the track. Hard work and preparation was something I’ve always been proud of. It Always pays off, and preparation… well both hard work and preparation would show their immediate value come race day. It was great to see Rad Bull again. It’s really the entire reason I’m here. This 4 rotor twin turbo’d Mazda….. Maintenance wise….I think you guys have an idea of how much work rotaries are in general… but when I say it takes twice as much for this car.. I really don’t think any NON-Rotary people understand what that really means. Before the car goes out, we double check everything again. Warren (Pulse Performance) makes small alterations in the map to make the short wheel based Bullet a bit more manageable for Mike to handle in case of rain or cold track conditions. Warren and myself are on All suspension components, fuel, tires, Radiator sprayer, body damage up-keep, keeping the car clean, and preventative maint as well as spark plugs, Oil catch, keeping the cabin clean, windows clean, hard top on or off (Rain or no rain) keeping mikes gear sorted, ….there’s soo much to deal with. All the while Mickey is no where to be seen in the pits…. But that’s because he’s “Spotting” up in the grand stands “Spotting” everything. See while were down in the pit with the car, Mickeys job is to scout out Every Single driver, initiation technique, overall speed, angle, line… and keep note of it so that if there is a possible match up in competition battle.. Mike knows how to drive against them. This takes a TON of time and diligence. Mickey is also keeping track of dry and wet spots on the track…because as you can imagine… Initiating into a Concrete Bank at over 100 mph could prove disastrous if the bank is wet… whereas he may be able to speed it up a bit if it’s dry and up to temp. And I love every bit of it. Scott (Crew Chief) is constantly making adjustments to dampening for the MX to get the most grip we can in constantly changing conditions… tire pressure, readying rain tires (Scrubbed sets) just in case, as well as keeping a detailed list of things we can improve on. With the car and our duties etc. This takes an open mind….and there is no room for ego here. If a team member tells you something, just shut your mouth, say ok, and do it. There is no time for anything else, and the ultimate goal is to have a car that is ready for any change in condition, that will perform better than the rest… So that Mike can solely concentrate on driving.
Evergreen Speedway… Crazy Fast initiation and Mike was saying initiation was only the beginning of the acceleration! He’d be at the top of 5th around the Bank!!
We got out on Practice day and our first practice session was in the dry…. But we had warnings of rain. Scott gave us our duties and we got started right away. The first practice run went great… Mike was only getting a lap Per set of tires so tire changes were necessary between every run. This limits the amount of practice runs per run and with a large field of car… its easily 35-40 min per Practice run because Evergreen is running both Formula Drift pro 1 and Pro 2 series cars.. so a large field means limited amounts of track time and prep for both fields.
After our first practice run we get back on track and what do you know…. The Beautiful Seattle sky’s fill with clouds and we get a nice solid down pour. Good think Mike has heaps of experience in the rain from driving in NZ. But the car still wasn’t set up for rain at this point….and to make use of the time and conditions.. Mike decided to stay in line and run the track on the current set up. He ran the lead up to the bank conservatively but there were still patches of grip….which you could see because the car would lurch forward then slide with all 4 wheels and then grip up again.. But mike managed to drift the entire bank and into the infield..which should’ve been renamed the Ice flat… But he got through it and decided to stick with the current scrubbed set of tires for the third practice run. But he also wanted to go watch from the grand stands and talk to Mickey to see where he could improve his line. He stopped practice in the car and walked up to the grandstands for a good solid 45 min before returning back to the pits to get in another practice run. The third practice run went solid as… and Mike threw down a solid qualifying run in the tricky conditions. He improved EXACTLY where Mickey had told him to and looked by far the most solid in terms of line and consistency in the field. And that’s a lot to say… and means even more. Because when you think about it.. it takes so much to have someone tell you exactly where you should improve and then translate that through a 1200 WHP Bullet on a wet and dry…..VERY inconsistent surface. Mike did it perfectly. After that run Mike decided to call it for the day, because sometimes it’s much better to stop when all is good rather than go again and again and again. Save the car and the feeling for qualifying day. This gave us a ton of time to go over the car again and to complete our tasks to get ready for practice and qualifying the next day. While we were doing this, Warren noticed that one of the WG vac lines was slit, so we cut it off the damaged section and made note to keep an eye out for it. We did all of our tasks and were able to watch Pro 2 Qualifying which a few of our buddies were competing in. Dan Burkett was off a massive crash into the wall in Orlando, Ryan Literall (Adaptronic Powered RB26 EFR8374) was looking to qualify again and Alex Heilbrunn was looking to podium again after his first place Qualifying and first place podium in Orlando. It’s always great to get to watch actual runs.. and you’d be surprised how little you actually get to see due to our tasks before and after each run. But again.. it’s all worth it. We mustve watched 10 or so cars hit the wall in the rain. It was crazy to watch….and I got a bit sick to my stomach seeing some of these machines making contact. The track was very tricky, and for some of the pro 2 drivers…without high speed experience in the rain.. it was really just a toss up to who had the experience and who would get it… REAL fast.
My Buddy Dan did well and stayed off the wall for the majority of practice.. but then ended up hitting it and bending some rear suspension components. My Stomach dropped because he had just come off a similar accident. Luckily the damage wasn’t too bad and it was easily repaired. He came back out for qualifying on his first run like a champ though and ran the Bank a bit conservative but still solid… and then at the last corner miss shifted and straightened out giving him a zero. SO BUMMED! His second run started well and then the ever changing track conditions got him near the infield entry and he ended up straightening up to give him a second zero. And although it seems as failure… really this is just the steps that need to be taken in order to compete at this level. If he didn’t have the experience then….. he sure as hell does now. Which makes him that much better of a driver. Ryan qualified again and Alex got the number 1 Qualifying position for the second time in his LS V8 Supercharged M3.
Sorry if I get the days mixed up between qualifying pro 1 and pro 2.. so much happens sometimes it’s a bit hard to keep track of specifics.
But anyways.. Ryan made it through top 32 to top 16 and lost his top 8 battle. Alex went on to the final battle where he made contact with the other driver but with only a 5 min time-out to fix the damaged done by backing into the wall… Team Inca Madness Racing was unable to fix the damage done and by default Alex lost his final battle… which put him in second place. Geese he’s good!
The next day we were again…. First out to the pits to prep Rad Bull for Practice right before qualifying. So we get out to practice and Mike gets a few runs in with a nice dry track and again his waste gate line cracks and falls off. Back to the pits. While fixing the Hose.. I noticed another gate line cracking. Screw it… we need to replace them all. Until we can get ahold of some AN line to properly make the lines we rushed to go get some more silicon line for the temp fix. Sometimes despite what we all want, due to squeezing time constraints and transport across the world things aren’t always done exactly the way we want them. So we ended up replacing the lines for the event until after when we could do it properly. This way we could get mike back out on track to qualify. With inconsistent track conditions His first qualifying run got him 5th place overall.. but we knew since he was one of the first runners… we’d be pushed back significantly when the rest of the field ran through the first round. Mike knew he could do much better on his second run. And then the rain comes again…. I took a deep breath. Mike ripped off the line and initiated damn near full speed… hugging the wall all the way through..till ¾’s of the bank he got just a little too close and made contact….
I’m watching….and I held my breath because all I could see was the initial touch.. then the front end come around towards the wall… and then he disappeared behind some trailers that were blocking my view from the grid. He radios and says the car feels straight and heads straight back to the pit. He apologized for making contact but none of us would have it any other way. We all wanted him to better his score and the only way to do it was going hard. Had he pulled it off… he def would’ve landed top 10 again. We got him back to the pit and wheel number 7 (for the season) was toast. But that’s why you have awesome sponsors like Roti-form for wheels etc.., because they fix them in between rounds. No other damage was done to the car…we just had to sit and wait to see where our first qualifying run landed us.. and hopefully we made the show. The ever changing and inconsistent track conditions were proving to be much tougher than the field would’ve guessed and there were a TON of zero’s due to spins coming into and out of the infield and more than anyone would want due to accidents concerning the wall. Overall we ended up in 27th Place…. Not where we wanted to and definitely not a solid representation of how good a driver Mike is..but it’d do for us. Now that I think about it. After qualifying, it was pro 2’s Competition. That’s when they ran. We were done for the day but had a big day ahead. Completed our tasks and enjoyed the pro 2 event!
