HECTIC Drifting at Ebisu Matsuri!

The madness that ensues at Ebisu Drift Matsuri events is something that I’ve always hoped to experience, and this year it finally happened.

It was my first time ever going to Ebisu Circuit in general, and it exceeded every expectation that I had. The pictures and videos don’t portray just how massive the property is, with 10 different courses expanding throughout a giant forest. Not only was it insane to see that many tracks bundled into one, but the entire complex is extraordinarily picturesque and makes you feel like you’ve been transported into a secret little drifting dreamland.

My friend Stew picked me up from the gates on Friday morning and we went right to the heart of the action at the Kita (North) Course. Being greeted with wall rides, reverse entries, and sanpatsu, it was immediately clear to me that this weekend would be full of crazy drifting to an extent that I had never seen before. I began making my way around the pits, exploring all of the different features and introducing myself to the fellow drift enthusiasts that were watching. This was still a practice/open drift day, leaving me curious and excited for what awaited us on the official days of Matsuri.

Saturday was incredible, the sun was shining and it was a beautiful day for drifting. It was also the perfect weather for getting an atrocious sunburn, which I did, so remember to wear your sunscreen!

I spent most of the day on Friday at North Course, but every track was being used on Saturday and it was really exciting seeing them all in action. My favourite part was seeing Minami course open and being used again, restoration seems to be well underway and hopefully will be brought back better than ever. The only track I didn’t get a chance to see on this day was Nishi course, but I’m glad I saved it for the last day…

The last day of a drift event always seem to be bittersweet, there was still so much excitement throughout the day but also knowing that the weekend would be coming to an end soon made the mood a little bit more sombre.

I had spent most of my day at Nishi course and really have never seen anything like that before. For the last few hours of the day, everyone wanted to come down and party, which meant huge drift trains. It was truly quite the specatacle.

Drift Matsuri was the first drift event that I’ve gone to during this trip and offered a big change in pace from all of the kaido racer events I’ve been attending lately. I was honestly on the fence about if I should make the trip out there for it, but I’m really glad that I did. This weekend really reignited my passion for drifting and has generated a lot of excitement for me to finish up my car and practice drifting myself when I get home.

I’m so thankful for all the friends who hung out with me and made this such a fun, adventure. Even more so am I beyond grateful for all the new friends I made throughout the weekend, especially those who took me drifting or for ridealongs. One of the best parts about drifting is the community aspect, and this reminded me just how much fun it is to connect with other people over a similar passion for hard driving and having fun. I can’t thank everyone enough!

Hopefully the next time that I go to Matsuri I’ll have my own car to drive all weekend and the rest of the Checkpoint team can join me too.