TQ Duty
Saturday Morning was Game time…. We would have practice for a couple hours then go straight into Battle. Our first Battle would be……once again vs Forrest ***** 2JZ Powered Get Nuts S15. But first We wanted to get some practice in on the 100% Dry Course. A few Practice laps in… Mike enters the infield and all of the sudden He stops drift.. “Got no go guys,…..car won’t go into gear.” My Heart sinks, but I know Whatever it is…. We’re going to do our best to fix it. This happens approximately an hour and 5 min before our first battle with Forrest ****. … Great….The car has to be towed back to the Nitto Rig (Our Pit). Mike gets there and immediately I’m on the jack.. as the rest of the team pushes the car back into the pit space… Car’s up in no time and Everyone is full tilt trying to pin point the cause of the issue. Cars in gear… Wheels don’t turn… Drive shaft is good. Axles are good… Crap.. it’s the Diff. Scott has a second look… he’s under the car in no time.. “Turn it!” he calls.. nothing… “input Shaft Warren and Scott both Nod.” Warren Says “it’s got to come out. Immediately everyone chooses a task and Gets to work. I remove both Axle Hubs from the winters quick change which consist of 6 Long studs for each side, Warren is on the Drive-shaft and Winters quick change subframe mounts, And Scott has already got the rear cover off the Winters… And everytime we need a tool, or oil pan or a towel, or an extra set of hands Mickey was right there to hand us what we needed. This was where we shined. We got the Diff out in no time, I tapped out the input shaft and it fell out… no 1/4th of it fell out. The other ¾’s of it was still in the Diff!!! Check it out:
This is what a Force Fed Pulse Performance Built 4 Rotor is capable of..…Torque Anyone?
To Be Continued... Stay Tuned for Part 2 of Formula Drift Seattle!!!
If you’ve got time… Look up This band on Youtube and check out this album… Listen to it while you read through the post below. Just about sums up the feeling of the trip. I wish I could share every single moment of this experience with you guys!! Feels like a dream… So plug in turn it up and read through!!
Easy Access:
I got to Burbank Nice and early on Wednesday for my flight. Was able to grab some coffee and Talk to a complete stranger…..this lady who was a physical therapist .. talking about life in general. It was pretty cool to be able to tell our stories of how we’ve ended up where we are currently. She was in LA on Business.. and I was leaving LA…….for Business I guess haha.
I came across “Blue Sky Black Death – Noir” on Pandora… but liked a couple of their songs so decided to download the album. Glad I did. I listened to it the entire week and got a couple buddies hooked on it as well. Although I love the road, it was nice to fly out this time around. I enjoy flying, unless you get stuck next to someone who hogs space and staaaanks…or someone who wants to constantly talk to you even though you’re obviously just trying to chill out or sleep haha. Luckily, that wasn’t the case. We landed in Seattle and Mike and the team were already circling around the terminal in the rental van waiting for Warren and I to arrive. It’s always good to see the team. Warren arrived an hour or so after myself, so we spent the majority of the evening cruising through Seattle traffic, trying to get out of the city and to our Hotel. But not before we had a quick grind at 5 guys to down some burgers and the most massive paper bag full of fries you’ve ever seen.
The next morning we arrived at Evergreen Speedway and had everything un-loaded and set up before most of the other teams had even gotten to the track. Hard work and preparation was something I’ve always been proud of. It Always pays off, and preparation… well both hard work and preparation would show their immediate value come race day. It was great to see Rad Bull again. It’s really the entire reason I’m here. This 4 rotor twin turbo’d Mazda….. Maintenance wise….I think you guys have an idea of how much work rotaries are in general… but when I say it takes twice as much for this car.. I really don’t think any NON-Rotary people understand what that really means. Before the car goes out, we double check everything again. Warren (Pulse Performance) makes small alterations in the map to make the short wheel based Bullet a bit more manageable for Mike to handle in case of rain or cold track conditions. Warren and myself are on All suspension components, fuel, tires, Radiator sprayer, body damage up-keep, keeping the car clean, and preventative maint as well as spark plugs, Oil catch, keeping the cabin clean, windows clean, hard top on or off (Rain or no rain) keeping mikes gear sorted, ….there’s soo much to deal with. All the while Mickey is no where to be seen in the pits…. But that’s because he’s “Spotting” up in the grand stands “Spotting” everything. See while were down in the pit with the car, Mickeys job is to scout out Every Single driver, initiation technique, overall speed, angle, line… and keep note of it so that if there is a possible match up in competition battle.. Mike knows how to drive against them. This takes a TON of time and diligence. Mickey is also keeping track of dry and wet spots on the track…because as you can imagine… Initiating into a Concrete Bank at over 100 mph could prove disastrous if the bank is wet… whereas he may be able to speed it up a bit if it’s dry and up to temp. And I love every bit of it. Scott (Crew Chief) is constantly making adjustments to dampening for the MX to get the most grip we can in constantly changing conditions… tire pressure, readying rain tires (Scrubbed sets) just in case, as well as keeping a detailed list of things we can improve on. With the car and our duties etc. This takes an open mind….and there is no room for ego here. If a team member tells you something, just shut your mouth, say ok, and do it. There is no time for anything else, and the ultimate goal is to have a car that is ready for any change in condition, that will perform better than the rest… So that Mike can solely concentrate on driving.
Evergreen Speedway… Crazy Fast initiation and Mike was saying initiation was only the beginning of the acceleration! He’d be at the top of 5th around the Bank!!
We got out on Practice day and our first practice session was in the dry…. But we had warnings of rain. Scott gave us our duties and we got started right away. The first practice run went great… Mike was only getting a lap Per set of tires so tire changes were necessary between every run. This limits the amount of practice runs per run and with a large field of car… its easily 35-40 min per Practice run because Evergreen is running both Formula Drift pro 1 and Pro 2 series cars.. so a large field means limited amounts of track time and prep for both fields.
After our first practice run we get back on track and what do you know…. The Beautiful Seattle sky’s fill with clouds and we get a nice solid down pour. Good think Mike has heaps of experience in the rain from driving in NZ. But the car still wasn’t set up for rain at this point….and to make use of the time and conditions.. Mike decided to stay in line and run the track on the current set up. He ran the lead up to the bank conservatively but there were still patches of grip….which you could see because the car would lurch forward then slide with all 4 wheels and then grip up again.. But mike managed to drift the entire bank and into the infield..which should’ve been renamed the Ice flat… But he got through it and decided to stick with the current scrubbed set of tires for the third practice run. But he also wanted to go watch from the grand stands and talk to Mickey to see where he could improve his line. He stopped practice in the car and walked up to the grandstands for a good solid 45 min before returning back to the pits to get in another practice run. The third practice run went solid as… and Mike threw down a solid qualifying run in the tricky conditions. He improved EXACTLY where Mickey had told him to and looked by far the most solid in terms of line and consistency in the field. And that’s a lot to say… and means even more. Because when you think about it.. it takes so much to have someone tell you exactly where you should improve and then translate that through a 1200 WHP Bullet on a wet and dry…..VERY inconsistent surface. Mike did it perfectly. After that run Mike decided to call it for the day, because sometimes it’s much better to stop when all is good rather than go again and again and again. Save the car and the feeling for qualifying day. This gave us a ton of time to go over the car again and to complete our tasks to get ready for practice and qualifying the next day. While we were doing this, Warren noticed that one of the WG vac lines was slit, so we cut it off the damaged section and made note to keep an eye out for it. We did all of our tasks and were able to watch Pro 2 Qualifying which a few of our buddies were competing in. Dan Burkett was off a massive crash into the wall in Orlando, Ryan Literall (Adaptronic Powered RB26 EFR8374) was looking to qualify again and Alex Heilbrunn was looking to podium again after his first place Qualifying and first place podium in Orlando. It’s always great to get to watch actual runs.. and you’d be surprised how little you actually get to see due to our tasks before and after each run. But again.. it’s all worth it. We mustve watched 10 or so cars hit the wall in the rain. It was crazy to watch….and I got a bit sick to my stomach seeing some of these machines making contact. The track was very tricky, and for some of the pro 2 drivers…without high speed experience in the rain.. it was really just a toss up to who had the experience and who would get it… REAL fast. My Buddy Dan did well and stayed off the wall for the majority of practice.. but then ended up hitting it and bending some rear suspension components. My Stomach dropped because he had just come off a similar accident. Luckily the damage wasn’t too bad and it was easily repaired. He came back out for qualifying on his first run like a champ though and ran the Bank a bit conservative but still solid… and then at the last corner miss shifted and straightened out giving him a zero. SO BUMMED! His second run started well and then the ever changing track conditions got him near the infield entry and he ended up straightening up to give him a second zero. And although it seems as failure… really this is just the steps that need to be taken in order to compete at this level. If he didn’t have the experience then….. he sure as hell does now. Which makes him that much better of a driver. Ryan qualified again and Alex got the number 1 Qualifying position for the second time in his LS V8 Supercharged M3.
Sorry if I get the days mixed up between qualifying pro 1 and pro 2.. so much happens sometimes it’s a bit hard to keep track of specifics.
But anyways.. Ryan made it through top 32 to top 16 and lost his top 8 battle. Alex went on to the final battle where he made contact with the other driver but with only a 5 min time-out to fix the damaged done by backing into the wall… Team Inca Madness Racing was unable to fix the damage done and by default Alex lost his final battle… which put him in second place. Geese he’s good!
The next day we were again…. First out to the pits to prep Rad Bull for Practice right before qualifying. So we get out to practice and Mike gets a few runs in with a nice dry track and again his waste gate line cracks and falls off. Back to the pits. While fixing the Hose.. I noticed another gate line cracking. Screw it… we need to replace them all. Until we can get ahold of some AN line to properly make the lines we rushed to go get some more silicon line for the temp fix. Sometimes despite what we all want, due to squeezing time constraints and transport across the world things aren’t always done exactly the way we want them. So we ended up replacing the lines for the event until after when we could do it properly. This way we could get mike back out on track to qualify. With inconsistent track conditions His first qualifying run got him 5th place overall.. but we knew since he was one of the first runners… we’d be pushed back significantly when the rest of the field ran through the first round. Mike knew he could do much better on his second run. And then the rain comes again…. I took a deep breath. Mike ripped off the line and initiated damn near full speed… hugging the wall all the way through..till ¾’s of the bank he got just a little too close and made contact….
I’m watching….and I held my breath because all I could see was the initial touch.. then the front end come around towards the wall… and then he disappeared behind some trailers that were blocking my view from the grid. He radios and says the car feels straight and heads straight back to the pit. He apologized for making contact but none of us would have it any other way. We all wanted him to better his score and the only way to do it was going hard. Had he pulled it off… he def would’ve landed top 10 again. We got him back to the pit and wheel number 7 (for the season) was toast. But that’s why you have awesome sponsors like Roti-form for wheels etc.., because they fix them in between rounds. No other damage was done to the car…we just had to sit and wait to see where our first qualifying run landed us.. and hopefully we made the show. The ever changing and inconsistent track conditions were proving to be much tougher than the field would’ve guessed and there were a TON of zero’s due to spins coming into and out of the infield and more than anyone would want due to accidents concerning the wall. Overall we ended up in 27th Place…. Not where we wanted to and definitely not a solid representation of how good a driver Mike is..but it’d do for us. Now that I think about it. After qualifying, it was pro 2’s Competition. That’s when they ran. We were done for the day but had a big day ahead. Completed our tasks and enjoyed the pro 2 event!
TQ Duty
Saturday Morning was Game time…. We would have practice for a couple hours then go straight into Battle. Our first Battle would be……once again vs Forrest ***** 2JZ Powered Get Nuts S15. But first We wanted to get some practice in on the 100% Dry Course. A few Practice laps in… Mike enters the infield and all of the sudden He stops drift.. “Got no go guys,…..car won’t go into gear.” My Heart sinks, but I know Whatever it is…. We’re going to do our best to fix it. This happens approximately an hour and 5 min before our first battle with Forrest ****. … Great….The car has to be towed back to the Nitto Rig (Our Pit). Mike gets there and immediately I’m on the jack.. as the rest of the team pushes the car back into the pit space… Car’s up in no time and Everyone is full tilt trying to pin point the cause of the issue. Cars in gear… Wheels don’t turn… Drive shaft is good. Axles are good… Crap.. it’s the Diff. Scott has a second look… he’s under the car in no time.. “Turn it!” he calls.. nothing… “input Shaft Warren and Scott both Nod.” Warren Says “it’s got to come out. Immediately everyone chooses a task and Gets to work. I remove both Axle Hubs from the winters quick change which consist of 6 Long studs for each side, Warren is on the Drive-shaft and Winters quick change subframe mounts, And Scott has already got the rear cover off the Winters… And everytime we need a tool, or oil pan or a towel, or an extra set of hands Mickey was right there to hand us what we needed. This was where we shined. We got the Diff out in no time, I tapped out the input shaft and it fell out… no 1/4th of it fell out. The other ¾’s of it was still in the Diff!!! Check it out:
This is what a Force Fed Pulse Performance Built 4 Rotor is capable of..…Torque Anyone?
To Be Continued... Stay Tuned for Part 2 of Formula Drift Seattle!!!
07-30-15, 03:15 PM
#2355
Mannykiller's Street/Time Attack/Drift Build (Heavy Pics) Project: Le'Wolfe
awesome write up so far. you really have the ability to make it seem as if we are there. Reading the last bit makes it feel frantic as if doing the diff change myself lol. keep it up. look forward to part 2.
08-07-15, 03:44 PM
#2356
Part 2: “Formula Drift Seattle”
The saga continues! …….After the Input shaft was knocked out my stomach dropped.. I was so busy honed in on the task at hand in getting the diff out but had nearly forgotten that someone had yelled that we needed a replacement shaft. Where the hell were we going to find one?, I started to get even more sick when someone yelled “30 MIN!!”…talk about stress!! But immediately my nerves were calmed as Scott had already gotten a hold of Rick at Race Tech Services (Who is Crew Chief For Alex so Luckily Pro 2 was running the event as well). In about 2 min I hear someone Huffing and puffing and more importantly.. holding a new Winters quick change replacement input shaft… Phewww.. Big sigh of relief. When things get hectic.....especially when you’re racing against time and your task takes concentration.. you forget that there are other people working just as hard as you are, and that you don’t HAVE to handle everything. The crew chief dictates jobs…. You do the task that is given to you and he’ll worry about it all coming together. It takes trust…but sometimes, because I’m so used to doing things on my own..I catch myself worrying about things that Scott has already got under control. It’s great to have a solid crew chief and someone that doesn’t drop the ball. It let’s us concentrate fully on the tasks given to us and not so much about the logistics of it all. Of course we have been given logistical duties at times…but not this time. Anyways! We get the input shaft and started pressing the bearing in…but at this point we’ve got 20 min left till our first battle!!! Are you kidding me? The car is un-driveable at this point. And in my mind… if it’s not 100%...then it’s Broken. That won’t do for myself OR ANYONE on our team. The bearing gets slightly pushed in but there are too many people helping and it starts going in crooked.. we all look at each other like “OK Guys” I’m the first to grab it, knock out the bearing from the backside and re-start it. I hand the diff back off to Warren and Scott. I yell “Wheres the Mallet!!” Mick hands it to Scott, …Scott taps it in nice, even and smooth. I look up and there’s a Formula Drift Official hovering around us…. Which really he was just there to relay the news if we were unable to get to the grid in time.. But to me… he was a nightmare. To me he signified Failure. The diff was back together. We have 15 min to get this diff back in the MX and on grid. I feel Calm, because I know I have the best team-mates working with me. We get the Diff lifted back into the rear Sub frame and secure it with a couple Through Bolts, then Scott yells “Aaron Axles!!” I immediately think of how long it took me to get them off.. and then shake my head and know I can do it much faster. Grab the correct tools which I put in one spot when I took them off and started immediately securing the 12 Allen keys…..6 per side, then tq’d to spec. I busted it out in a little under 5 min…which may seem like no problem…but realistically…with 3 Grown Men under the rear end of the MX in a High stress environment….with Tools laying everywhere, and handing tools to my left, to my right… helping support the diff to align this, handing that tool over there, shielding my neck so diff fluid doesn’t pour down my chest while scott pumps the fluid into the case, ok screw it….i’ll clean up later.. Keeping track of the hardware needed to seal the diff, telling scott to stop pumping because he cannot see the fill level, all the while Warren is wrestling with the drive shaft and finishing up the Diff/Sub-frame bolts… Scott is done filling, “OK” put the plug back in, Wait where’s the ratchet? Warren hands it to me, “Micki you got a towel” magically Appears in my hand, “Who’s got the Small Tq wrench?!” Warren: “I do, but I already Tq’d your side, get the other side! Me: “Im on it,” Phhewwww man….. I’m telling you guys.. You gotta love this ****. It’s what we all dream of as kids… What we think of as being “the coolest thing.” Knocked out the other side and Hit the giant Axle nuts with the Impact and before you knew it we had the car at 110% with 3 MIN to spare. I thought to myself….”Just enough time to go wash the axle grease from the CV’s off before I escort mike to the grid. #PUMPED. Wash half the grease off before I’m in a urgent jog in front of Mike to the grid. YES!!!! We Handled that like true Professionals! On the jog over.. you start thinking to yourself… did this person Tq that, or double check this? But Honestly…I’ve never been more confident in the work done. And that’s because I’ve learned from Warren to always double check whatever is in front of you. EVEN if a team member had just finished it. Putting your hand on it or a spanner wrench on it for no other reason than a piece of mind won’t ever hurt anything. It’ll make you catch that “What if” or prevent a failure. So I do it with almost everything. And If I catch someone doing it, you throw your ego in the trash and let them, because this is what a team is truly about. Back to racing…. Were up, Forrest ****, 2JZ Powered S15.
This would be a solid battle since the last time we met with Forrest we went “One More Time” in a smoke filled Atlanta Course.
Mike put a bit of heat into the tires and lined up Vs Forrest
The first Battle was solid, but Mike had a slight bobble on the bank following Forrest. He needed to put down a solid Lead run if he wanted even the slightest chance of moving on.
They took off and it looked as if Mike accelerating just a little quicker into the initiation…. But there was quick puff of e-brake…. He simply powered into it… Forrest on the other hand was right on his tail.. but he E-brake initiated which means letting off throttle and giving up potential proximity if the lead driver doesn’t use E-brake. Then the I sat and watched Mike mash the throttle through the floor-boards all the way around the bank!! I got chills as he pulled 4 cars…5 cars…. Pfffttt….7 Cars on **** by the time he entered the infield. And he wasn’t holding shallow angle either.. He was damn near ¾’s full lock! He finished the infield solid and the crowd was going crazy! There’s no way anyone could keep up with mike on the bank.. EVEN if their cars were fast enough. He would simply drive faster and mentally move himself up one level to out drive them. Both cars lined up at the Judgment sector and it was Official… ONE MORE TIME! WOOO! We pulled that one out for sure! ……But I was already in a full sprint back to the pit. Mike needs fuel, tires, and a quick once over in a little less than 5 min. By the time he got to the pit we had both 24Volt Snap-on cordless impacts set, the torque wrench at the ready and Warren was on the jack already pumping the car up. This is where Everyone needs to know their job. I bolt around the car and remove the gas cap, and by the time I’m on my knees pulling the drivers side Wheel off, Warren has the fill nozzle already in the MX filling her full of Race Gas. The Star Pattern rules my world here… Star pattern off with the lugs pull the wheel off in one motion.. Scott is always on point with our tires, I simply reach to my left and there’s a new wheel/tire set up waiting for me. Toss the wheel on, Star Pattern on with the Impact….but not too hard, otherwise these Snap on Cordless Impacts would strip out the studs.. Warren Yells “DOWN” Car goes down. I look up to make sure the gas lid was on… Yeap… Teammate was on it quicker than I. Me: F-Yea!!! Star Pattern Lugs, 1-4-2-5-3 BAM DONE! Run to the passenger side (our Drivers side since the MX is RHD) TQ 1-4-2-5-3 BAM DONE. Look up and Mikes off to the Grid. It may not mean anything to anyone else, but we beat the other team out every single time. Mike’s waiting at the grid ready for this First OMT Battle. Forrest would follow this time as Mike Lead the number one run… Both Drivers threw down solid runs…. Judgment ? OMT!!! I’m on the sprint again back to the pit as I escort Mike to the grid line just in case he or the team needs me to do anything in between battles etc. It’s good to give the driver a bit of a heads up on Tire wear…. So when he lines up on his lead run OR follow… he knows how much he can push the car in terms of grip and how much tire he’ll have left for the battle. The “Tire War” Hankook – Forrest RS3 Vs Nitto – Whiddett NTO5. PIT time.. Same Exact Motions as our first… Bam Finished.. But this time we pulled it faster.. so I double checked the front lugs… They were nice and Tight but it’s good to double check the small things every once in a while! We still beat the other team out, and they were running another Battle while we waited on grid. This would be the Second OMT Vs ****… and you could hear Evergreen Speedways Grandstands going nuts from afar! Even over the Rip of the twin turbo 4-rotor as Mike Put some heat into the Nt05’s! Mike would Lead this time around… And this is when to me at least… it seemed as if time stopped. His Lead up to the initiation seemed like it was done in slow motion…but again “No E-Brake” Powering into the bank… Forrest was ready..but still used e-brake and my body immediately tensed up with Goosebumps as I watched Mike and the MX Pull Car Lengths AGAIN on the Get Nuts S15. I could see Mike all the way around the bank then he disappears going into the infield so I simply start walking back in listen for our spotter to keep us informed… Theres contact.. I cringe…. But Mickey keeps us informed… Mike keeps composure… finishes his run like a champ. All we have to do is Pull off a solid follow run and we’re through to the next round! Mickey informs us the door is about to fall off…. “We need Race Tape” Warren is on the sprint to the pits… I start From the pits back to meet Warren!...... He Clayton Kershaw’s the tape from a good 30 Yards to me and I Yasiel Puig it and am back to Mike and the MX as he’s busting a U-turn to line up again… The Officials can deem it an Automatic “5-Min” if we can’t immediately continue.. I take one look at the door and see that for some reason there is ZERO damage and the door simply was nudged up and over.. off the quick hinges. Warren Built these Carbon doors Excellent.. what a good solid design!!! Warren gets to the MX as I was lifting the door back into place… we both put the door back on in less than 15 seconds… and Mike is off to the Line again. I look at Warren…. He looks at me… HIGH FIVE. (It’s the little Battles that mean the most). We Watch Both Cars Leave The Line with what looks like the Entire Grand Stand ON THEIR FEET!!! Both Cars Rip around the bank and Mike Does good in keeping Close Proximity to Forrest throughout the Entire Track…. Ive got Goosebumps… And I hear Mike Give a little “Hoot” over the head-set to ensure us he had a solid run. Judgement time.. “Mike Whiddett Moves ON.” YES!!!!
Up next…Vaughn Gitten JR and the V8 Powered Monster Energy Ford Mustang!!
sorry I have to cut short Part 2!!! Got a lot going on today! But I'll finish the Event with the next post!! And sorry for lack of pics I had a Video but my phone messed up and now for some reason the video isn't even visible.
Stay tuned!!!
I'll Finish Formula Drift Seattle in the next Post!!
The saga continues! …….After the Input shaft was knocked out my stomach dropped.. I was so busy honed in on the task at hand in getting the diff out but had nearly forgotten that someone had yelled that we needed a replacement shaft. Where the hell were we going to find one?, I started to get even more sick when someone yelled “30 MIN!!”…talk about stress!! But immediately my nerves were calmed as Scott had already gotten a hold of Rick at Race Tech Services (Who is Crew Chief For Alex so Luckily Pro 2 was running the event as well). In about 2 min I hear someone Huffing and puffing and more importantly.. holding a new Winters quick change replacement input shaft… Phewww.. Big sigh of relief. When things get hectic.....especially when you’re racing against time and your task takes concentration.. you forget that there are other people working just as hard as you are, and that you don’t HAVE to handle everything. The crew chief dictates jobs…. You do the task that is given to you and he’ll worry about it all coming together. It takes trust…but sometimes, because I’m so used to doing things on my own..I catch myself worrying about things that Scott has already got under control. It’s great to have a solid crew chief and someone that doesn’t drop the ball. It let’s us concentrate fully on the tasks given to us and not so much about the logistics of it all. Of course we have been given logistical duties at times…but not this time. Anyways! We get the input shaft and started pressing the bearing in…but at this point we’ve got 20 min left till our first battle!!! Are you kidding me? The car is un-driveable at this point. And in my mind… if it’s not 100%...then it’s Broken. That won’t do for myself OR ANYONE on our team. The bearing gets slightly pushed in but there are too many people helping and it starts going in crooked.. we all look at each other like “OK Guys” I’m the first to grab it, knock out the bearing from the backside and re-start it. I hand the diff back off to Warren and Scott. I yell “Wheres the Mallet!!” Mick hands it to Scott, …Scott taps it in nice, even and smooth. I look up and there’s a Formula Drift Official hovering around us…. Which really he was just there to relay the news if we were unable to get to the grid in time.. But to me… he was a nightmare. To me he signified Failure. The diff was back together. We have 15 min to get this diff back in the MX and on grid. I feel Calm, because I know I have the best team-mates working with me. We get the Diff lifted back into the rear Sub frame and secure it with a couple Through Bolts, then Scott yells “Aaron Axles!!” I immediately think of how long it took me to get them off.. and then shake my head and know I can do it much faster. Grab the correct tools which I put in one spot when I took them off and started immediately securing the 12 Allen keys…..6 per side, then tq’d to spec. I busted it out in a little under 5 min…which may seem like no problem…but realistically…with 3 Grown Men under the rear end of the MX in a High stress environment….with Tools laying everywhere, and handing tools to my left, to my right… helping support the diff to align this, handing that tool over there, shielding my neck so diff fluid doesn’t pour down my chest while scott pumps the fluid into the case, ok screw it….i’ll clean up later.. Keeping track of the hardware needed to seal the diff, telling scott to stop pumping because he cannot see the fill level, all the while Warren is wrestling with the drive shaft and finishing up the Diff/Sub-frame bolts… Scott is done filling, “OK” put the plug back in, Wait where’s the ratchet? Warren hands it to me, “Micki you got a towel” magically Appears in my hand, “Who’s got the Small Tq wrench?!” Warren: “I do, but I already Tq’d your side, get the other side! Me: “Im on it,” Phhewwww man….. I’m telling you guys.. You gotta love this ****. It’s what we all dream of as kids… What we think of as being “the coolest thing.” Knocked out the other side and Hit the giant Axle nuts with the Impact and before you knew it we had the car at 110% with 3 MIN to spare. I thought to myself….”Just enough time to go wash the axle grease from the CV’s off before I escort mike to the grid. #PUMPED. Wash half the grease off before I’m in a urgent jog in front of Mike to the grid. YES!!!! We Handled that like true Professionals! On the jog over.. you start thinking to yourself… did this person Tq that, or double check this? But Honestly…I’ve never been more confident in the work done. And that’s because I’ve learned from Warren to always double check whatever is in front of you. EVEN if a team member had just finished it. Putting your hand on it or a spanner wrench on it for no other reason than a piece of mind won’t ever hurt anything. It’ll make you catch that “What if” or prevent a failure. So I do it with almost everything. And If I catch someone doing it, you throw your ego in the trash and let them, because this is what a team is truly about. Back to racing…. Were up, Forrest ****, 2JZ Powered S15.
This would be a solid battle since the last time we met with Forrest we went “One More Time” in a smoke filled Atlanta Course.
Mike put a bit of heat into the tires and lined up Vs Forrest
The first Battle was solid, but Mike had a slight bobble on the bank following Forrest. He needed to put down a solid Lead run if he wanted even the slightest chance of moving on.
They took off and it looked as if Mike accelerating just a little quicker into the initiation…. But there was quick puff of e-brake…. He simply powered into it… Forrest on the other hand was right on his tail.. but he E-brake initiated which means letting off throttle and giving up potential proximity if the lead driver doesn’t use E-brake. Then the I sat and watched Mike mash the throttle through the floor-boards all the way around the bank!! I got chills as he pulled 4 cars…5 cars…. Pfffttt….7 Cars on **** by the time he entered the infield. And he wasn’t holding shallow angle either.. He was damn near ¾’s full lock! He finished the infield solid and the crowd was going crazy! There’s no way anyone could keep up with mike on the bank.. EVEN if their cars were fast enough. He would simply drive faster and mentally move himself up one level to out drive them. Both cars lined up at the Judgment sector and it was Official… ONE MORE TIME! WOOO! We pulled that one out for sure! ……But I was already in a full sprint back to the pit. Mike needs fuel, tires, and a quick once over in a little less than 5 min. By the time he got to the pit we had both 24Volt Snap-on cordless impacts set, the torque wrench at the ready and Warren was on the jack already pumping the car up. This is where Everyone needs to know their job. I bolt around the car and remove the gas cap, and by the time I’m on my knees pulling the drivers side Wheel off, Warren has the fill nozzle already in the MX filling her full of Race Gas. The Star Pattern rules my world here… Star pattern off with the lugs pull the wheel off in one motion.. Scott is always on point with our tires, I simply reach to my left and there’s a new wheel/tire set up waiting for me. Toss the wheel on, Star Pattern on with the Impact….but not too hard, otherwise these Snap on Cordless Impacts would strip out the studs.. Warren Yells “DOWN” Car goes down. I look up to make sure the gas lid was on… Yeap… Teammate was on it quicker than I. Me: F-Yea!!! Star Pattern Lugs, 1-4-2-5-3 BAM DONE! Run to the passenger side (our Drivers side since the MX is RHD) TQ 1-4-2-5-3 BAM DONE. Look up and Mikes off to the Grid. It may not mean anything to anyone else, but we beat the other team out every single time. Mike’s waiting at the grid ready for this First OMT Battle. Forrest would follow this time as Mike Lead the number one run… Both Drivers threw down solid runs…. Judgment ? OMT!!! I’m on the sprint again back to the pit as I escort Mike to the grid line just in case he or the team needs me to do anything in between battles etc. It’s good to give the driver a bit of a heads up on Tire wear…. So when he lines up on his lead run OR follow… he knows how much he can push the car in terms of grip and how much tire he’ll have left for the battle. The “Tire War” Hankook – Forrest RS3 Vs Nitto – Whiddett NTO5. PIT time.. Same Exact Motions as our first… Bam Finished.. But this time we pulled it faster.. so I double checked the front lugs… They were nice and Tight but it’s good to double check the small things every once in a while! We still beat the other team out, and they were running another Battle while we waited on grid. This would be the Second OMT Vs ****… and you could hear Evergreen Speedways Grandstands going nuts from afar! Even over the Rip of the twin turbo 4-rotor as Mike Put some heat into the Nt05’s! Mike would Lead this time around… And this is when to me at least… it seemed as if time stopped. His Lead up to the initiation seemed like it was done in slow motion…but again “No E-Brake” Powering into the bank… Forrest was ready..but still used e-brake and my body immediately tensed up with Goosebumps as I watched Mike and the MX Pull Car Lengths AGAIN on the Get Nuts S15. I could see Mike all the way around the bank then he disappears going into the infield so I simply start walking back in listen for our spotter to keep us informed… Theres contact.. I cringe…. But Mickey keeps us informed… Mike keeps composure… finishes his run like a champ. All we have to do is Pull off a solid follow run and we’re through to the next round! Mickey informs us the door is about to fall off…. “We need Race Tape” Warren is on the sprint to the pits… I start From the pits back to meet Warren!...... He Clayton Kershaw’s the tape from a good 30 Yards to me and I Yasiel Puig it and am back to Mike and the MX as he’s busting a U-turn to line up again… The Officials can deem it an Automatic “5-Min” if we can’t immediately continue.. I take one look at the door and see that for some reason there is ZERO damage and the door simply was nudged up and over.. off the quick hinges. Warren Built these Carbon doors Excellent.. what a good solid design!!! Warren gets to the MX as I was lifting the door back into place… we both put the door back on in less than 15 seconds… and Mike is off to the Line again. I look at Warren…. He looks at me… HIGH FIVE. (It’s the little Battles that mean the most). We Watch Both Cars Leave The Line with what looks like the Entire Grand Stand ON THEIR FEET!!! Both Cars Rip around the bank and Mike Does good in keeping Close Proximity to Forrest throughout the Entire Track…. Ive got Goosebumps… And I hear Mike Give a little “Hoot” over the head-set to ensure us he had a solid run. Judgement time.. “Mike Whiddett Moves ON.” YES!!!!
Up next…Vaughn Gitten JR and the V8 Powered Monster Energy Ford Mustang!!
sorry I have to cut short Part 2!!! Got a lot going on today! But I'll finish the Event with the next post!! And sorry for lack of pics I had a Video but my phone messed up and now for some reason the video isn't even visible.
Stay tuned!!!
I'll Finish Formula Drift Seattle in the next Post!!
08-15-15, 12:55 PM
#2357
Will you guys kill me if I skip the last part of the Event? I can give you guys a quick run through with pics?
What do you guys think!?
Reason being... busy busy week and we leave for Formula Drift Texas Wednesday...and I'll be prepping my car for the final round of Just Drift's Formula Drift Pro-Am on the 28th and 29th of this month. So I get back from Texas and need to double check some things on the wolf before heading out to the track. I've got most of the list knocked out but i've acquired a bit of a list for mikes car as well, so just trying to keep them all handled =-)
Let me know!!
What do you guys think!?
Reason being... busy busy week and we leave for Formula Drift Texas Wednesday...and I'll be prepping my car for the final round of Just Drift's Formula Drift Pro-Am on the 28th and 29th of this month. So I get back from Texas and need to double check some things on the wolf before heading out to the track. I've got most of the list knocked out but i've acquired a bit of a list for mikes car as well, so just trying to keep them all handled =-)
Let me know!!
08-16-15, 01:17 AM
#2358
Mannykiller's Street/Time Attack/Drift Build (Heavy Pics) Project: Le'Wolfe
yea pics are definitely better then nothing
be cool if you got pics of any of the broken bits. everyone likes to see some carnage.
be cool if you got pics of any of the broken bits. everyone likes to see some carnage.
08-19-15, 01:03 PM
#2360
gavbey
I know what you mean about the 595 RSR's mine have started de-laminating on normal daily driving. shocking quality
It looked to me like he was trying to drift on the Federal 595 SS (Super Steels) and they were chunking out with heat as they do.
The Federal 595 RS-R is better suited for drifting (and performance driving/racing) as they don't chunk out like that, but instead melt away with excessive heat.
You mention 595 RS-R "delaminating" Do you mean how the tread splice separates and it looks like a gash across the width of the tires in one spot? Federal says that is nothing to worry about.
I kept racing on my 595 RS-R as countless others do with "the gash" and it only got better with reduction in tread depth and never worse.
Anyways, the Federals ARE cheap cheap tires and the 595 RS-R gave up some refinement (they also typically take a lot of weight to balance and are loud) to offer the amazing performance they have at their price point.
I know what you mean about the 595 RSR's mine have started de-laminating on normal daily driving. shocking quality
It looked to me like he was trying to drift on the Federal 595 SS (Super Steels) and they were chunking out with heat as they do.
The Federal 595 RS-R is better suited for drifting (and performance driving/racing) as they don't chunk out like that, but instead melt away with excessive heat.
You mention 595 RS-R "delaminating" Do you mean how the tread splice separates and it looks like a gash across the width of the tires in one spot? Federal says that is nothing to worry about.
I kept racing on my 595 RS-R as countless others do with "the gash" and it only got better with reduction in tread depth and never worse.
Anyways, the Federals ARE cheap cheap tires and the 595 RS-R gave up some refinement (they also typically take a lot of weight to balance and are loud) to offer the amazing performance they have at their price point.
08-19-15, 09:18 PM
#2362
Love your write-ups man! It's so cool knowing some of the back-story and gaining some insight on what goes on behind the scenes at these events 
As a matter of fact I was just watching the FD round 3 Orlando vid on YT. Between the videos and your write-ups it almost feels like I'm there too
As a matter of fact I was just watching the FD round 3 Orlando vid on YT. Between the videos and your write-ups it almost feels like I'm there too
08-27-15, 12:48 PM
#2363
Probably my favorite thing to do haha.gavbey
I know what you mean about the 595 RSR's mine have started de-laminating on normal daily driving. shocking quality
It looked to me like he was trying to drift on the Federal 595 SS (Super Steels) and they were chunking out with heat as they do.
The Federal 595 RS-R is better suited for drifting (and performance driving/racing) as they don't chunk out like that, but instead melt away with excessive heat.
You mention 595 RS-R "delaminating" Do you mean how the tread splice separates and it looks like a gash across the width of the tires in one spot? Federal says that is nothing to worry about.
I kept racing on my 595 RS-R as countless others do with "the gash" and it only got better with reduction in tread depth and never worse.
Anyways, the Federals ARE cheap cheap tires and the 595 RS-R gave up some refinement (they also typically take a lot of weight to balance and are loud) to offer the amazing performance they have at their price point.
I know what you mean about the 595 RSR's mine have started de-laminating on normal daily driving. shocking quality
It looked to me like he was trying to drift on the Federal 595 SS (Super Steels) and they were chunking out with heat as they do.
The Federal 595 RS-R is better suited for drifting (and performance driving/racing) as they don't chunk out like that, but instead melt away with excessive heat.
You mention 595 RS-R "delaminating" Do you mean how the tread splice separates and it looks like a gash across the width of the tires in one spot? Federal says that is nothing to worry about.
I kept racing on my 595 RS-R as countless others do with "the gash" and it only got better with reduction in tread depth and never worse.
Anyways, the Federals ARE cheap cheap tires and the 595 RS-R gave up some refinement (they also typically take a lot of weight to balance and are loud) to offer the amazing performance they have at their price point.
Love your write-ups man! It's so cool knowing some of the back-story and gaining some insight on what goes on behind the scenes at these events
As a matter of fact I was just watching the FD round 3 Orlando vid on YT. Between the videos and your write-ups it almost feels like I'm there too
As a matter of fact I was just watching the FD round 3 Orlando vid on YT. Between the videos and your write-ups it almost feels like I'm there too
I'll start with the rest of the Seattle trip and go from there... Into Formula Drift Texas
08-27-15, 01:33 PM
#2364
Update: Lets Get to Pics!!!
My good buddy Dan loading up In Seattle!! Him and I have so much in common it's pretty weird how alike we are. If any of you guys like Supra's he's the guy to follow... He's built two of them to date.. Full out builds. The first car was the inspiration for the wolf. He's a killer builder and a solid driver. This is his first year in Formula Drift Pro 2 You guys can follow him on IG: Raddandrift
A small town an hour or so outside of Seattle.... Can't believe i forgot the name. This pastry shop was on point!
We spent 40 bucks on donuts and sweets.... I ate 5 in one sitting..
We rode in the back of the truck around town. Pretty Refreshing....reminded me of when I was young. Washington really is a beautiful state. Here's a pic of Robert, A very skilled fabricator/welder who pits for dan and works at Rad Industries. Me, Mike, Dan, Robert and Rene had a blast checking out Dan's hometown.
Gotta love properties like this. An adventurous kids Heaven!
We stored the rig at one of Dans neighbor's who owned a tree farm. Acres and Acres of trails through giant trees.... We walked a couple miles through them...lead by this golden retriever.
Gorgeous,.....I we must've eaten 1k wild Black Berries walking around throughout the couple days..
Mike found a snake
Dans buddy loves old rotary trucks!! REPU's!!!
My good buddy Dan loading up In Seattle!! Him and I have so much in common it's pretty weird how alike we are. If any of you guys like Supra's he's the guy to follow... He's built two of them to date.. Full out builds. The first car was the inspiration for the wolf. He's a killer builder and a solid driver. This is his first year in Formula Drift Pro 2 You guys can follow him on IG: Raddandrift
A small town an hour or so outside of Seattle.... Can't believe i forgot the name. This pastry shop was on point!
We spent 40 bucks on donuts and sweets.... I ate 5 in one sitting..
We rode in the back of the truck around town. Pretty Refreshing....reminded me of when I was young. Washington really is a beautiful state. Here's a pic of Robert, A very skilled fabricator/welder who pits for dan and works at Rad Industries. Me, Mike, Dan, Robert and Rene had a blast checking out Dan's hometown.
Gotta love properties like this. An adventurous kids Heaven!
We stored the rig at one of Dans neighbor's who owned a tree farm. Acres and Acres of trails through giant trees.... We walked a couple miles through them...lead by this golden retriever.
Gorgeous,.....I we must've eaten 1k wild Black Berries walking around throughout the couple days..
Mike found a snake
Dans buddy loves old rotary trucks!! REPU's!!!
08-27-15, 01:49 PM
#2365
Continued: "pic updates"
Me and Mike took the Ferry back into Seattle and got some pretty epic views of the City
The name of the bakery was Sluy's. Just in case anyone want's to check it out!
Got a pic of me messin around
Got home and installed my Rays Factory GT Wing
Got some sick Vinyl made up from SuperWow Factory.. A solid new Company that's into damn near everything track related. Check them out!!
Got to hang out with some old friends at home
Installed some EBC Reds for my Hydro Set up.... Tested them out and wow... I love them. They Feel much better than my OEM Vato'zone lifetime replacement pads haha
Got on a plane To Texas... for #FdTexas
Good to see #radbul Again!
This guy made a sick replica rc car of Radbull. It was damn near exact... hard top actually came of... revealing the cage and all!
Ate solid food at the event thanks to Toni!
Cabellas is like heaven for a fisherman...and a natural museum of sorts..... I could've spent hours trying out all the fly rods... the one I ended up liking was only $855.00......=-I figures...
Me and Mike took the Ferry back into Seattle and got some pretty epic views of the City
The name of the bakery was Sluy's. Just in case anyone want's to check it out!
Got a pic of me messin around
Got home and installed my Rays Factory GT Wing
Got some sick Vinyl made up from SuperWow Factory.. A solid new Company that's into damn near everything track related. Check them out!!
Got to hang out with some old friends at home
Installed some EBC Reds for my Hydro Set up.... Tested them out and wow... I love them. They Feel much better than my OEM Vato'zone lifetime replacement pads haha
Got on a plane To Texas... for #FdTexas
Good to see #radbul Again!
This guy made a sick replica rc car of Radbull. It was damn near exact... hard top actually came of... revealing the cage and all!
Ate solid food at the event thanks to Toni!
Cabellas is like heaven for a fisherman...and a natural museum of sorts..... I could've spent hours trying out all the fly rods... the one I ended up liking was only $855.00......=-I figures...
08-27-15, 02:04 PM
#2366
Continued: "Fd Texas photo update"
haha.. every type of animal in Cabellas
Me and Mike got to shoot these sweet *** Cross-Bows.. they really whip those arrows! Damn Accurate too
Practice
Texas was easily the hottest round. It was bakin out there...
always brings a smile to my face
Snappin a pic for mom and my gf monique =-)
Dan Qualified! And I was too busy in the pit to watch the ceremony..but I was able to snap a pic with him on the Nitto rig's big screen!
Ate at this crazy texas Meat restaurant... sooooo sorry im horrible at remembering names!
I ate the WHOLE THING!!! except the cornbread casserole
Right before our Battle with Yokoi
Mike ended up getting blinded behind Yokoi's smoke... took a chance and lost going into the tracks most dangerous wall section. He hit pretty hard but was ok. But we couldn't fix the damage done to the Mx in time to complete the battle. So we had to retire out of the race. Back at the nitto rig..assessing the damage
lots of damage but we were able to get it rolling again with all our spares.
haha.. every type of animal in Cabellas
Me and Mike got to shoot these sweet *** Cross-Bows.. they really whip those arrows! Damn Accurate too
Practice
Texas was easily the hottest round. It was bakin out there...
always brings a smile to my face
Snappin a pic for mom and my gf monique =-)
Dan Qualified! And I was too busy in the pit to watch the ceremony..but I was able to snap a pic with him on the Nitto rig's big screen!
Ate at this crazy texas Meat restaurant... sooooo sorry im horrible at remembering names!
I ate the WHOLE THING!!! except the cornbread casserole
Right before our Battle with Yokoi
Mike ended up getting blinded behind Yokoi's smoke... took a chance and lost going into the tracks most dangerous wall section. He hit pretty hard but was ok. But we couldn't fix the damage done to the Mx in time to complete the battle. So we had to retire out of the race. Back at the nitto rig..assessing the damage
lots of damage but we were able to get it rolling again with all our spares.
08-27-15, 02:12 PM
#2367
Continued:
q
Rotiform nabbed this sweet pic on practice day!
this lady had me bustin up while I waited for my connecting flight in AZ
added a visor to my helmet... I dont like it
Finally was able to drop my suit off at Corki's Embroidery to get done up! Thanks to Aftermarket Industries for the ability to do this!
came out really nice!!
.....just had too
My last round for Top drift is tomorrow night and saturday night! Then I get to put the new kit on and have some color put on the car for ASB!!! Looking forward to the break!!! but loving life. Thanks for reading guys! I'll also be out at Formula D's Thursday Night Drift at Irwindale speedway on the 10th! Come out and say whats up if you're in the area!!
Till next time!
More updates soon!
#Thisisthewolf
qRotiform nabbed this sweet pic on practice day!
this lady had me bustin up while I waited for my connecting flight in AZ
added a visor to my helmet... I dont like it
Finally was able to drop my suit off at Corki's Embroidery to get done up! Thanks to Aftermarket Industries for the ability to do this!
came out really nice!!
.....just had too
My last round for Top drift is tomorrow night and saturday night! Then I get to put the new kit on and have some color put on the car for ASB!!! Looking forward to the break!!! but loving life. Thanks for reading guys! I'll also be out at Formula D's Thursday Night Drift at Irwindale speedway on the 10th! Come out and say whats up if you're in the area!!
Till next time!
More updates soon!
#Thisisthewolf
09-03-15, 03:38 AM
#2369
Update: "Top Drift Round 4"
Plug in...turn up...and enjoy the ride
You know..... quite often in life we tend to forget just how important each and every moment can be. The hours we spend working on these beautiful machines, and fail...and fail... yet it's all just the test. Because through the failure....if you can learn from each one.. You will rise a better more knowledgeable person. In the moment.... in Any moment... the next time you're having a good time. I want you to stop and close your eyes, and think about those who love you. Those who have supported you. Those who may not be around any further or that have passed away. What would they think in that moment if you were able to give that moment away? I sit here and think about my Father, who I was never close with, but had given me life, and the tools to succeed. I sit here and think about my friend Marco, who loved his Miata and the track soo much that he showed up to the track with Tracheotomy and ran the whole day although he was going through yet Another round of Chemo. Marco passed away a few months ago, and My father a couple years back. I make it a point to thank them every time I get into the wolf. Thank life that I'm able to experience things that some people may never get the chance to. And I hope never to live that down. To dishonor this in any way would be to disrespect my source of inspiration...and I can't let that be. "To close my eyes and hear her idle. Never forget the steps it took to get here, ...Thank my father and Marco for the inspiration and pray thankfulness that I am of sound body and soul to be sitting in the drivers seat of this machine."
You can really feel each pulse of the rotary engine if you close your eyes... and when you open them to this... be thankful
Really wish My Dad could've seen this
Managed to Qualify 14th against the odds!! The wolf ran beautifully the entire event
This is Joe Tardiff, one of the most genuine, helpful and positive people I've met in drifting. He qualified first and took home 1st.... Well deserved. Drove like a machine the entire event. "I try to drive with at least 95% throttle at all times." - I'll never forget those words he said to me in the beginning of the season. They stuck!
focus
Top 8 Battle vs the Driftslayer... Made a hefty mistake coming out of the last outer zone and straightened. He drove more consistent and Although I felt I put down a solid Lead run.... He was more consistent and deserved the win.
Qualifying in Just Drift's "Top Drift" series means a lot to me. Means that I am capable and that the car is Capable. I'll continue to learn, and develop my set up with the wolf. I owe it to her, for everything she's given me, and for the gentle reminder to never take life for granted.
Rest in Peace David Pullum Lott, and Rest in Peace Marco Maccoy Canlas
Thank you
Plug in...turn up...and enjoy the ride
You know..... quite often in life we tend to forget just how important each and every moment can be. The hours we spend working on these beautiful machines, and fail...and fail... yet it's all just the test. Because through the failure....if you can learn from each one.. You will rise a better more knowledgeable person. In the moment.... in Any moment... the next time you're having a good time. I want you to stop and close your eyes, and think about those who love you. Those who have supported you. Those who may not be around any further or that have passed away. What would they think in that moment if you were able to give that moment away? I sit here and think about my Father, who I was never close with, but had given me life, and the tools to succeed. I sit here and think about my friend Marco, who loved his Miata and the track soo much that he showed up to the track with Tracheotomy and ran the whole day although he was going through yet Another round of Chemo. Marco passed away a few months ago, and My father a couple years back. I make it a point to thank them every time I get into the wolf. Thank life that I'm able to experience things that some people may never get the chance to. And I hope never to live that down. To dishonor this in any way would be to disrespect my source of inspiration...and I can't let that be. "To close my eyes and hear her idle. Never forget the steps it took to get here, ...Thank my father and Marco for the inspiration and pray thankfulness that I am of sound body and soul to be sitting in the drivers seat of this machine."
You can really feel each pulse of the rotary engine if you close your eyes... and when you open them to this... be thankful
Really wish My Dad could've seen this
Managed to Qualify 14th against the odds!! The wolf ran beautifully the entire event
This is Joe Tardiff, one of the most genuine, helpful and positive people I've met in drifting. He qualified first and took home 1st.... Well deserved. Drove like a machine the entire event. "I try to drive with at least 95% throttle at all times." - I'll never forget those words he said to me in the beginning of the season. They stuck!
focus
Top 8 Battle vs the Driftslayer... Made a hefty mistake coming out of the last outer zone and straightened. He drove more consistent and Although I felt I put down a solid Lead run.... He was more consistent and deserved the win.
Qualifying in Just Drift's "Top Drift" series means a lot to me. Means that I am capable and that the car is Capable. I'll continue to learn, and develop my set up with the wolf. I owe it to her, for everything she's given me, and for the gentle reminder to never take life for granted.
Rest in Peace David Pullum Lott, and Rest in Peace Marco Maccoy Canlas
Thank you
09-11-15, 08:49 PM
#2374
Update: "Coming Along"
Was able to get the new kit on finally!! Now that the comp season is over, I had a few days to relax and get the new kit together. Pumped how it came out,...chose all of my favorite parts from my favorite kits. Check it!
I love it..and fitment is spot on!
I spent a full 2 days making sure to dremel and cut for all clearance issues..rubs and possible contact points. Last thing I wanted to do is to mess up my new kit. Compressed each wheel and clearanced it,...paying special attention to the front wheels due to angle mods and all the reach. This took the longest but When I hit the track...it'll make all the difference in the world...and help keep my nice kit nice...for a photoshoot maybe haha.
Decided To go drift Thursday Night Drift at Irwindale Speedway and really get some higher speeds logged in the wolf. Was able to score a feature in Drift Life magazine as well! Pretty pumped! We got to roll out before any of the cars got there and shoot on the track by ourselves. Looking forward to how the pictures come out!
The car passed for A Class Tech so I was a GO for the big Formula Drift bank course. Wasn't sure if I should give it a go but figured It'd be nice to feel the bank for the first time.
waiting on the grid ready to rock
Hit the bank and re initiated...but then the bank sucked me up and almost claimed me. Realized I was going too slow and not committed enough... Now I know haha. Stuck to the inner smaller bank for the rest of the night. The car was feeling good and Abel Ibarra came out and kept smoothing out my tune... lap after lap. By my last lap..the car was feeling even better than before!! And I thought it was smooth already....Feels really good guys!!
And Here is the Feature Video from Sean Alessi. Solid Video!! Hope you enjoy it!!!
More Updates soon!!
Stay Tuned for some Solid Announcements!!
#ThisIsTheWolf
Was able to get the new kit on finally!! Now that the comp season is over, I had a few days to relax and get the new kit together. Pumped how it came out,...chose all of my favorite parts from my favorite kits. Check it!
I love it..and fitment is spot on!
I spent a full 2 days making sure to dremel and cut for all clearance issues..rubs and possible contact points. Last thing I wanted to do is to mess up my new kit. Compressed each wheel and clearanced it,...paying special attention to the front wheels due to angle mods and all the reach. This took the longest but When I hit the track...it'll make all the difference in the world...and help keep my nice kit nice...for a photoshoot maybe haha.
Decided To go drift Thursday Night Drift at Irwindale Speedway and really get some higher speeds logged in the wolf. Was able to score a feature in Drift Life magazine as well! Pretty pumped! We got to roll out before any of the cars got there and shoot on the track by ourselves. Looking forward to how the pictures come out!
The car passed for A Class Tech so I was a GO for the big Formula Drift bank course. Wasn't sure if I should give it a go but figured It'd be nice to feel the bank for the first time.
waiting on the grid ready to rock
Hit the bank and re initiated...but then the bank sucked me up and almost claimed me. Realized I was going too slow and not committed enough... Now I know haha. Stuck to the inner smaller bank for the rest of the night. The car was feeling good and Abel Ibarra came out and kept smoothing out my tune... lap after lap. By my last lap..the car was feeling even better than before!! And I thought it was smooth already....Feels really good guys!!
And Here is the Feature Video from Sean Alessi. Solid Video!! Hope you enjoy it!!!
More Updates soon!!
Stay Tuned for some Solid Announcements!!
#ThisIsTheWolf
